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2006 Leesburg Bike Fest
at the
Leesburg's in Hark's area so we figured we'd start this year's coverage with his article about this major event. Yep, it's major, alright. Anytime you get over a hundred thousand folks out for a biker event, we'd call it major. Enjoy. Monk.
Ten years ago a very small handful of people believed that the City of Leesburg would be a great location for an annual bike event. I remember the first year when Lake County HOG put on the bike games on a rocky, un-level vacant lot below the current bike show location. This was before the large parking lot was built. Anyhow, that first year nearly 10,000 riders showed up and had a wonderful time. They must have spread the word because each year the event has
What separates this event from others is kind of simple to figure out. . .
For nearly twenty city blocks you can walk anywhere you wish with the cold one in your hands; vendors galore take up spots up and down Main and Magnolia Streets; bike games - this year hosted by Clermont HOG; the Rats Hole Bike Show; numerous Drill Teams; The “Ride Like A Pro Motocop”; Adam Holbrook Trials Rider
By Feider.
Monk
Monk
Show; great entertainment
at the Gator Harley-David-
son Main Stage - this year’s
headliners were Fog Hat
and Leon Russell; other live
bands on four stages
throughout the weekend;
and, oh, by the way, what
about the Miss Leesburg
contest? Where in the world
do all those pretty girls come
from? Man, that contest was
HOT!
Man, Monk, what's up with the ads?
Well, that's an easy one to answer, y'all. We pay about $200 a month for our website and bandwidth. Since we be po' folks and don't charge for the content on the website, we hope you'll click on some of the ads to help pay for the stories and pictures you're enjoyin'. And, Hey! Maybe you'll get a good deal on somethin' ya need, too.
Hope that explains it. Thanks.
Story continues below. . .
Chad
Dice
grown. Now the numbers are so large that I don’t believe even the original organizer, Joe Shipes, thought it would grow to the size it is today. According to local news, 200,000 bikers showed up for the event this year! Those figures make the Leesburg Bikefest one of the top six events in the USA! Man. There’s no doubt in my mind that Biketoberfest numbers will fall un-der the Leesburg Bike Fest in the very near future.
Then you have Poker Runs. . .
. . . the Lake County ABATE Run, and this year Angel Flight Southeast put one on in conjunction with the Bike Fest. The poker runs showcased what I think is the main reason the bikers keep coming back: The best riding in the State of Florida! The many still small towns dotting Lake County are very happy to see the riders come in, and I have yet to hear one complaint from a business owner or resident.
Like last year, the event is spilling out of the downtown area. Gator Harley-Davidson’s parking lots, on Hwy 441 just east of Leesburg, were filled to capacity Friday through Sunday. I‘d say that close to 100,000 bikers went through the dealership over the weekend.
Words won’t do this event justice, but our pictures really tell the story. I know that no other magazine comes close to the event coverage staff that we had on the streets of
Leesburg and out in Lake County. Monk told me we have over 3,000 pictures, four more stories, and numerous readers comments. As always, Dixie Biker was where we always wanna be - out with the bikers, not on some stage promoting our-selves. We’ll have coverage of the Leesburg Bike Fest over the rest of the summer in DBI, too, just like in past years. (Links to other stories are at top of the page.)
Gator Harley is a family owned
business. Above - John Malik,
Sr. greeting visitors. Above right - John Junior worked his butt off over the three day weekend. Right - Arlene Malik and Dale, owner of Dale's Exxon on Main Street and Hwy 27.
I’ve been asked by several people, “What can make
this event better?” A simple answer: Make the Lees-
burg Bike Fest two days longer, and ask some other
towns to participate. Quite simply, what used to be
Leesburg Bike Fest has now become Lake County
Bikefest. Sure, downtown Leesburg will still be the
focal point, but other towns should participate, too. Just like Daytona is the focal point for Bike Week, but other towns and cities now have their own events.
In closing, a very special thank you to all the Lake County, Leesburg and other Law Enforcement Agencies. Except for one possible glaring accident, you did one heck of a job. You made our riding safer, you were friendly to the visitors, and you helped make this an extremely successful event. Dixie Biker Salutes You.
Monk
By Hark
