Tom Hebbe purchased Blue River Lanes in Shelbyville, Indiana from his mother in 1996. The $500,000 renovations began the same year, and have made all the difference for the center.

Hebbe started with a simple, yet important, change. After toying with a few names, Blue River Lanes became known as Blue River Bowl. Though only a slight change, it was a hard one for him to make.

“My daughter is still mad at me because we didn’t go with Irresisti-Bowl,” Hebbe said

With a new name picked out, Hebbe began adding, replacing and fixing every detail within the center. At first, Hebbe added a snack bar and service closet, and then went on to replace the first of three heating and cooling units. By March 1997, a complete remodeling and modernization of the inside had begun. New additions included Brunswick Touchworx-Automatic Scoring, new seating and new ball returns, 16 lanes of Ball Wall Bumper Bowling and even new pins. Though a lot of hard work and money have been put into it, Hebbe has no regrets.

“The best advice came from mechanic, Mel Smith,” Hebbe explains. “He said, ‘Put the scoring in and let it pay for everything else’.”

More changes such as new carpeting, remodeled bathrooms and lockers finished up the interior renovations of Blue River Bowl. With a new inside, things were looking up, but not as much as Hebbe had hoped.

In August 2003, Hebbe made the biggest change of all with a complete remodeling of the exterior, and new signage for the building. Hebbe has always felt that if he can get people to come once, they will return. His bright, bold sign has aided him in that process. It is this change, he says, that has had the most impact.

Now that the physical transformation is complete, Hebbe says that in upcoming months he will be focused on working smarter and harder and getting employees to work in that vain as well. Hebbe has already put several new plans into action that he has learned through different conferences and conventions. With these ideas, Hebbe hopes to build a stronger league base and returning customer rate.

“I came to the conclusion that I should strive for perfection, and that I should expect the same from my employees,” Hebbe said.

From the beginning of the entire process, it has been Hebbe’s goal to make Blue River Bowl the best center possible, and he continues to work for that.