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Smooth swing
By MELIA BOWIE, Times Staff Writer HUNTER'S GREEN -- First came love of the game for softball player Dean Hale. Next came the desire to coach it at Hillsborough Community College. Then two years ago, Hale decided to do his part in changing the way softball is played -- or at least the bat it's played with. Years of research and tinkering with new technology yielded The Hale Storm, a 34-inch slow-pitch softball bat for connoisseurs of the sport. Now on the market, it sells for $185 and has turned a favored pastime into a fulfilled dream for the Hunter's Green homeowner. "We didn't want to reinvent the wheel, we just felt we could make it a little smoother," said Hale, 36. He co-founded Hale Sports in 2000 with his brother P.K. Hale, who lives in the Atlanta area. The sporting goods company is now doing research and development on a slow-pitch bat for young players. Slow-pitch models traditionally are 3 inches shorter than normal softball bats and are heavier, said Hale, who plays on a competitive tournament team. He and his brother were ball players and coaches at every level of the game save "the big show," he said. They are still at it today, said the entrepreneur, who plays first and third base, and is his team's unofficial "bat man." "A lot of people think softball players are just beer drinkers and we're out of shape," he said. Not so. "It's very competitive." Team Hale Storm/Hale Sports is a tournament team affiliated with several organizations including the Florida-based Independent Softball Association. The team is competing in the world championships this month for a National Softball Association title. The players travel nationwide for the three-day tournaments, hitting the batting cages when they can and trying to stay in shape through diet and exercise. "We're athletes," he said. And "we take it very seriously." The 17 men on the team come from as far as Palm Harbor and Pasco County. By day they are accountants and attorneys, graphic artists, entrepreneurs and school employees. Many are in sales, said Hale, adding "I don't know if that says something about the competitive nature of (the game)." Everyone on the team uses Hale's bat. So do 20 teams nationwide that the company sponsors, along with a military team in South Korea. "Sometimes it's hard to draw that line; am I working or am I playing? I'll be at a tournament and someone will come up and ask me about the bat and I have to change gears," he said. But "it's not often you get to do something you truly enjoy." -- Staff writer Melia Bowie can be reached at bowie@sptimes.com.
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From the Times |
