Rocky Mountain Sports is located at 650 South Taylor Avenue in Louisville, Colorado, between Boulder and Denver just off US Highway 36. Click here for directions to the office. Customers are welcome to pick up orders in person, but please be aware there is no retail showroom. Orders must go through process before being pulled so give at least two hours notice before coming to pick up product.
RMS began business in 1971 in Boulder and moved to Louisville in August of 2000. The company was started by two young tennis players, CD Bodam, who still
owns the company, and Mike Sprengelmeyer. Their first product was a terry cloth
towel grip that was a gift to Sprengelmeyer from his brother Bob. It was the first
on the market and the only other option to fight the perspiration at the time
was a gauze grip. It became one of the most popular grips with all tennis
accounts in the
United
States.
'Uncle Bob,' as Mike’s brother was called, came up with
another idea, which he called a “Cushion Grip.” This was a leather grip that
had a layer of foam under it and gave a more comfortable feel. Even though it
increased the size by nearly two times and rounded the edges, it was very
popular. RMS was in the boom of tennis and these products sold very well.
Through the 70’s and 80’s there were many tennis shows and
RMS went to all of them. With a growing account base more products were
needed. A chance meeting with Ed
Alexander, who could be called the founder of synthetic string, set the stage
for the next popular product RMS would take on.
Alexander was a sea captain who often went to
Japan
and was passionate about the game of tennis. He
happened to learn of a company named Gosen, (which in Japanese means “knot
twister”) who were in the fishing line business. In
the late 40’s, Alexander asked Gosen to make a string that could work for a
tennis racquet. By the time Bodam and Sprengelmeyer met Alexander, he was selling to all the major
tennis brands in the world. Taking CD and Mike under his wing he started to
make string for the little Rocky Mountain Sports business. That put RMS in both
the string and grip business.
As time went on the company grew and expanded the selection
of products. They also developed an out-bound telemarketing sales concept that
is still the basis for the wholesale business.
Bodam played both basketball and tennis at the
University
of
Colorado,
Boulder. He then coached the CU men's tennis team from 1975 to 1980, and when the program was discontinued in 2006, he ranked as the winningest coach in the program's long history.