Episode 261: Now and Zen
Nick Zendejas talks about his pinball origins, his many travels, great tourneys and successes including the reigning Heads Up Champion. Plus, a first hand experience for he and his family with...
Highlights
- Nick Zendayos won the Heads Up Championship in March (2020), winning on Munsters against Kaylee George who picked Raven
- Nick flew straight from China to Pittsburgh for a Papa tournament to compete for longest-flight record
- Nick has been playing competitively on IFPA for 14 years
- Story Hill Pinball Campout is advertised as the highest pinball tournament in the world, at approximately 9,600-10,000 feet elevation
- Nick won Pin Mania tournament at JR's house, which features approximately 20+ machines in a barn plus vintage Valley machines downstairs
- Both Nick and Jeff contracted COVID-19 during the pandemic
- Papa tournament is returning in 2021 but at a different building than previously
- Jeff recently completed AC/DC wizard mode (Encore) during COVID lockdown after years of attempts
Notable quotes
“I just flew here straight from China. I have to have the record. And instead of him going, yeah, nice job, he goes, oh, sorry, two Australians came this year. What record are you talking about?”
“So I was like, just look at your own screen. Whatever happens over there, I can't worry about.”
“I never thought of it like the smaller order, but definitely now, you know, New York is a whole different place.”
“the thing that makes pinball fun is always having more options, you know when the ball is trapped on a flipper, you know, where should I shoot”
“Learning to play tournament pinball is actually, it's a trainable, practicable thing, like a skill that you can do, not just like flipper skills, but you have to learn to play in a tournament.”
“Simpsons is kind of what kind of elevated my play from a level where I was kind of stuck maybe like B and then I think into A.”
“The Simpsons will never leave my house.”
“I basically said to Carson, my son, I'm going to shoot three shots, the two ramps and the bell. That's it. Those are my safety shots.”
Entities
- Chicago Expo· event
- Louisville Arcade Expo· event
- Papa· event
- Pin Mania· event
- Pinvasion· event
- Stern Pro Circuit· event
- Story Hill Pinball Campout· event
- AC/DC· game
- Iron Maiden· game
- Munsters· game
- Raven· game
- Sinbad· game
- Surfer/Surf Champ· game
- The Simpsons· game
- One-Up Arcade Denver· organization
- Pinball Profile· organization
- Adam Higgins· person
- Carl D'Angelo· person
- Dean Grover· person
- Donovan Stepp· person
- Escher Lefkoff· person
- Jeff Teolis· person
- Kaylee George· person
- Nick Zendayos· person
More from Pinball Profile
→ All content from Pinball Profile
Episode 439: Emily Reilhan
Talk about a banner year…and it’s only June! Emily has won everything under the sun so far in 2026 as you’ll hear, including the Women’s World Championship, the WNACS, the first ever Women’s...
Episode 438: David Morris of Phantom Amusement
If you’re ever in Manitoba, Canada, check out their growing pinball scene. David talks about the birth of the creating a pinball environment with the Manitoba Pinball League, the MPC, his arcade...
Episode 437: The Pinball Capital’s Francis Wisniewski
Good luck this weekend with the Grand Opening, including a Roger Sharpe appearance, a signed Bank Shot machine giveaway and more! Find out about this huge arcade in Stone Park, Illinois, and hear how...