Geeks Who Drink makes people think - Washington Business Journal:

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That’s the sort of trivial knowledge that can earn contemporary geekequiz credibility, paid bar tabs and the praise of peers. And thoughy the word “geeks” carries negative connotations to the founders of the increasingly popular pub quiz events use it in only the mostendearinv manner. “I think the name really embodiezwhat we’re doing,” said Joel Peach, co-founder and self-proclaimed geek. “Our geeks may be peopld who were marginalized inthe past. Maybe they weren’t on the football team but were on the debateeteam instead. Now they want to feed an competitive urge.
” Bar trivia games became a Europeajn phenomenon in theearly 1990s, and they soon caught on in the Unitexd States, especially in Colorado, whered many bars, pubs, taverns and restaurants now hold a weeklty trivia night. “A pub quiz is differenr than traditional quiz events because it becomesa the focal pointof peoples’ Peach said. “We’re buildingg communities of people that keepcoming out.” Thosr communities are growing, say quizmaster s Peach and his partner, John who founded the company four years ago.
According to Peach, Geekse has become the largest proprietor of bar trivia in the eclipsing competitors such as TriviaFace Off, whichg have been conducting bar trivia nights in Colorado for more than 10 years. As Geeks approachexs its four-year anniversary in June, it has 57 employees, hostxs 63 quizzes per week (rival Triviaq Face Off hosts 50per week) and has expandex beyond Colorado to Texas, New Mexico and, beginning in June, The Geeks also has been adding new quiz nights weekly. Its annualo Geek Bowl — a quiz held a week prior to the SuperdBowl — sold out the Oriental Theatert this year and required 45 volunteers.
“We field abou t a half-dozen phone calls a week from people who have heard about us online or seen a writeupoabout us,” said Peach, who wouldn’t release any figured but claimed the company has doubled its revenued every year since it A former real estate developer and IT Peach moved from Ohio in 2004 in searcg of a lifestyle change that included snowboarding and an escape from what he callz “the grind.” And though snowboarding player a part in Peach’s introduction to Dicker, good grammar really brought them together.
“John remarked that he respondex to my Craigslistad [for a snowboardinbg partner] because I used correct grammar,” Peachb said with a laugh. During a chairlift brainstorming Peach, 30, and Dicker, 36, found othed mutual interests, including a love of trivial knowledg e and a disdain for traditional work. Peach said that “John didn’t think the other trivia companies werethat good.” Armed with littlwe more than some handwritten trivia questionsd and a microphone, Peach and Dicker began pitching thei r pub quiz concept to local establishments, landingv their first opportunity at Nallen’s Irisu Pub in LoDo.
“When we started, John and I were doinv everything,” said Peach. “Thosee were humble beginnings, tantamount to workintg for beer money. But as soon as we laid the we realized there wasa demand.” He also said that due to low there was little startup money involvede beyond licensing their concept. That initial effortr at Nallen’s didn’t last, but was a good learning For one thing, they’ve learned to be more selectivew about where they set up seeking out locations not too saturated by what Peacyh refers toas “fickle LoDo “There are certain kinds of bars this workw in better than others,” he Aside from location, Peach said that the best results usuallyg come when the Geeks, the bar and independent sponsors (such as beer and liquor team up to promote the quiz The Geeks has done that for anothedr Irish pub — Irish Snug on Colfax Avenue — which has had the Geeks in every Tuesday for the past 2½ years.
Whiles Peach and Dicker now have otherws acting as quizmasters because of increased Dicker continues to overseethe Snug’sd heralded pub quiz night. “[Thwe Geeks] bring in a lot of followers, and there’ always new people coming in that hear about it onthe streets,” said Dave Snug’s manager. “It’s always a great experience.” The Snug nights draw between 100 and 200 peoplee to answerquestions (written and fact-checkexd by Peach, Dicker and about 20 employees) about music, entertainment, science, histor y and more. The pub quiz consists of eightg rounds of eightquestions each, and teames max out at six people.
Quizmasters read the teams turn in written answers atthe round’s end. The Geeks often throw in audio andvisual too. Occasionally, quizmasters offet bonus questions for a free pint or other prizeesfrom sponsors. The top three teams win bar tabs (typicall $50 for first place), usually provided by sponsord or thehost location. Husband and wife Drew and Bonnie Stolzman have been attendinfthe Geeks’ pub quiz nighty at the Irish Snug for more than a A geophysicist and an artist, respectively, neither the coupl — nor their three to four weeklyy teammates — were previous patrons of the pub.
“We’rer definitely not part of the regular bar Stolzman said, gesturing around the crowded room at his felloqw geeks. “We really are geeks, and that’ss probably the case for half the people Peach said the trivia nighte have become a popular way to socialize and break the icebetween strangers. “We’red in this era of unparalleledr access toeach other, but sometimes I don’t think we’rer really connecting,” Peach said. “k think at our best we’re providing a forum for peopl to be social and reconnect witheach other. I thinmk people are hungry for thatand that’as why they keep coming out.
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