Sky Zone to host 3-D Dodgeball regional qualifier

Eight years ago Sky Zone Indoor Trampoline Park was a unique experiment in a quiet corner of the Las Vegas Valley. Today it's a sprawling international franchise with 22 locations, and it's preparing for its first company wide competition.

The original Sky Zone location, where Los Angeles-based entrepreneur Rick Platt filled a warehouse with trampolines and created a new sport, is at 4915 Steptoe St .

"We were in Las Vegas because the woman I bought the patent for the idea from, Karin Winkelhorn, lived there," Platt said. "Also, we could get the space inexpensively."

The facility originally was called Sky Mania, and Sky Zone was the name of the game Platt was trying to create. Winkelhorn's patent was for a game played on the trampoline playing field, but it was up to Platt to develop the rules for the game. He built the playing field and then hired athletes to form two teams to play the hybrid of basketball, football and gymnastics, a sport that looked less like football and more like a deleted scene from "Star Trek."

After an initial public match at The Orleans Arena in 2004 failed to garner large national interest, the sport was put on the back burner. By that time, interest was developing in the facility.

"We were lucky, because we were right next door to (SkateCity) indoor skate park," Platt said. "The skate kids started coming over and asking if they could try it out."

Soon, the main business wasn't the sport but the park. Platt admits that some of the business they had to make up as they went along.

"People began to call up and ask stuff like if we did birthday parties there," Platt said. "We said, 'Of course,' and then we had to figure out how to do them."

Although the game of Sky Zone, with points scored by throwing a ball through a spinning hoop suspended from the ceiling, or even more incredibly, by jumping through the hoop, proved to have too steep a learning curve to make it immediately popular, dodgeball games started to be a regular attraction at the facility.

"Everyone knows how to play dodgeball," Platt said. "3-D Dodgeball is the same thing, except now you can jump up to 10 feet in the air."

Platt's son Jeff opened up a second location in St. Louis in 2006. In 2009 the company began selling franchises, and currently there are 21 Sky Zone locations across the United States, plus the first location outside the U.S. in Toronto. In all, 80 franchises have been sold, and the remainder are in varying degrees of development.

Tournaments featuring 3-D Dodgeball were offered frequently at the franchises over the years. In late September and early October the company plans 3-D Dodgeball regional qualifying tournaments at all 22 locations. The winners of those competitions are slated to meet Nov. 9-11 at Sky Zone Torrance, 1625 W. 190th St. in Gardena, Calif., for the inaugural World 3-D Dodgeball Championship.

In previous local competitions, the purse has been secondary to bragging rights, with prizes such as coupons for local companies, time at the park or relatively small cash prizes. The championship this year is set to award more than $100,000 in prizes with a $25,000 grand prize.

"It's going to be a big event," Platt said. "It's going to be televised in December on Fox Sports."

The Las Vegas qualifying matches are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Saturday and Sunday . Teams are made up of five to eight players, with five playing in a match. The entry fee is $200. Team members must be 18 or older. The winners of the best two out of three matches move on in the standings . The Las Vegas winners go on to the nationals.

"We're very excited about it. We've got a lot of people talking about competing," said Sky Zone Las Vegas general manager Mallory Rueca . "I've put together goody bags with items from local businesses for all of the participants."

Platt said he plans to make the championship an annual event. But he has other plans for the company, too.

"Now that we have a lot of people who are familiar with the court and how to move on it, we're ready to take another look at the Sky Zone game," he said.

For more information, visit lasvegas. skyzonesports.com or call 436-6887.

Contact Sunrise/Whitney View reporter F. Andrew Taylor at ataylor@viewnews.com or 380-4532.