Posted on 10/20/2005 12:56:59 PM PDT by martin_fierro
Rally in the Valley brings 500 motorcycle enthusiasts to Corbin
By: Trent Knuckles
Organizers are calling the first annual Rally in the Valley a smashing success, and say lessons learned from the Corbin motorcycle convention will make it even better in the future.
Joe "Butch" White, himself a Harley-Davidson owner and principal organizer of the rally, said over 2,500 motorcycles and about 5,000 people attended the three-day event at the Corbin Civic Center.
"I had a lot of people tell me they definitely are going to come back," White said. "They just couldn't ask to be treated any better than we treated them. It was a great success ... at any one time, we had over $20 million worth of motorcycles on display."
Most popular were the biker build-off motorcycles on display inside the civic center itself. Performances by the Road Hazard stunt team were also well received. White said "poker" runs to help support hurricane victims and research for cancer cures also went over well. The Tri-County Cancer Coalition would receive about $5,000 from the event, he said.
White said fears about traffic violations and possible drunk driving surrounding the event didn't come to pass.
"We had no incidents over the weekend," he said. "No wrecks. No speeding tickets. Nothing. Everyone was real responsible. Everyone enjoyed everything."
Though weather was sunny and clear the entire weekend, with mild temperatures, White said he'd like to move the event to September next year so it would be warmer in the evening. Many bikers left before nightfall because of plummeting temperatures. He said he also plans to move many of the bigger musical acts to earlier in the day so that attendance is higher. He said Saturday night's performance by the Classic Rock All-Stars was good, but cool temperatures kept some away.
"We learned a ton of lessons from this one," he said. "This is just a foundation. We'll build and build. It will be twice as big next year."
White said he's already picked up a new corporate sponsor for the Second Annual Rally in the Valley, and plans to work hand-in-hand again with the Greater Corbin Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Commission. Chamber Director Bruce Carpenter was also instrumental in planning the event.
"Really, the volunteers are what makes all this possible," he said. "I can't thank them enough. Most of them helped with the NIBROC motorcycle show and poker run. All of them ride and were interested in seeing Corbin have a rally. Everybody just pulled together."
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I have a Corbin seat on my SV650 and I get their newsletter, wish I coulda gone.
Didja go?
No, sure didn't -- SOME of us have to work!!
But I was lucky enough a few years ago to be able to ride down to the Corbin factory and have them custom-make and fit my seat for me. They even let me wander around and peek over the seamstress' shoulders to watch it being put together.
I'm sick to death of motorcycle rallys. I have enough t-shirts and the yuppies on new bikes are dangerous.
I prefer smaller, private gatherings of 50 or fewer. Rec.motorcycles.harley, a Usenet newsgroup, has splinter groups of people who ride, meet, camp, lie, eat & drink, camp and ride home on a regular basis. When we had an event with 250 people one year, we discontinued the event. It's fun, safer and if you want a t-shirt, you can design and make your own.
It looks like the scooter people in my area do the same thing.
No more Sturgis or Daytona for me. Boring.
Kentucky??
China?
Montana?
Got a state?
Agreed. Beyond boring!
As the saying goes...
It used to be about Motorcycles, Now it's a Freakin' Fashion Show!!
Ride safe.
< |:P~
Work ~ what's that??? ;);)
I retired in '86 and have almost forgotten what it is. ;)
They seem like neat bunch at Corbins ~ they have a show on Speed Channel called "Corbin's Ride On."
Yup, and also a Fashion Freak Show at times.
I was out riding with the son-in-law several weeks back and we ran across a 50s-something (nice) guy who just bought his first Harley. His biggest concern was finding out what was fashionable in riding clothes and where to get them. Not liking our suggestion of not worrying about it and wearing "normal" clothes (i.e., boots, jeans, shirt), I suspect he'll make the Sturgis pilgrimage.
OK,,, slap me silly. Corbin the Company,, Not Corbin the town. Duh.... :-)
You gotta love guys who have high speed credit cards and low speed brains!
Personally, I keep waiting for some rich guy to jump out of his limo, hand me enough cash to buy two new ones, and drive off on my bike leaving me standing at the intersection. We all need a little something to look forward to. :-)
Thanks. I've been to the factory during the Independence Rally, but this sounds like a more mellow run. Think I'd like to make THIS my Hollister run next year.
Plus, you get to see lotsa nice "seats".
"...but I prefer the other show with the bodacious blonde reading blankly from a script."
Yes she does. Does it seem that she needs to take English as a second language class?
Actually, I watched the show more when it was a real "guy" thing. Although Chad McQueen read the lines about the same, he seemed to fit.
I just want some of that weather!
Wishin' I had bought those heated hangrips the parts guy talked me out of . . .
My neck of the woods.
http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=34953
Wind & rain on the way, stay tuned...... :-)
Sheesh!
I'm putting on thermal underwear; you're putting on a wet suit.
Life is hard . . .
Sheesh!
I'm putting on thermal underwear; you're putting on a wet suit.
Life is hard . . .
That's American Thunder with Michele Smith on Tuesdays.
http://americanthundertv.com/
I'm not big chopper fan, I do watch it once on a while and a couple of weeks ago they did a show on a large group of bikers supporting the troops and veterans, it was a great show.
Michele Smith's homepage:
http://www.michelesmith.tv/
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