Mad Trapper Alleys, Whitehorse's only bowling alley, closes

The disco ball has stopped turning at Whitehorse's only bowling alley. 

After almost 40 years in business, Mad Trapper Alleys closed its doors for good Sunday.  

Over the decades, the Mad Trapper's 10 lanes for five-pin bowling hosted countless league games, family get-togethers and first dates.

Owner Chris Sorg says the business had been losing money for a number of years. 

He says the alley's machinery is outdated and would require an investment of about $100,000 to upgrade. This includes a system to automatically reset pins, which Sorg says is hard to repair.

The doors may be locked for now but the lanes won't be torn down. Sorg says he's still considering whether the lanes could one day reopen.

Those lanes have been a popular venue for Special Olympics athletes and fundraisers for groups such as Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Yukon, whose annual Bowl for Kids Sake fundraiser once provided 20 per cent of its annual budget. 

A representative of the Big Brothers Big Sisters Yukon approached Whitehorse City Council last November to ask the council to consider subsidizing the alley. Mayor and council declined. 

The alley, in Whitehorse's Riverdale neighbourhood, is located next to another business that is seeing pressure from changing tastes and technologies — one of Whitehorse's only remaining video-rental stores.