The Morning Call from Allentown, Pennsylvania • 149

D4 THi MORNING CALL, SUNDAY, MARCH 1, 199 PARTNERS Continued From Rage D1 way at parks in Japan and Brazil. I 'Ml i y- ua -Tmnnir MntFwr ifn I iihwt wr irr ii iiw nmir i it urn mm i i iiiinniniT the wheels spirining freely under you." Certainly, cost may have a lot to do with the pendulum swinging back to the wooden coaster. A steel coaster could cost as much as $15 million while the average cost of a wooden coaster is about $4 million. Nevertheless, Dauphinee estimates that 70 percent of new roller coasters are still made out of steel. That other 30 percent is sufficient to keep the 11 full-time employees at Philadelphia Toboggan busy.

A six-car "train" for a wooden coaster costs about $150,000. Usually, a roller coaster requires two trains, although some of the larger rides use as many as five. Philadelphia Toboggan had gross sales of about $2 million in 1997; in 1991, the year Dauphinee and Reb-bie took over, gross sales were recorded at about $400,000. Every car is hand-made, but no special skill is needed. Rebbie says anyone who can work on an automobile can work on a roller coaster car.

The plant contains shops for metal, wood, up-, holstery and painting. It usually takes about six months to construct a roller coaster train from scratch. Rebbie and Dauphinee make sure they are among the first passengers when a new wooden roller coaster opens for business. "When I went to work here I was 22 years old and I may have taken two roller coaster rides," says Rebbie. "Since then, I've lost count of how many I've been on." CHUCK ZOVKO The Morning Call Emmaus.

who respected his work enough to follow him from the station's production company to Renaissance Man. "I have enough work he said. "Sometimes, I think I have more work than I can handle." Despite the sometimes heavy workload, Fleming said being his own boss does have its advantages. One of them is decorating his office any way he wants. To be sure, the decor in Fleming's office gives away several of the his passions.

The shelves and walls are covered with baseball hats and pictures of ballparks. Fleming is an admitted baseball junkie. His favorite team is the Baltimore Orioles. And, like a true Renaissance Man, he even figured out a way to include baseball in his business. Last summer, Fleming visited a half dozen major and minor league ball parks and recorded game sound effects while sitting in the stands.

He ran his little project past the folks at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., and they loved the idea. He's in the process of editing the recordings and delivering them to the Hall of Fame. Also adorning Fleming's office is every manner of Disney memorabilia. From posters to pencils to Mickey Mouse and Goofy figurines, Fleming has it alL Fleming even proudly admits to being a graduate of the Disney College of Knowledge, a course in which participants must study and pass a test consisting of Disney trivia, ranging from the company to movies, cartoons and theme parks. "I've always been a Disney fan," he said.

"I've always liked the Disney philosophy and their creative approach to doing things." Indeed, Fleming said he's secured an agreement with Disney to be the company's exclusive regional sales representative for Disney IDEAS, a Disney production company that attracts clients nationwide to come to the Disney-MGM studios in Florida and produce their films. Fleming plans to start his business association with Disney sometime this spring. Fleming said he is a committed Christian whose faith in God has helped him tremendously in the transition from big business executive to small business owner. "I don't know what people would do if they didn't have a faith" in God, Fleming said. "I think that's been an important part of taking the leap." He said his goal for Renaissance Man is to make enough money to pay the bills and use the rest of his time doing the things he enjoys and providing free work for his church, Bethel Bible Fellowship of Emmaus, and other Christian organizations.

"I really would like to have enough clients 1 like working with, doing the things I like to do, to be able to handle my financial responsibilities," said Fleming. "And when that's all over, to use my talents and resources furthering the kingdom of God." Fleming operates Renaissance Man By CHRISTIAN D. BERG Of The Morning Call Renaissance Man: A person who has wide interests and isvexpert in several areas. Webster's Dictionary Alan Fleming is a dream chaser. Last December, the 47-year-old Fleming left his post as executive producer at WFMZ Channel 69 after 20 years at the station.

With a home in Emmaus and three teen-age children, the oldest of whom starts college this fall, walking away from a secure, well-paying job isn't the kind of decision the devoted family man takes lightly. But, Fleming said, when it's time to go, it's time to go. During his time at WFMZ, Fleming worked his way up the ladder from selling radio and TV ads to become executive producer of Maranatha Teleproductions, the station's main production arm. Along the way, he gained experience in music, photography, art, computers, sales, management, radio and film. Over his last several years at the station, Fleming said he realized he'd done pretty much everything he could at WFMZ.

