Some Grand Strand businesses expecting small fall biker crowd
Aisha Khan/WBTW
Spring bike rally 2009 at The Beaver Bar.
This year’s fall bike rally is set to take place next week beginning September 30th through October 4th.
Some businesses in Myrtle Beach and in the south end of the strand said that the spring biker rallies were a lot smaller than normal and that they aren’t expecting a big crowd to show up this time either.
Many like Martin Mullin of Murphy’s Law and Todd Price of Suck Bang Blow attribute that to the new ordinances the city of Myrtle Beach passed eight months ago.
“I’ll be down about 90 percent for the fall rally,“ said Mullin, “they shot biker week in the foot and hurt Myrtle Beach.”
“I know it will be a diminished crowd,” said Price, “so much damage was done by what Myrtle Beach did, I mean we’ve tried to undo it some ourselves but it’s hard to go up against a machine like that.“
Mullin added that he still hasn’t been able to get rid of any of the spring rally bike t-shirts and decided he wasn’t going to stock up on any fall rally t-shirts because he lost money the first time around.
With just one week before the rally, Georgetown County Council passed its second reading on restrictions when it comes to vendor business Tuesday night.
Council member Jerry Oakley said that the ordinance would limit each business to just one vendor per property.
“What we are trying to do is strike a balance between the interest of the attendees of the bike rallies the vendors and the other businesses and the residents,” said Oakley, “and it’s all in the name of public safety, health and welfare, undo traffic congestion which is problematical, and we don’t want crowds growing to the size that they become unsafe and unmanageable.“
A third reading on the ordinance is needed before it can be enacted and the next council meeting isn’t scheduled until October 13th after the fall rally.
Advertisement
Reader Reactions
Could it be that Martin Mullin of Murphy’s Law and Todd Price of Suck Bang Blow along with many others, can’t get rid of those MB Bike Week T-shirts because of an oversight on their part when having them printed?
With bikers boycotting the City of Myrtle Beach, why didn’t these businessmen, who cater to the biker industry, recognize the fact that MANY bikers would not want T-shirts with “Myrtle Beach” printed on them?
Sounds like another poor business plan to me.
The City of Myrtle Beach listened to their residents when passing the new ordinances for the May rallies.
Even Georgetown County has joined in, to assist those residents living in the Waccamaw Neck area during the May rally events.
The fall Harley rally has never been a large biker event and really has not had complaints made by local residents, because it is traditionally, such a small event.
The Pilgrimage rally may be smaller still, simply because of these times in an economic recession and NOT because of any new ordinances or vendor limits.
Could it be that the promoters, vendors and businesses that cater to the biking industry, are just trying to play the “blame game” with their finger-pointing?
Bikers, just as the rest us, have also been effected by the recession with dwindling mutal, money market and stock market, and savings accounts.
I also heard that Mr. Rogers like funny guy with the bow ties talking about how Myrtle Beach had tried to work something out with the rally people for almost 10 years. I have to wonder why they could not even work something out with Horry County Council, since they are the ones that forced all the vendors to expand their vendor permits. They started off as a 3day event, then went to 5days and then Horry County wanted even more vendor permit money so they jacked the fees up sky high and forced them to pay for an outrageously priced 10day vendor permit fee. Where was Myrtle Beach when all this was going on? I am sorry but I do not believe that Myrtle Beach really did much of anything right when it comes to managing the town or solving any of their tourism problems. So they can blame the businesses community and motorcycle tourist if they like but I do not think that anyone other than a handful of little old men and women believe any of this. There failures are due to poor planning by these so called leaders. I think that this whole thing has been a failed action from the very start. Poor planning to no planning with some of the worst timing ever, has done more to damage tourism than ever before in the history of this little ex family friendly town. Not so friendly anymore.
I find it extremely hard to believe that Council member Jerry Oakley is so stupid, as to ever believe that he can somehow create some kind of balance by limiting just one vendor per property. Who is he kidding? Does he really believe such a foolish thing as that? That is the most rediculas thing I have ever heard. They have to realize that this action is a death sentence for the Rallies, at least for the South end of the Grand Strand. The Harley events began in North Myrtle Beach 70 years ago, so it only seems fitting that this will be there final resting spot. This last spring many of us enjoyed less traffic, good riding and fellow ship and the vendor lovers simply road up the road a little was to Calabash and up to the N.C. Harley dealers where there were many vendors that made us feel welcome. So it looks like we will simply continue to have a good time where we are welcome in North Myrtle Beach and just north of there. I really like the ride up to Wilmington N.C. so this is no great lose for me, but then I am not one of the many Grand Strand businessmen that is going to be hurting in an already oppressed economy. Way to go G. Town.
Advertisement