As Sponsors Go, Reiny Has His Reasons : Over-the-line: Giesecke’s support is for the good of the game.

As a rule, sponsors sponsor as a means of advertising themselves, their product or their business.

And then there’s Reiny Giesecke. His motives are different.

His group, Ryno Athletic Club, does not sponsor teams in hopes of making money or attaining vast recognition. But make no mistake, Ryno Athletic Club is one of the most generous and sought-after sponsors in over-the-line, and its two teams are two of the best in the game.

As the 39th annual Old Mission Beach Athletic Club World Championship Over-the-Line Tournament begins its final weekend this morning, the defending world champions in the men’s and women’s open divisions are Ryno Athletic Club and the Lady Ryno’s.

So who is Reiny Giesecke and what is the Ryno Athletic Club?

Reiny, as he will be referred to since everybody knows him simply as Reiny (RYE-knee), has taken an interest in promoting OTL, a game for which he developed a passion in the mid-1960s. Though Reiny, 47, has never been a great player, has never won a major tournament and doesn’t stand to make any money for his efforts, it is his goal to make OTL as lucrative as pro beach volleyball.

“The idea is to support over-the-line and get it some recognition,” Reiny said. “OTL is a great sport. We’d like to see OTL players making the kind of money they do in beach volleyball.”

Easier said than done, but that’s where the Ryno Athletic Club comes in.

The Ryno Athletic Club, which Reiny helped begin three years ago, is a group of 11 friends, all of whom are either presidents, founders or chairmans of a company or corporation. As such, they meet periodically to discuss business, trends, strategies, etc. . . . and over-the-line.

In regards to the later, their mission is not to sell T-shirts, booze or aluminum bats. They do not sell anything, for that matter, except over-the-line. And in the process of selling over-the-line, they annually spend around $15,000 while generating none.

“They’re a really unique group in that manner,” said Chuck Cromar, a 10-time world champion who now plays for Ryno Athletic Club.

“Reiny’s been a godsend to us,” said Keith Mullin, president of the Professional Beach Softball Assn., a three-year-old organization that sponsors professional over-the-line tournaments in California, Nevada and Arizona. “He’s real bright and a good businessman. He helped us organize and supported us as we tried to get this thing off the ground. In fact, he’s still very much involved as a board member. He’s been a real key figure.”

So key that the PBSA named Reiny its 1991 Man of the Year.

“Who told you that?” Reiny asked.

“It was deservingly so, and don’t let him tell you otherwise,” Cromar said. “He’s the right type of person that can really sell this game. He’s the perfect individual for just that.”

Reiny: “We don’t want to be portrayed as the last coming of Christ. We’re a very small part of this thing. The minds in OTL--OMBAC, the Over-the-Line Players Assn. and the PBSA--they’re the ones deserving of attention. They’re the ones with the abilities to take this thing to a higher level.”

In the meantime, it’s being done by sponsors such as the Ryno Athletic Club and Seagram’s, which sponsors Team Captain Morgan, last year’s world championship runner-up.

“Those two are the class of all the sponsors,” said Janet Engelman, who plays for the Lady Ryno’s and whose husband, Craig, plays for Team Captain Morgan.

Including travel expenses and equipment, Ryno Athletic Club spends around $7,000 a year for its two teams. The price tag would be much higher, but the men’s team has a deal with Speedo for its uniforms and the women are outfitted by Club Sportswear.

Reiny’s involvement as a sponsor began when he met Gary Romano three years ago at a tournament in Phoenix. Romano was looking for a sponsor. Reiny was happy to oblige so long as Romano selected professional teammates who would act like professionals.

Romano, 35, picked up two of the best in Cromar, 36, and Zane Cramer, 30.

Soon after, the Lady Ryno’s were formed in a similar manner with Romano’s girlfriend at the time (now fiancee), Kim Osuna, 30, joining forces with Julie Dossett, 41, and Janet Engelman, 24.

In 1990, their first year in the OMBAC world championship tournament, Ryno Athletic Club finished second and the Lady Ryno’s third in their respective divisions. Last year, in addition to winning the world championship (an amateur event), both teams finished as the PBSA points leaders.

Unlike some sponsors, Reiny does not put pressure on his teams to win.

“He knows we go out there and try our best every time out,” Cromar said. “He’s happy just knowing that. There’s no pressure to win from that standpoint.”

Said Cramer: “He’s the best sponsor out there. And he’s not just a sponsor. He’s gotten to be a really great friend. He always will be, even if I don’t play for him in the future. But I’ve always wondered how he benefits from this. I mean, he puts out as much money as anybody. I guess he really enjoys the game.”

Said Janet Engelman: “I think he’s given everyone some hope. To see someone out there willing to risk so much and get nothing in return, it’s inspiring.”

OTL Notes

The third and final days of OMBAC’s World Championship Over-the-Line Tournament are today and Sunday. Play begins each day at 7 a.m. Attendance and parking are free, but Fiesta Island will be closed to traffic by 10 a.m. each day. OMBAC encourages people to take one of their two free shuttle busses. Pickup locations are Bonita Cove (across from the Mission Beach roller coaster) and Mission Bay High School.