Love of Trivia Prompts Valley Man to Invent Drinking Game
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Mike Curry loves pub trivia games.
He’s been a member of many teams over the years and also hosts weekly trivia nights at several Mahoning Valley bars.
Now, he has created an at-home “drinking trivia” game called Drivia. The game, which can be purchased for $25 at DriviaGame.com, comes with 2,500 trivia questions and answers on cards, score sheets, a timing glass, pencils and dice.
Curry’s day job is vice president of client development for Synchrony Bank in Youngstown. But on many nights, he can be found running a trivia game in a local pub.
He’s at Crickets in Youngstown at 7 p.m. every other Monday; Riser Tavern in Boardman at 7:30 p.m. every Tuesday; Riser in Columbiana at 7 p.m. every Wednesday; Highpointe in Niles one Friday each month; and the Post Office Pub in Mineral Ridge at 7 p.m. every other Saturday.
A native of Butler, Pa., Curry has always had an inquisitive mind. “I’m the guy who constantly says, ‘Google it,’” he said.
It was that desire to know the answers that started his passion for pub trivia about 20 years ago. Curry had just moved to Albany, New York, for his career. He was single and didn’t know anyone in that city.
One night he found himself in a pub eating dinner when a trivia night game began.
“Some guys at the bar asked me if I knew any answers, which I did,” Curry said. “I quickly joined their team and we were winners each week. Almost 20 years later, we are still best friends and talk regularly.”
Curry is a graduate of Butler County Community College and the State University of New York, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business management and economics.
“When I moved to Youngstown, you could find me in local nightspots playing guitar and singing,” he said. “When I started hosting trivia nights, it quickly became my main source of bookings and has pretty much been that way since.”
Curry said it is “an honor” to see the same folks come back every week to take part in his trivia games.
“I love seeing people enjoy the game, having lots of laughs, forget about the day and unwind,” he said. “Many regulars have become friends.”
He decided to create Drivia after getting requests for virtual trivia during the pandemic, when the games at bars were suspended. He started hosting games online.
“People would share my posts and the next thing I knew, people whom I had never met from different parts of the country were joining in,” he said.
Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
