Harley Week 2009 Brings Fewer Riders, More Opinions
By Christina Lee Knauss
The Harley Week that almost wasn't took place along the Grand Strand May 8-17, but it was a much different event than previous years.
The 69th year of the Harley-Davidson "Cruisin' the Coast" Rally was a pared-down, lower-key version of the rallies which in recent years drew more than 200,000 Harley riders annually, and had streets from Little River down to Murrells Inlet filled with bikers on Harleys of all makes and styles.
This year's rally faced controversy even before it started because of the Myrtle Beach city government's campaign to rid the city of both the Harley rally and the Memorial Day Bike Fest that follows it.
Many bikers took part in an unofficial "Not a Dime in '09" boycott against the city of Myrtle Beach, and swore not to patronize city businesses or hotels. Many used S.C. 22 and S.C. 31 to avoid the city completely while on their way to popular biker venues such as the two Suck, Bang Blow locations in Murrells Inlet, and H.B. Spokes in Longs.
Mike Shank, marketing manager at Myrtle Beach Harley-Davidson, estimated that only about half of the bikers that usually visit the Strand during the week made the trip this year. About 250,000 Harley riders visited the area in 2008.
He said business was down at all the Harley-Davidson stores within the Myrtle Beach city limits, including a 69 percent drop at the Ocean Boulevard store and a 74 percent drop at Broadway at the Beach. Harley business even dropped at the store in biker-friendly North Myrtle Beach by 40 percent.
An early survey showed that the room occupancy rate in the area was down by 17.9 percent over previous years, but no one could determine whether that was caused by a biker boycott, the economy or just fewer other visitors in the area.
During the rally's first weekend, crowds were down noticeably at venues up and down the Grand Strand, especially at locations like H.B. Spokes where vendors are one of the big early draws. New Horry County ordinances limited vendor permits to five days instead of seven, and this drove business down at the club for the rally's first days.
Manager Keith Rogers said H.B. Spokes has traditionally been a big attraction during Harley Week.
"During the rest of the year, we survive off of money we make during this rally," Rogers said.
Early crowds were strong at the biker-oriented clubs in Murrells Inlet such as SBB and The Rat Hole, but some business owners said numbers were still down compared to other years. Crowd numbers did increase noticeably by the rally's final weekend May 16-17.
On Tuesday, May 12, only a few dozen people browsed the few vendors at the Myrtle Beach Speedway, which is outside the city limits and where live bands and other events were scheduled during the week. Crowds at the Speedway never reached the levels organizers hoped for during the week.
New Hampshire resident Lawrence Anderson was checking out vendors at the Speedway with his brother Bill Anderson, who bought a house in Myrtle Beach after coming to the area for the Harley rallies for many years.
Both men said they could not understand Myrtle Beach's attitude toward the rallies, especially because of the money the rallies generate.
"Fourteen people were supposed to come down with me, and they all said '(The heck with) you, I'm not going where I'm not wanted,' " Lawrence said. "This group included an attorney, a guy who owns a kitchen company, another who owns a motorcycle shop. Some of these guys who didn't come would spend $3,000 each when they came for the rallies."
Bill found it ironic that he chose to move to Myrtle Beach because it seemed like a biker-friendly city.
"Of all the places I could have picked, I chose here because I came down here and saw they loved bikers and they love golfers - what more could a guy want?" he asked. "We'll still ride here, but I think the city has made a big mistake."
Stunt riders performed tricks on sport bikes in special rings set up at the Speedway and The Dog House North off U.S. 17 near Restaurant Row. One of them, Glen Milbert of the Myrtle Beach Stunters, criticized Myrtle Beach city leaders and said the lower numbers were hurting the stunt riders as well as other businesses.
During the week, crowds were steady at Myrtle Beach Harley-Davidson off U.S. 17 just outside the city limits and at Jamin' Leather on the south end. Workers at both venues said the crowds were not at the levels of previous years.
Jamie Keats, owner of Jamin' Leather, set up a special open mic in the front parking lot of his store to give customers a chance to vent their feelings about how the Harley Rally was going.
Myrtle Beach's loss may have been a gain for other area municipalities, as many bikers headed for North Myrtle Beach, Surfside Beach, Garden City Beach and Murrells Inlet to shop, stay and eat during the rally. New Bern, N.C. business owners gained revenue because the Carolina Harley-Davidson Dealers Association moved its rally there for May 15-16. Shallotte, N.C. also attracted many bikers with the opening of a new Harley-Davidson dealership there.
Some bikers, as in recent years, took side trips to Charleston and the Wilmington, N.C. area, but neither city's visitors bureaus reported larger than usual numbers of Harley riders staying there during the week-long rally.
An article in the Charleston Post and Courier reported that businesses along Front Street in Georgetown also saw some increase in business as Harley riders chose that city as an alternate destination from Myrtle Beach.
Crowds increased steadily during the week, with many more bikers crowding into venues in Murrells Inlet during the second weekend than the first.
Still, business never did reach the level of previous years, and many Myrtle Beach business owners expressed anger at local officials over what they say could be a disastrous loss of revenue. The angriest included owners of oceanfront motels, bars and restaurants, as well as shops that cater to bikers.
Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes blamed the bikers for organizing the boycott, but others said their avoidance of the city was understandable because of the city's anti-biker advertising campaign.
Hundreds turned out for a May 20 meeting at Revolutions at Broadway at the Beach to vent their frustration and anger over the lost revenue. Business owners who spoke included everyone from hoteliers and bar owners to the owner of Klig's Kites, hardly a biker-centric business but one that still felt the bite of lost revenue during the week.
Still, despite the controversy, many Harley riders interviewed during the week said they were enjoying themselves, attending events and spending money with vendors, and still planned to come to the Grand Strand during the spring - even if they might not spend time in Myrtle Beach like they used to.
At H.B. Spokes, Kevin Lawrence, 47, summed up the attitude of many of the bikers who attended this year's Cruisin' the Coast. Lawrence, an African-American Harley enthusiast from New Haven, Conn., said he has been attending the rally for more than 10 years with a group of friends - most who, like him, work in law enforcement. He said some of his friends refused to return to the Grand Strand this year, but his group of seven friends planned to return next year to the house they regularly rent in North Myrtle Beach.
"I think it's a shame that there was an anti-biker campaign, because there haven't been any issues with Harley week in the past," he said. "Driving the bikers away hurts the vendors and it hurts the businesses here. This rally creates commerce and brings money to the area. We'll keep coming back here - we won't let negative things deter us."
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