Wizards vie for replay honors
By S. JEFF FOREMAN
and CARL BRYANT
Of the Emerald
Ding, ding... ding... flip... ding... flip, flip,
flip. Flipped out! And so it goes with the
artful and often times frustrating game of
pinball.
Calling pinball a game hardly describes
the phenomenon that innocently creeps
into a life and gradually destroys outside
interests. It’s addicting — this story nearly
didn’t get written because of it. Pinball has
come out of the dark comers of bowling
alleys and has now machined its way into
amusement halls as the main attraction.
Charlie's, Charlie's Too, the EMU down
stairs and just about every tavern in town
are among the villains tempting the young
and old alike with the mechanical monster
known more affectionately as a "favorite
’chine." One thing to remember; pinball
starts with a "p” and that rhymes with “t"
and that stands for trouble.
One local company, Gem Vending, has
about 100 machines in the Eugene
Springfield area. The average life of a pin
ball machine is two to three years, accord
ing to manager Jim Jennings. The
machines run about $1,500 to $2,000,
which more or less discourages pinball jun
kies from purchasing a front room fixture.
Jennings said the cash box, or how much
a machine makes, determines the ones that
go and those that stay. New machines are
always popular, probably because they
represent a new challenge — a sort of "be
Photo by Adrienne Salnger
The games are turning to solid-state, electro-mechanical wonders, but the old-time
challenge of trying to beat the machine remains in pinball porlors, local taverns and the
EMU basement.
oause it’s there" syndrome. But old
machines become old friends and would-be
wizards know how to coax and bump their
favorites without a bad-stopping tilt.
“We re trying to get into solid-state from
electro-mechanical," Jennings said, refer
ring to the new computerized games like
Evil Kneivel, where the scoreboard resem
bles an over-sized calculator. These new
machines are programmed via a mathemat
ical formula to offer one game (with only
three balls), as opposed to the older
machines which give a player five balls per
game.
“A good player usually gets five or more
balls, anyway, because when enough lights
and bonuses are hit, he same player shoots
again. In other words, extra balls can be
earned,'’ said Amie Nelson, manager of
Canteen Company of Oregon, another pin
ball supplier. He attributed the increase to
inflation. “A game used to cost a nickel
then it went to a dime, then a quarter. Now,
there are just fewer balls — it’s the same as
everything else.”
Nelson figured some machines last up to
30 years, they become classics. Each
machine is serviced about every eight to ten
weeks, depending on its use and location. A
game in a tavern or any other smoky place
needs to be cleaned more often.
Servicing a pinball machine is truly an art
There are no schools where the trade can
be learned — it is completely self-taught.
“Pinball mechanics are tougher to find than
hens' teeth,” Nelson said. Canteen’s cur-,
rent mechanic was lured away from San
Diego and now has talked several of his old
buddies from California into joining him up
here in the Northwest.
In some out-of-the-way taverns a pinball
machine without flippers and costing a
nickle can be found. These machines build
odds in the player’s favor with each addi
tional nickle and a payoff of sometimes in
the hundreds of dollars can be collected
from behind the bar for winning games. It
should be noted that these games are
against state law and are privately owned or
mysteriously supplied by unnamed organi
zations.
But most of the games found around the
area are strictly for amusement. As with life,
in pinball a true winner can’t be found be
cause no matter how many games are won,
the first quarter is non-refundable.
Parks•
(Continued from Page 22)
Parks and Recreation Depart
ment.
For bicycle enthusiasts, the de
partment has scheduled 14 bicy
cle tours around the countryside,
including a three-day tour that will
ride over the Santiam/McKenzie
pass set for Oct. 14 through 16.
Several of the tours will average
only a few hours each day they are
held, with trips through West
Eugene, to Fern Ridge Reservoir,
a visit to Mt. Angel's St. Benedict’s
Abbey and an historic homes cycl
ing tour in December.
There will also be three work
shops on bicycle repair techni
ques, cycle-touring, and cold
weather riding, held in two ses
sions, beginning Sept. 26 and Oct.
3, and ending as late as Dec. 8.
The parks department has more
information on each of the work
shops and their registration dates.
Other parks activities will in
clude special outdoor slide prog
rams and further education
courses for persons with far
reaching interests.
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