claude-haiku-4-5-20251001 · $0.035
Two new pinball players from Charlotte launch Bells & Chimes women's league and achieve rapid competitive success.
Jasmine Hanks discovered pinball in February (approximately one year before this interview) by walking into a bar and playing casually before learning about tournaments.
high confidence · Jasmine states: 'I just found this last February. I walked into a bar and just started playing for fun.'
Abby Terhune started playing pinball sporadically about two years ago when a bar opened in Charlotte, then became serious about competitive play about a year ago after being dragged to a tournament by her now-fiancé.
high confidence · Abby explains: 'I moved to Charlotte two years ago in April... a little over a year ago, my now fiance dragged me to a tournament.'
The Bells and Chimes Charlotte chapter was started by Jasmine and Abby last fall and is already in their third season.
high confidence · Jeff states: 'you've started a Bells and Chimes chapter in Charlotte. And that was only just last fall, but now you're already into season three.'
Kevin Shanis (operator at Pinvasion) encouraged Jasmine to start a women's league in Charlotte.
high confidence · Jasmine says: 'one day he actually came to me and he's like, you know what, you should start a women's league.'
Abby won the women's division at Pinvasion (described as 'massive'), beating competitive players including Virginia Hendrix, Sunshine Bond, Elisa Parks, Deborah Tallman, and Elizabeth Cromwell in what was only her second women's tournament ever.
high confidence · Jeff asks 'how'd you do there, Abby?' and she responds 'I won the women's division,' then Jeff confirms the quality of competition: 'Virginia Hendrix was there. Sunshine Bond... Elisa Parks... Deborah Tallman... Elizabeth Cromwell.'
Abby is getting married on November 3rd and is combining her honeymoon with pinball tournament travel, including Flippers on the coast and Free Play Florida in Orlando.
high confidence · Abby states: 'I'm getting married November 3rd... we're going to do flippers at the tail end of that. And then also we were going to be in Orlando for part of that for Disney.'
Jasmine works with horror film productions and will be doing a cameo in a film called 'Shakespeare Storm' directed by Lloyd Kaufman (Toxic Avenger, Troma Films) in fall in New York.
“I just found this last February. I walked into a bar and just started playing for fun. It was a casual thing.”
Jasmine Hanks @ ~3:30-4:00 — Establishes how recently Jasmine discovered pinball and how quickly she went from casual player to league organizer.
“You used the word intimidation. Now, was that a general setting of a mixed group of people? Because one of the reasons I've always heard about Bells and Chimes is it takes away some of that intimidation because it's a much more friendly atmosphere, almost a teaching platform in a way, too, for some people that were new to pinball.”
Jeff Teolis @ ~9:00-9:30 — Articulates the core mission and value proposition of Bells and Chimes as reducing barriers to entry for women in competitive pinball.
“I won the women's division.”
Abby Terhune @ ~11:00 — Remarkable achievement in her second women's tournament ever, against nationally competitive players.
“By the time I got to the finals on that, I was just, I've made it to the final four. So, you know, if I'm fourth, whatever, and I just had no nerves on that. It was very unusual for me.”
Abby Terhune @ ~11:30-12:00 — Demonstrates mental game strategy and the role of managing tournament anxiety.
“I'm not sure if we'll ever be like exactly where we want to be. Like we always want, we want as many women who feel comfortable to be a part of our tribe. Like that'll never change. The more, the better always.”
Jasmine Hanks @ ~24:00-24:30 — Shows Jasmine's philosophy of inclusive growth for Bells and Chimes Charlotte beyond just membership numbers.
“I get a little worse because you're trying too hard to do that versus keeping the ball alive. But once you keep practicing, it gets better.”
Jasmine Hanks @ ~28:00-28:30 — Articulates the learning curve paradox in pinball: initial success through ball control, then struggle when learning rules, then improvement through practice.
“I kind of tend to go through a process of playing for a while starting to read the rules starting to look more at the screen and see the different things and figure out what I'm doing, and then I eventually go watch a video because I need to understand what I'm watching when I see the video.”
community_signal: Bells and Chimes model of women-focused tournaments demonstrating effectiveness in reducing intimidation barriers for new female players and creating a more welcoming competitive environment than mixed tournaments.
high · Jeff emphasizes: 'one of the reasons I've always heard about Bells and Chimes is it takes away some of that intimidation because it's a much more friendly atmosphere, almost a teaching platform.' Abby notes that while she wasn't intimidated initially, 'we finally got one of our members to go to one of the main tournaments and she said oh yeah this is actually really fun. It just kind of a little hurdle there.'
event_signal: Pinvasion emerging as a major regional tournament attracting competitive women players and serving as a high-profile achievement benchmark (Abby's women's division win recognized as significant accomplishment).
high · Described as 'massive' event by Abby with strong competitive field including Virginia Hendrix, Sunshine Bond, Elisa Parks, Deborah Tallman, Elizabeth Cromwell. Abby's second-ever women's tournament victory is treated as major achievement by Jeff.
community_signal: Emerging trend of pinball-themed life events (weddings, honeymoons) in competitive pinball community, indicating deeper lifestyle integration beyond just tournament play.
