The Decline Of Roller Skating: A Look At Montana's Rinks

Let's hop in the Nostalgia Wagon for a moment and go back to a time when roller skating was the thing to do on a Friday or Saturday night when you were a pre-teen or teenager.

My youngest kid just turned nine years old, and for her birthday, we booked a party at Skate World, one of the few remaining roller rinks in Montana. "Rolling Into 9" was the theme, and 80s pop-retro was the dress code; think neon, scrunchies, and glow sticks.

Good times behind these doors. Credit Michael Foth, TSM

A flashback of fond roller skating memories.

Walking through the doors of the skating rink, I was instantly transported to a different decade. The blacklights, the concession stand, the DJ booth pumping out tunes, the arcade games along the back wall, and the glittery disco balls hung from the center of the rink all brought back fond memories of when I was a young teen going roller skating at the now-closed roller rink in the Gallatin Valley.

Skate World in Billings, MT. Credit Michael Foth

I hadn't slipped on a pair of roller skates for at least 20 years, probably more. I was hoping the muscle memory would come back... it did, but the first lap was a bit on the wobbly side. And yes, I was sore the next day, lol.

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Skate World. Credit Michael Foth, TSM

There was a time when almost every Montana town of respectable size had a skating rink. Some bigger cities may have had two. Laurel had one up until about a decade ago. When my wife and her friends were teens in the early 90s, they spent copious time socializing and skating at the rink.

Credit Michael Foth, TSM

Nowadays, roller rinks are a bit of a rarity in the Treasure State.

There appears to be only a handful of roller rinks remaining in Montana. According to my searches, they include:

We could speculate all day on why roller skating isn't as popular anymore as it once was. The heart-healthy pastime experienced its glory years from the 1930s to the 1950s and rebounded again with the Disco Era in the 70s. Since then, it's retracted significantly.