Bowling alley reopens under new ownership in Ritzville

After losing one of the Ritzville community’s favorite pastimes when the doors of the local bowling alley closed, the facility has now reopened as Bob’s Big Bend Bowl. The alley is now open Monday through Saturday and is managed by owner Bob Seipp and his family.

Seipp has an important bond with the Ritzville alley, as he helped install the lanes. The lanes were moved from Rosalia, and Seipp was instrumental in their installation, which led to the opening of alley and a popular destination.

He continues his success with bringing bowling to Ritzville with his purchase of the facility and preparedness to welcome the community back into the establishment. Seipp has always had a passion for bowling, and the only thing that outweighs his love of the sport is his enjoyment of the people who visit.

The alley opened briefly to host the annual Ritzville Triathlon in May, and then closed for a few weeks to complete renovations and cleaning. The restaurant and lanes are now open for business, and Seipp is looking forward to welcoming community members and visitors to the alley.

Seipp has worked in bowling centers for countless years and has always enjoyed the atmosphere and people. He not only assisted with maintenance of the equipment, but also helped oversee a portion of the operations.

Along with his work in bowling alleys, Seipp also worked as a truck driver, as well as a teacher in the Cheney School District for many years.

He spent the majority of his time in bowling alleys in Airway Heights at Airway Bowl. It served as a second home for him, and he was a partner in the business.

Seipp currently resides in the Cheney area on a farm, and is commuting to Ritzville each day to open the business to the public. He is assisted by his family in the operation of the business, but they are currently looking to hire an employee to manage the facility during their times of absence.

Bowling has always been in Seipp’s blood, he explained, as his family has been heavily involved in the business or were professional bowlers. In his teenage years, Seipp also traveled as a competitive bowler.

Seipp has visited the Ritzville alley for years, and figured if the time were right, he would consider operating the facility.

After learning of the closure of the alley, Seipp investigated the reasoning and expressed his interest in running the facility.

He officially purchased the building and quickly began working on having the bowling alley operational for the public.

Seipp said they are planning a grand opening ceremony in September, but is kicking off the reopening with summer bowling leagues.

The alley will host bowling leagues year-round, and any team of four individuals can participate.

The teams can be comprised of adults or youth only, or they can also be a combination team. Seipp said one of his largest passions is engaging youth in extracurricular activities, and this is a step in the right direction.

Along with offering youth bowling leagues, Seipp is also looking to reach out to local youth organizations to invite them to host an event at the facility. The alley offers safe fun for youth, while allowing them to engage in a positive activity.

With harvest season currently ongoing, Seipp said business has been slow at the alley, but he is hopeful it will increase after harvest.

The restaurant has served as a draw for locals, and along with his expertise with bowling equipment; Seipp also manages the cooking in the restaurant.

The restaurant is located in the bowling alley, and includes a full menu of food for locals to choose from. Seipp takes pride in offering high quality, fresh products in the restaurant, as well as mandatory fried foods.

Among the fresh made menu items are burgers, pizza and nachos. Seipp explained all of the burgers are handmade and high quality meat.

As Seipp and his family prepare for the upcoming grand opening, he is hopeful the community will come out and support his endeavor. As a privately owned business, Seipp said he relies on the community effort in order to keep the facility operational.

Seipp said his long-term plan is to update all of the equipment in the facility, and the first changes patrons will see is an updated scoring system. Eventually, Seipp said he would like to update the lanes.

Another plan for the facility is to add “bumpers” for children to bowl without the ball ending up in the gutters.

One of the activities he is most excited to offer to the community is moonlight bowling, where patrons can bowl with only black lights and neon illuminating the facility. Seipp originally introduced cosmic bowling in Spokane, and he looks forward to doing the same thing for Ritzville.

As work at the facility progresses, Seipp said they will also offer pool and dart leagues for residents to participate in. The alley will also continue to offer special rates for parties, and Seipp said they are in the process of obtaining their liquor license, which they hope to have within the month.

Seipp added any individual who currently has a locker at the facility is welcome to pick up their equipment or continue to rent the space. Lockers are available to rent for any individual interested in keeping their bowling gear at the alley.

Bob’s Big Bend Bowl is open from 11 a.m. until 10 p.m. Monday-Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday.

The bowling alley is located at 119 East Main Avenue in Ritzville, and can be reached at 659-0540.