Northwestern College | Classic magazine - Winter 2004-05 - Vol. 76 ...

Bryan Van KleyNorthwestern ClassicAlumniprofileemergence on the national scene, says Van Kley, “Fans wereused to getting their events covered scantily. Our sport wasn’ttreating its news coverage the way it needed to.”Van Kley and his editor attend the top dozen amateurwrestling events each year. The Northwestern alumnus coveredthe Olympics in Greece this summer—after spendinghis honeymoon with wife Rachel (Bogaard ’00) in Sydney,Australia, at the 2000 Olympic Games.Van Kley, who was a win away from qualifying for thestate wrestling tournament his senior year at Rock Valley(Iowa) High School, says wrestling is unique. “The thing Icame to love and hate about wrestling was how incrediblydifficult it is physically, mentally and emotionally. Wrestlingis an individual sport. There’s no one to look over your shoulderand blame if something goes wrong.“The positive attributes that come from wrestling andhow closely it parallels what it takes to be successful in lifemake it extremely exciting.”Van Kley, who credits NWC football coaches LarryKorver and Orv Otten for helping him to develop commitment,discipline and a strong work ethic, has attacked hiscareer with the passion of an Olympic grappler.“His vision impressed me,” says Chapman, W.I.N.’sfounder.“He looked at what the product was and what it couldbe, and he wasn’t afraid to work hard and invest capital toimprove it. He has a very professional grasp of what he’sdoing and where he wants to go. W.I.N. was good when Isold it, but it’s terrific now.”ReversalVan Kley, a business administration major, first thoughthe’d go into investment banking, but he couldn’t see himselfworking in a career unrelated to sports. At Northwestern, heplayed football four years, competed in baseball two seasonsand was a member of the wrestling and golf teams as a freshman.So he added a minor in journalism and planned on acareer as a sports journalist.“It’s amazing to see how the Lord was preparing me forwhat I’m doing today,” says Van Kley. “Carl [Vandermeulen,professor of English and communication studies] always saidit’s a great blessing to make your avocation your vocation, andI’ve been blessed to do that. My passion has become mycareer.”Van Kley says his W.I.N. highlights include watchingRulon Gardner’s surprise victory in the Sydney Olympics andseeing Iowa State’s Cael Sanderson win four national titles andgo undefeated. Even bigger than those moments, though, is“being able to establish both friendships and working relationshipswith the most prominent people in the sport.“It’s great to have a career that’s structured around a sportthat’s as pure as wrestling. It’s incredible that I get paid to goto every big wrestling event in the country!”Balance is the keyBalance is one of the main skills in wrestling. Van Kleyhas found it also is crucial in managing a small business—anda family.When he bought W.I.N. Magazine in 1998, he did halfthe writing, all the ad sales and layout, the renewal notices—even answered the phone.“I came in three out of every five days thinking, ‘Howsoon can we sell this?’ If it wasn’t for my faith in the Lord, Idon’t know how I would have gotten through that first year,”says Van Kley. “The turning point was when I realized Icouldn’t do it all myself—and I was holding the businessback by trying to.”Van Kley knew he needed a bigger staff. And for that tohappen, W.I.N. had to be more profitable. He pursued moreadvertising with diligence—and was able to hire two full-timeemployees.As he looks to the future, Van Kley would like to see themagazine’s circulation—which has increased from 2,000 to5,000—quadruple to 20,000. But he tempers his vision witha broader perspective.“My underlying goal is to not detrimentally affect the balancebetween work and family that I believe is so important.”“Advertisers love him,” says W.I.N. Magazine Editor Mike Finn, about VanKley. “He’s selling more than space; he sells the sport.”29 ▲ Winter 2004-05