medium · Abby combining honeymoon with tournament travel (Free Play Florida, Flippers on the Coast). Abari hosting machines at her wedding. Jeff mentions Teresa Nessel had wedding-themed pinball experience and references Heliana from Colorado with similar wedding setup.
community_signal: Tournament structure challenges at large events (long waits, multiple concurrent events) creating strategic decisions for players about which competitions to prioritize, particularly impacting newer players' ability to compete effectively.
positive(0.85)— The episode is highly positive throughout. Both players express enthusiasm for pinball and the Bells and Chimes community. Jeff is genuinely encouraging and celebrates their achievements. The only slightly negative moment is Abby's frustration with unsolicited advice from another player, but this is framed as a legitimate community concern. Overall tone is celebratory of the growth of women in pinball and the positive impact of inclusive league structures.
groq_whisper · $0.067
high confidence · Jasmine says: 'I will be filming this fall for Truma Films with Lloyd Kaufman... He's working on a new movie. It's called Shakespeare Storm... I'll be helping out with that. I'll be doing a cameo in his film this fall in New York.'
Jasmine has three Friday the 13th tattoos, including a bowling ball with two finger slots and the number 13, obtained during Friday the 13th flash tattoo events that occur 2-3 times per year.
high confidence · Jasmine explains: 'I only have three Friday the 13th tattoos. I have a bowling ball with only two slots for two fingers on it and it has 13 next to it. I have the traditional black hat for Friday the 13th as well.'
Bells and Chimes Charlotte has received media coverage including news stories and radio mentions that have helped attract new women players to the league.
high confidence · Jasmine states: 'it has given us quite a few new women. We have a couple of stories right now... we have had people walk into a bar and be like, Hey, so I saw you guys on the news... I heard you guys on the radio.'
Bells and Chimes originally started in Oakland, California founded by Eka Schneider, with subsequent chapters started in other cities like Phoenix (Tracy Lindberg) and now Charlotte.
high confidence · Jasmine says: 'Tracy has been on this program as well. So has Eka for that matter. And I remember when Tracy played her first ever pinball... started in Oakland, California originally... Eka Schneider did that.'
Abby Terhune @ ~29:30-30:00 — Describes effective learning methodology for new games: hands-on play first, then rules, then video instruction.
“I didn't need your unsolicited advice. I was just trying to learn the game and learn the shots. Like, just go away, buddy.”
Abby Terhune @ ~33:00-33:30 — Illustrates the community norm discussed by Jeff and Elizabeth Cromwell: solicit advice rather than imposing it on other players.
“There are not any currently. I would really love to do one partially just because I want more women's points because I'd really like it to make it to the Women's World Championships.”
Abby Terhune @ ~23:00-23:30 — Identifies a gap in regional women's tournament offerings and expresses ambition to reach the Women's World Championships.
“I'll be doing a cameo in his film this fall in New York. That would help some of the kids who hate having to read Shakespeare in school Having a little twist on it would be great”
Jasmine Hanks / Jeff Teolis @ ~18:30-19:00 — Reveals Jasmine's involvement in film production outside of pinball, showing her diverse interests in entertainment and horror culture.
medium · Abby describes tournament experience: 'I was having issues at the main event just because I was waiting so long for my turn. And then I was like nervous about blowing it... I'm just going to focus on these now because I feel like I'm just wasting money at this point on the other machines.'
community_signal: Charlotte, North Carolina emerging as a significant hub for women's pinball activity with strong tournament infrastructure and an active operator (Kevin Shanis at Pinvasion) supporting league development.
high · Jasmine's rapid progression from discovering pinball in February to starting and growing a Bells and Chimes chapter within a year, with Kevin Shanis actively supporting the initiative and Abby winning a major regional tournament (Pinvasion women's division).
community_signal: Mentorship and knowledge-sharing infrastructure in pinball community: experienced players and operators (Kevin Shanis, Tracy Lindberg, Eka Schneider) actively supporting new league formation and player development.
high · Kevin Shanis encouraged Jasmine to start the league, 'showed me how to use match play, and let me know how IFPA worked.' Tracy Lindberg serves as 'go-to gal as far as other women getting Bells and Chimes chapters started in different states and cities.'
community_signal: Bells and Chimes Charlotte chapter achieving rapid growth and media coverage (news stories and radio mentions) attracting new women players to the league within one year of founding.
high · Jasmine states: 'it has given us quite a few new women. We have a couple of stories right now... we have had people walk into a bar and be like, Hey, so I saw you guys on the news... I heard you guys on the radio.'
competitive_signal: Regional tournament landscape in Southeast expanding with multiple women's events (Pinvasion, Flippers on the Coast) and opportunities for qualifying points toward national championships.
medium · Abby mentions wanting to compete in more women's tournaments to accumulate points toward Women's World Championships. Jeff mentions scores coming in from Flippers generating North Carolina rankings.
community_signal: Evidence of successful women-focused tournament growth creating opportunities for competitive advancement: in the last 2-3 months, three new in-box machines have been given away as women's tournament prizes, indicating significant prize support.
medium · Jeff states: 'In the last two, three months, there have been three new in-box machines given away. So there's certainly the excitement there.'