Pinball Wizards

Dan Nikolich, an engineer by trade, meant to buy only one pinball machine. He just wanted to fix it up, see if he could make it work. The process was so rewarding that he bought another. “I’m just going to buy one more,” he thought at the time, “and that...

By Drew Bixby

April 22, 2010

We’re $800 away from our summer campaign goal,
with just 2 days left!

We’re ready to deliver—but we need the resources to do it right. If Westword matters to you, please take action and contribute today to help us expand our current events coverage when it’s needed most.

Contribute Now

Progress to goal

$17,000

$16,200

Audio By Carbonatix

[
          {
            "name": "GPT - Billboard - Slot Inline - Content - Labeled - No Desktop",
            "component": "23668565",
            "insertPoint": "2",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
          },{
            "name": "STN Player - Float - Mobile Only ",
            "component": "23853568",
            "insertPoint": "2",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
          },{
            "name": "Editor Picks",
            "component": "17242653",
            "insertPoint": "4",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
          },{
            "name": "Inline Links",
            "component": "18838239",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 8,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          },{
            "name": "GPT - 2x Rectangles Desktop, Tower on Mobile - Labeled",
            "component": "24956856",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 8,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
            "maxInsertions": 25 
          
          },{
            "name": "Inline Links",
            "component": "18838239",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 12,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          },{
            "name": "GPT - Leaderboard to Tower - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
            "component": "17676724",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 12,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          }
        ]

Dan Nikolich, an engineer by trade, meant to buy only one pinball machine. He just wanted to fix it up, see if he could make it work. The process was so rewarding that he bought another. “I’m just going to buy one more,” he thought at the time, “and that turned into one more and one more, and all of a sudden, eight years later, I have fifty,” he says. He keeps six of them in his personal game room, one at his in-laws’, one at a friend’s house and others on location — including six at Moe’s Bar-B-Que in Englewood.

Once a year, however, Nikolich and his wife, Holly, pull all the machines out of storage for the Rocky Mountain Pinball Showdown, 10,000 square feet of tournament play, exhibitors and seminars. Dozens and dozens of other owners and vendors show up with their machines to support the event’s No Quarters Needed ethos, making for three crazy days of furious flipping, non-stop blinking and serious high scoring.

“Pinball is pretty alive and active along the Front Range,” says Nikolich. “It’s become more a mainstream, kind of retro thing in Denver. In the beginning, we had a rough time finding people to bring their games, and now we’ve essentially tripled in size.”

The seventh annual Showdown starts today at noon and runs until 5 p.m. Sunday at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds (Auditoriums 2 and 3), 15200 West Sixth Avenue in Golden. Admission is $20 per day for adults, $10 for ages seven to twelve; kids six and under get in free. Get a full schedule and more details at www.pinballshowdown.com or by calling 303-938-9889.
Fri., April 23, 12-10 p.m.; Sat., April 24, 9 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sun., April 25, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., 2010

Drew Bixby

A message from Culture Editor Kristen Fiore: If you value independent journalism, please consider making a contribution to support our continued coverage of Denver’s vibrant culture and arts scenes.

Support Today