If your kids are anything like mine, they are HUGE fans of arcade games! Pinball machines are one of their new favorites, since discovering the large variety available to play at BumperNets arcade. Did you know that you can get your kids involved in the Magic City Pinball League (MCPL)? They meet every Tuesday night at BumperNets arcade, located within Riverchase Galleria in Hoover: 2000 Riverchase Galleria, Ste 179.
Magic City Pinball League
We asked Chris Warren, Founder, and Alex Huffman, Head of Player Recruitment and Social Media Adviser for MCPL, to tell us how the pinball league works and how to get started. Here is what they had to say.
Who is MCPL?
Chris Warren started MCPL in 2009, with just 7 players. Now, the league averages 25-30 players each season. Chris says, "we have all skill levels, from true beginners, to players ranked in the top 200 in the world."
"We've had kids as young as 8 years old. Husbands and wives, fathers and daughters, fathers and sons, boyfriend/girlfriend, and everything in between!" -- Chris Warren
How it works:
Seasons are 8 weeks long with 2 weeks of finals. There are three seasons in a year. People of all ages and skill levels are welcome to come play. There are players ranging in age from 8 years old to in their 50s! But, players younger than 8 are certainly welcome. The league can accommodate pretty much any age, as the environment is very family-friendly.
New players start at the bottom of the league in C division. Everyone is placed in groups of 4, and 4 machines are played by each player each night. Points are given based on how well the player places on each machine. At the end of the night, the players with the top 2 overall points totals will move up a group for the next meet. The bottom 2 players will move down. After a few meets, you end up playing with people around your skill level.
"We have several families that play with us regularly. In fact, Timothy Street, one of the International Flipper Pinball Association's top 125 ranked players, started in the Magic City Pinball League when he was about 9 years old. Because of the way the league is set up, every player, regardless of skill level, has the opportunity to stay competitive in their division." -- Alex Huffman
Alex says the league typically averages about 30 players per season, but can accommodate more. "It's a great group of down-to-earth people just looking for some friendly competition," he said. There is also a state championship for the top 16 players every year. Some of players attend tournaments around the country.
The Magic City Pinball League (MCPL) has been around for 24 seasons, which accounts for more than 232 meets. Almost 90 players from the Birmingham area have participated in the MCPL. There are A, B, and C divisions, so players of all skill levels are welcome. Check out the MCPL Facebook Page and League website: http://mcpl.league.papa.org/ for more info.
To participate in tournaments, you need $5 for the prize pool, plus quarters for games.
If you are interested in seeing what a tournament is like, Alex also records and adds commentary to some of the action when he can on the MCPL YouTube channel HERE.
Upcoming Events at BumperNets
Here are the next two events coming up for pinball fun at BumperNets, but be sure to follow their Facebook page so you don't miss any events after these!
Pinball Blast Tournament - Sunday, April 29th 1 - 6 pm
This is a head to head, two strike knockout event played only on Stern or Stern-Manufactured games, at BumperNets. $5 Entry, with $4 going towards the prize pool.
1st Place - 1st Pick of Prizes, 40% of Prize Pool.
2nd Place - 2nd Pick of Prizes, 30% of Prize Pool.
3rd Place - 3rd Pick of Prizes, 20% of Prize Pool.
4th Place - $5 BumperNets Gift Card.
10% of the prize pool will go towards reserving the first table tennis table for players to lounge at.
Iron Maiden Pinball Release Party - Friday, May 4th 4:30 - 9:45 pm
Come out to see Stern's newest release: IRON MAIDEN! - BumperNets is an official distributor of Stern Pinball and has been since 2008.
Free Play starts at 4:30 and runs until 5:45. The tournament begins at 5:45 pm and will run until approximately 9:45 pm.
The entry fee is $5 with the prizes being cash prizes out of that pot, and prizes from Stern. The format will be a game played on each machine and the scores added. Top Eight qualify.
BumperNets, arcade, table tennis and billiards store, is a proud Major Site Sponsor
of Macaroni Kid South Birmingham!
Major Site Sponsors make it a heckuva lot easier for us
to spend more time filling the Mac Kid calendar and creating other FREE content for you!
Please tell them we sent you (and get a FREE game of air hockey),
and thank them for supporting this community resource!
For more info about the arcade, table tennis, birthday parties, corporate events, billiards and more call (205) 987-2222
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Macaroni Kid South Birmingham is a free weekly e-newsletter and website focused on fun family events and things to do with kids in the South Birmingham region. We gather together all kinds of local family events and activities each week, and add useful information about classes, family-focused businesses, book and product reviews, recipes, crafts, school and camp guides and more. We proudly serve families in downtown Birmingham, Mountain Brook, Homewood, Vestavia Hills, Hoover, Pelham, the Oak Mountain and 280 area, Helena and Alabaster.
