Trojan Lanes celebrates 50 years of bowling

For 50 years Trojan Lanes in Troy has been a popular hangout spot for people in the community. During those 50 years the owners and the way the game is scored has changed, but people within the community still enjoy a night out at the bowling alley.

“It’s a fun night out with friends or family,” Brady Marken, the co-owner for Trojan Lanes said. “People no longer have to keep track of their own scores since we moved to automatic scoring. It gives them more time to socialize.”

Brady and his wife Bobbie bought Trojan Lanes from Bobbie’s parents in 1998.

“Bobbie’s parents bought the place from the previous owners in 1988 I believe,” he said. “We were helping them with it before we decided to buy it from them in 1998.”

In a small city like Troy, keeping a bowling alley open can be challenging. The Marken’s are thankful for the support that they have received from the community over the years.

“The community is very supportive,” he said. “We ask everybody we see to come in and bowl a game.”

Marken said that a night out bowling is a cheap form of entertainment for the family.

“We keep our prices down,” he said. Most places are getting $4 a game and we are charging $2.50 a game. We’ve only gone up 50 cents in the last 20 years. It’s a cheap form of family entertainment for families in the community.”

Marken has been told that Trojan Lanes is one of the best bowling alleys in the area.

“One of our distributors always tells me how good we are doing,” he said. “He always tells me that we are one of the best bowling alleys in the area and the state.”

In a town like Troy, the game of bowling is more social than competitive.

“We have a league every night,” Marken said. “But, bowling in a town like this the league is much more of a social gathering than a competitive league. It’s almost like a little family on league nights. For those interested in joining a league give us a call at 406-295-5024.”

Marken said that stopping in at Trojan Lanes to bowl is the best way to meet people in the community.

“People should stop in at Trojan Lanes to meet their neighbor,” he said. “If you are new in town it’s a great place to meet people. The alternative is to sit at home and watch television and we all know there is nothing good on the tube.”

When the times change and it starts to get dark before supper, Marken said they normally see an increase in foot traffic.

“When it starts to get dark at 4 p.m. people start to come in more,” he said. “It’s a nice break to get out of the house and enjoy yourself with family and friends. It’s like a family here at Trojan Lanes.”