Roy Sletson, apples, organic oats and, occasionally, chocolate. Put these together and you get the Nittany Powerizer and Hammerizer, energy bars that are made and sold locally.

Sletson is the creative entrepreneur behind the Nittany Powerizer and now the Nittany Hammerizer.

Sletson, a 1981 alumnus of Penn State and resident of nearby Madisonburg, had the inspiration for the Powerizer while his son, J.T. Sletson (sophomore-human development and family studies), was in high school. Roy Sletson said he thought the energy bars available were "junk" and inadequate for J.T.'s cross-country training.

Sletson, who recently trademarked the Nittany Powerizer and Hammerizer bars, initially rented out a licensed bakery to manufacture the bars. He said he and J.T. worked long days together early on in the venture.

Roy Sletson was able to sell his first Nittany Powerizer bars through contacts he had made in earlier entrepreneurial ventures, such as an organic bakery and a vegetable farm, in State College. One of the first locations to sell the energy bars was Webster's Bookstore Café, 128 S. Allen St.

But the Nittany Powerizer hit its big break when Gardners Candies of Tyrone agreed to let Sletson manufacture the bars at the company's plant. Sletson said this allowed him to "mix the batch and supervise" rather than producing the energy bars by himself.

Out of this relationship with Gardners Candies was born the chocolate-covered Nittany Hammerizer, which Sletson said he "named after his wife," Norma Sletson, for her childhood nickname. Other than its chocolate covering, a Hammerizer is the same as a Powerizer.

Sletson said the Nittany Powerizer is an organic, fresh-food bar, which contributes to its limited, six-week shelf life. It has 10 ingredients, including honey, organic oats and apple juice concentrate.

"You can pronounce all the ingredients" in the Powerizer, said Sletson, a retail manager at W.R. Hickey Beer Distributor Inc., 1321 E. College Ave.

Both bars have a strong apple flavor and a slightly spongy texture.

"Quality of food was important," Sletson said, adding that the bars are "not meant to replace a meal. [They're marketed to] people who want a snack but don't want a candy bar."

Elaine Meder-Wilgus, president of Webster's Bookstore Café, was enthusiastic about the bars and said, "If I can't get a meal, they're just as good."

Meder-Wilgus also said she "gave them out as wedding favors" after the Powerizers were adorned with special labels.

Sletson said the energy bars are sold on campus in several locations, including vending machines in the HUB-Robeson Center, in dining hall areas and in the Willard and Thomas buildings.

In downtown State College, the Nittany Powerizer and Hammerizer are sold at a variety of retailers, including McLanahan's Downtown Market, 116 S. Allen St., for $1.79.