Lead mechanic brings bowling center lanes to life

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Mike Tryon
  • 90th Missile Wing Public Affairs
F. E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. --  All is quiet as he enters the building. He flips a switch and there is a hum as lights begin to flicker on.

After the lights come up, this 24-year bowling center veteran with a neatly trimmed mustache goes to the back and fires up the 12 pin setters. It is no longer quiet. Sounds of motors turning and pins rumbling fill the bowling center here.

Bernard "Mack" McBreairty, 90th Force Support Squadron bowling center lead mechanic, continues his morning routine as he wipes down all the belts and machines in the back -- an essential step in ensuring bowlers are able to roll their games with minimal delay.

Once all the pin setters have been cleaned, serviced and cycled, Mack strips the lanes and gives them a fresh coat of oil using a lane machine.

Customers begin to arrive.

Mack and the other bowling center staff work to give their patrons breakfast -- the main item on the menu, burritos.

"Mack is the guy everybody knows," said Jeff Bailey, 90th FSS bowling center manager. "He's usually the first one to greet people as they enter the center."

As patrons eat their burritos, some of them request to bowl, typically Lanes 3 and 4. This sends Mack to behind the lanes once again.

"It's important to keep an eye on the machines," Mack said. "They're the most critical part of the whole system. I don't know what it is about [Lanes] 3 and 4, but they are the most bowled of all the lanes."

While it doesn't happen frequently, Mack added, pins will tend to jam as they are fed through into the pin setter.

When that happens, Mack said he, or any other mechanic on duty, will go in the back and manually load the pins into the setter.

"It doesn't matter where I am in the center," Mack said. "There's a distinct sound the machines make when pins get jammed. I scan the lanes to see which one is being held up, and I go fix the problem."

As they day goes on, more bowlers come to use the lanes, filling up the center.

With the center filling up, eventually some patrons will be placed on Lane 10 -- "Honey."

Lane 10 was given the name Honey because it was the only lane without a sticker on it, Mack said.

"Mack, Lane 5 needs the 5-pin reset, 5-pin on Lane 5," is called from the front desk via loud speaker in the back.

Mack grabs a long pole with a hook on the end of it, picks up a pin out of the pin setter and resets the 5-pin.

"If there is only one pin needing to be reset, I'll just use the hook and do it manually," Mack said. "But, if there are several pins needing reset, I'll unload all the other pins from the pin setter and let the machine do it. Letting the machine do it is faster, which keeps bowlers happy because they can get back to their game sooner."

Mack does more than just work in the back, he said. There is plenty that needs to be done, so everyone works together to accomplish it.

"There's a real family atmosphere here," Bailey said. "Mack's a big part of that. Everything he does is top notch, and it shows. Whether it's greeting customers, keeping the league bowlers happy, cooking or working renovations, Mack does it all.

"He's usually the first one here and the last to leave," Bailey added.

Before he leaves, Mack cycles and powers down the machines.

With the machines and lights powered off, the veteran mechanic's day is done.