When you’re looking for a place to knock ‘em down (and knock a few back—craft brews, anyone?), head to Greenbrier Bowling & Rec Center in Lewisburg. This is the perfect spot to bowl a perfect (or imperfect) game. It has a relaxing atmosphere, 24 lanes with automatic scoring, pool tables, numerous arcade games, live music, bowling leagues, and cosmic bowling. Hungry? Check out the menu or the adjacent sports bar, Spare Time.

David Johnson manages the facility and tells us there are a variety of ways to bowl including bowling by the game, purchasing a party package, or cosmic bowling. They have plenty of bumper bowling lanes just for kids! Bumpers are great to keep the bowling balls out of the gutters and smiles on the faces of your small children.There are also several different leagues and tournaments. Don’t worry about the gear as they offer shoe rental and a full-service Pro Shop.

Every weekend, you can bowl in cool lights with cosmic bowling. Accompanied by popular music over the speakers (or a live band!), the regular lights are turned off and the bowling alley utilizes black lights, lasers, and disco balls throughout the lanes. You can enjoy this glow in the dark fun on Friday nights and at a couple time slots on Saturdays and Sundays.

The bowling alley offers a snack bar, Perky’s pizza, burgers and subs. They also have an ever-growing selection of craft and traditional beers. Connected to the facility is the local sports bar, Spare Time. There are at least a dozen draft beer choices, wings, whole racks of ribs, Philly cheese steaks, English hot dogs, steak and cheddar sandwiches, blue cheese burgers, pizzas, various wraps, soups, and salads.

A few times a month, the bowling alley hosts live performances. This past October, they welcomed bands from a variety of genres including Qiet (1920’s jazz and pure punk rock), Bad Keys of the Mountain with Lazy/Justified (blues, rock, and jazz), and The Kind Thieves (psychedelic/jam/Americana).

On Friday, November 16th, 8:30p-12am, make plans to see Beggars Clan, a nine-piece group bringing funk, reggae, and rock to West Virginia. This band is from Charleston and their influences are Bob Marley, Easy Star All Stars, The Beatles, Al Green, Long Beach Dub All Stars, The Grateful Dead, Toots and the Maytals. Learn more about them at beggarsclan.com. On Saturday, November 24th, acoustic duo Nathan Seldomridge and Dan Freeman will play from 9p-12am. David tells us all music events are family-friendly and children under 14 always get in free.

The big draw here are the leagues. David says they are full of fun and build comradery amongst the bowlers. He tells us, “All of our really good bowlers are very helpful with tips and advice for newcomers.  Several league bowlers also volunteer with our youth league,” There is currently a 55 and older league on Tuesdays at 10:30am; a five-man team, men’s league that bowls Mondays at 6:30pm; Tuesday and Thursday mixed leagues (men + women) at 6:30pm.

There are also two youth leagues, including a bumper group for younger kids, and the youth league. Both of these leagues meet on Saturday mornings at 11:00am. Ronda Edmonds has been managing the youth leagues for several years and David says, “We are very lucky to have Ronda running our youth league. This gives us a great ratio of younger folks joining leagues and bowling regularly. Having a strong youth following has been an integral part of the bowling alley’s success. Greenbrier East High School has added a bowling team thanks to several of our youth bowlers.”

On Sunday, November 4 at 1pm, the bowling alley will hold a Demo Day, where ball manufacturer representatives will come out and show bowlers all their finest wares. On this same day, the bowling alley is kicking off a King of the Hill Tournament Series, starting at 6pm. This series will continuously be held the first Sunday each month. David says they have sponsorship opportunities for the tournament series for potential advertisers.

December will be full of music and a few other special events. And in 2019, David tells us to look forward to more music, bigger acts, more dance space, and maybe a little karaoke on the entertainment front. He and his team are brewing up several ideas for company events and functions along with private parties. They also hope to add some new and exciting additions for birthday parties and expand their arcade game area.

From a toddler’s birthday party to competition level bowlers.. when looking for family fun in Lewisburg, look no further than Greenbrier Bowling & Rec Center in Lewisburg. They are located at 137 Maple Carriage Dr. For more info, call 304-645-3111. Find them on fb @GreenbrierBowlingandRec.

– HashtagWV #107. November 2018.