Post by outlaw0013 on Oct 3, 2009 19:36:40 GMT -6
Organizers of Black Bike Week see OC as possible a
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(Click ESC to stop the shaking) Source: oceancitytoday.net
South Carolina - ~Organizers of Black Bike Week see OC as possible alternative~
Hope remains that they can work something out with Myrtle Beach officials CHRISTINE CULLEN Staff Writer
(Oct. 2, 2009) Participants and organizers of a largely African-American motorcycle rally are weary of the negative treatment at its traditional home in Myrtle Beach and are considering moving the event to Ocean City in the spring.
Atlantic Beach Bikefest, commonly referred to as Black Bike Week, has taken place in the beach town just north of Myrtle Beach, S.C., over the Memorial Day weekend for the last 29 years, bringing more than 300,000 people to the area each spring to celebrate the sport motorcycle culture. Organizer Hakim Harrell wants to keep the event at home, but growing negative sentiment there toward motorcycle rallies has caused him to start looking for a new site.
"Ocean City came up as a place we would be interested in moving the event to. As of right now, we have no immediate plans to move, but I am very interested in Ocean City," Harrell said this week.
This year, Myrtle Beach attempted to restrict the two motorcycle events that have centered around the resort in May for decades, the Black Bike Week of Memorial Day and a Harley- Davidson rally earlier in the month, because of complaints from some residents and politicians that the combined 500,000 bikers the events attract cause more harm than good.
The government passed 15 laws directed at the bikers, such as outlawing loud mufflers, engine revving, riding without a helmet, parking more than two motorcycles in a space, loitering in parking lots and setting up chairs, cool- ers or food beside a road, and announced it "will no longer host motorcycle rallies."
"The rallies expanded in size, and also in length. It became Bike Month, not Bike Week. It was just too much - too big, too long and too loud," Myrtle Beach spokesman Mark Kruea said.
Attendance at both events fell this May and hundreds of Black Bike Week participants came to Ocean City instead for a small, unofficial gathering. Ocean City's location and support of other motorcycle events makes it an ideal place to move the official event, Harrell said.
But the early sentiment around town is that Harrell might not find much support. Though police said the black bikers who came to Ocean City last spring were courteous and caused few problems, some businesses reported loud disturbances in parking lots, that some biker patrons skipped out on restaurant bills and there was a at a rowdy picnic at Northside Park.
"Would I be in favor of starting another Bike Week in the spring? Not really," Mayor Rick Meehan said. "This is a different type of group than would normally be accommodated in Ocean City at that time of year. But Ocean City is open to everybody. We just hope everyone who comes here obeys the rules, has a good time and is safe and courteous to others."
Last year, Harrell contacted the convention center to check on the size of the facility. He said it was a "very attractive" location that "definitely could be an ideal site" for the central location of his event. But before he decides to make the move, he is waiting to see the results of a November election in Myrtle Beach.
"If the results are favorable we'll try to work with the new government and continue to produce our event there. If the election is not favorable, in the sense of getting a new administration that cares about business and about bikes, we'll look at moving the event," Harrell said.
If that is the case, Harrell said his first step would be to set up meetings with the Ocean City Council and mayor and the Chamber of Commerce to gauge the local interest in holding another motorcycle event in the resort.
"The important thing is to speak with the government to make sure this is something they want, because we don't want to overshadow any preexisting events going on. We need the support of the police, the business community, the government. We're not coming to invade," Harrell said.