By Scott Cloud
News Managing Editor
Published in the Tonkawa News on 3/16/06

Whoever said that sports can’t be profitable and at the same time a lot of fun? Tell that to Matt Bixler whose company, American Iron Sports LLC, head quartered in Tonkawa, travels all across the country constructing baseball batting cages and other sports facilities.

The energetic Bixler has big plans for his young company including not only traveling coast to coast working on sports facilities and also opening a sporting goods storefront in Tonkawa.

The store location will be at 106 W. Grand. The opening of the store is planned for this summer.

Bixler’s company, started with his father’s patent on a pitching machine in 1996, has branched out coast to coast.

“There was a real need for people that could install pitching machines,” he said. “And that’s how I got started on the installation-side of the business. It’s kind of blossomed from there.”

“We work a lot in the Dallas and Houston areas,” Bixler said. “But we have done work all over the country including New Mexico, Florida and wherever.”

Bixler has done work for the Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers professional baseball teams. The company has also done work in Oklahoma including Murray State College in Tishomingo. He said they will be working on remodeling Morgan Field in Blackwell and have plans for other state-wide work.

Bixler does not advertise his business, all his work comes through referrals. “Our company is proven through the quality of work we do so we have no problems finding work,” he said. “We are booked solid for the next three months,” he said. “And there is plenty of work after that.”

Bixler works with national companies holding pitching machine installation contracts with Wilson Sporting Goods and Iron Mike.

American Iron Sports recently appeared on ABC’s Extreme Makeover where Bixler’s companies built new batting cages for a Florida sports complex destroyed by a hurricane this past summer. The show will be airing in the near future.

Bixler’s plan for the Tonkawa sporting goods store includes the handling of all sports equipment. “Our plans are to carry everything we can in our store but we will be able to get anything a customer needs in a day,” he said.

Bixler plans some creative ideas for the store including the customers ability to keep track of what they purchase. “That will help customers track what sizes of merchandise they buy,” he said. The store will have shoes, apparel, sporting goods, and sports equipment all from name-brand manufacturers. “We are hoping to have the store open this summer,” he said.

Bixler is also very community oriented having just completed work on the batting cages at Tonkawa High School. “Community is very important to me,” he said. “I like to volunteer and do things for the community to help make the community something we can all be proud of.”

Bixler is originally from Alva, his wife Braxie from Laverne. Aaron Judd from Cherokee works for the company. Tisha West runs the company web site. The company website is www.americanironsports.com