The VHL was not Justin Rushmore's dream; THEME WEEK

[scoop 3,447]

For a very brief moment in time, Justin Rushmore had promise. Coming from a family of athletes, he and his two brothers, Derek and Ian, all took their talents to different sports, but none of them were dedicated enough to put in the effort to make a career of it. After flopping when they all went their separate ways, they came back together for a joint venture which has found more success: Rushmore Games, a hobby gaming store located in their hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota. We've caught up with the failed VHL prospect to learn more about how it all got started.

 

"My brothers and I have always been competitive growing up, and that was definitely not limited to sports. In fact, since we all favored different sports, it was gaming that really brought us together. When we could find the time, we liked to go out to various board game meetups. It was a great way to meet new people and learn about new games. Hobby board gaming has been on the rise, and we had often discussed potentially starting up a business when our sports careers ended. That happened sooner than we had anticipated, though maybe that's because this is really what we had our hearts and minds set on doing."

 

 

Rushmore Games, which opened just under two years ago, has seen a good bit of success. A popular destination for local gaming enthusiasts, there is a focus on community in the store. With special events most days of the week, including a weekly game demonstration in which the brothers teach a new featured game to their patrons, the aim is to bring people together and promote the hobby as a whole. They encourage public meetups just like those that they went to during their younger days, having a wide assortment of demo games that anyone is free to sit down and play.

 

Recently, the store has branched out beyond just table top games with a dedicated section for video gaming, hosting tournaments now several days a week. While they do not run the tournaments themselves, they allow independent tournament organizers to utilize the space. This idea was brought to them by a frequent customer after they started adding some gaming setups, and they immediately took to it.

 

"It seemed natural to us to add in some video gaming to the store. There is a lot of overlap in the communities. We did have it in mind to possibly host a tournament every once in a while, but we weren't planning anything in the immediately future when we had someone ask if they could host a Smash Bros. tournament in the store. It worked out very well for all parties, and it became a weekly occurrence.

 

Honestly, the whole thing has been a dream come true. I don't doubt that I could have made a career out of hockey, but I didn't have the drive. I am someone who likes to put my all into whatever I do, and I just didn't love hockey enough to dedicate as much time to it as I would have needed to. I couldn't be happier with the way things turned out."

 

 

 

537 words

Edited October 18, 2021 by scoop

[jRuutu 2,483]

9/10

 

Nice article! It was cool to read about the brothers and the origins of the store. I also liked the community aspect of the store, good stuff! I think the article is easy to read. The quotes stand out. Perhaps the picture could be in the middle or at the top. Perhaps you could end the article with your own words instead of a quote, but overall no major concerns from me, nice one.