And, he added, a decision to seE WFMZ's FM radio station and the retirement of station owner Dick Dean further added to his restlessness. "I reported directly to him, so the less he was around, the less fulfilled I was," Fleming said. "You just get to a level in management where you no longer have a chance to be creative. You get to the point where' you're managing time and resources to allow other people to be creative. "It was frustrating to me.

I al- Alan Fleming ways thought my real gift was being creative, and I was getting to use it less and less. I just decided I had to find something else to dream." Dean, who nurtured Fleming through his television career, said the two were more than just boss and employee. They were friends. And though it was hard to see him go, Dean said he couldn't hold a grudge. "He was a comrade," Dean said.

"I think there was a mutual understanding that he was ready to take another leap, and in the context of being supportive, we were happy with him. Our relationship has not ended. I anticipate that it will continue for some time." Fleming said that although he was ready to leave WFMZ for quite a while, he stayed on at the station because he wasn't sure where to go or what to do next. Eventually, Fleming said his frustration spurred him to seek out the advice of a career counselor in Philadelphia and work through a book titled "Finding Your Perfect Work," by Paul and Sarah Edwards. A lot of soul searching later, Fleming discovered his new dream to found a company that utilizes his various talents and experiences to offer clients a single source for their advertising, marketing, promotions, public relations and televi- sion production needs.

Now, all he needed was a name. As it turns out, the name found him. Fleming said he was talking to his dentist, Dr. Phil Grubb of Emmaus, when the name came along. "At the time, he was looking for office help and we were talking about advertising, and I just seemed to have all the answers," Fleming for home bound elderly about nursing home placements crisis situation nurses aids available 610.435.6677 Nurse Is More Than You Need.

Homemaking Meal Preparation Light Housekeeping Transportation Personal Care Laundry Companionship FULTON STREET, ALLENTOWN, PA 18ID2 610.435.5800 corporate! Philadelphia Toboggan is building the cars for all of them. So business is coasting along for the company, but it wasn't always that way. Back in the '70s and '80s, Dauphinee says, many amusement parks eschewed wooden roller coasters for the mammoth steel creations under the assumption that people wanted to be thrilled and steel coasters provided more thrills. So the trend was and largely still is to build them bigger and wilder. But Dauphinee says there is still room for wooden roller coasters.

"By the mid-'80s there was a renaissance of wooden coasters. With steel coasters, the parks found there weren't many more things you could do with them," he says. "The evolutionary cycle is coming back to wooden coasters; the pendulum is swinging back." Herring agrees. He says people who simply want a wild ride will find one on a steel coaster. But people who want to experience what a true roller coaster ride is all about the bouncing of the cars, the momentary feeling of weightlessness, the clank of metal on metal as the wheels ride atop the rails will find that only on a wooden coaster.

"You feel that on Thunder-hawk," says Herring. "You can feel i V' 'f 1-1100 1501 Lehigh St I--. i rti miWiift-nmiiii it -ff i Today's new customer ready to support you Bawfl I i I yumm J.oiwiiMWMiiyM Senior Planning Advice Help in a Companions Caring When A Shopping 44 SOUTH i Customised training at our site or yours! ousinnno; OCEIUULi www.allentownbusinesssch.comi Put us to Work for You! said. "He called me a Renaissance man." Hence, Renaissance Man Inc. was born.

Fleming's business card reads: "Renaissance Man many things done well." At first glance, he admits it sounds a little pretentious. 1 suppose it is a little self-inflated, but I don't worry about it," he said. "I don't think I do all things well, but I do many things well." And, he quickly adds in defense, the name captures the essence of his business, which combines his various abilities to meet the specific needs of his clients. The Renaissance Man is currently involved in projects that include putting together a printed brochure for The Emmaus Bakery, producing instructional videos for BioOss, a Swiss company that makes bone substitute for dental implants and producing television commercials for Crest Wholesale Carpet Distributors in Wescosville. Fleming runs Renaissance Man out of a small, but comfortably furnished, office in his Emmaus home.

With the help of two Macintosh computers, a computerized editing system and a variety of audio, video and film production equipment, Fleming turns the tricks of his trade. So far, the newly anointed one-man band likes the sound of his own music. "I'm probably happier now than I've been in five years," he beamed. "If you're really lucky in life, you get to do something you want to do, and I'm hoping to do a lot of that with Renaissance Man." Fleming said his 20 years at WFMZ earned him enough business contacts to supply him with clients Meetings Complete Lunch and Dinner menu Banquet Facilities for 60 Corner of Rts. 222 100 Trexlertown 398-4080 Please send information on: Assisted Living Facilities Skilled Nursing Facilities Volunteer Home Care Home Health Services Senior Centers Senior Volunteer Programs Name Address City Business I f5 ana Company Functions 1 i Didn't M.

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