Myrtle Beach asking Atlantic Beach to join them in canceling Bike Week

I've read alot of people's comments on bike week and would like to add a few:

Here's what I like about Bike Week
Meeting and greeting people
Showing off classy bikes
The boost to the MB economy

Here's what I don't like:

The boost to the MB economy is offset by people who close their businesses so as not to deal with the chaos

Crotch rockets roaring up and down So Ocean Boulevard at 2pm
I suggest an event at the speedway for this activity

People's rudeness and lack of civility - Riding motorcycles doesn't give an exemption to the Ten Commandments.

Telling my little son not to look at the booty hangin out.
My son asking why those nearly nude hookers are so brazen.

Bikers getting hurt due to inexperience or bad judgement due to alcohol. I've seen some bad injuries.

Used rubbers in my front yard courtesy of the bikers next door.

CONCLUSION: SHUT DOWN BIKERS WEEKS AND SEE IF PROPERTY OWNERS AND BUSINESSES SURVIVE. MY GUESS IS THEY WILL!

I seem to be hearing that "black" bike week is the reason why both bike weeks are being canceled. I really dont think that its fair to pin it on one group. I feel as though both groups contributed to this. There are negative things about both bike weeks if u ask me. And for the record, i dont see more families coming to MB is bike week is canceled because majority of the children dont get out of school until June now.

The truth about Bike Week is this is a VERY profitable 2 1/2 weeks for MB business's. Like Black Friday & Xmas in retail, some MB business's would not make a profit for the year without Bike Week $$. All you have to do is talk to the employees, business and even condo owners in & around MB. I've talked to Real Estate agents in the area & they confirmed that many of their customers invest in rental condo's BECAUSE of the income generated from Bike Week, not inspite of. Also the substantial influx of bikers allows business's to give additional hours to employees and city workers as well. The tax revenue is SUBSTANTIAL and the city of MB knows it. Why do you think they have made feeble attempts to replace this income. FACTS: The average Harley owner makes more than 50k a yr and is college educated. The average Black Bike week attendee spends 25 to 50% more than the average MB tourist. The city of Murder Beach simply does not want Black Bikers. However they underestimated the true fall out from their actions. Most bikers are law abiding citizens so the new laws had ZERO effect on them. Guess what MB? Black Bike week 2010 is going to be the biggest yet, so get ready!

I AM A FIREMAN/RN FROM JACKSONVILLE FLORIDA AND I USUALLY GO TO MYRTLE BEACH EVERY YEAR FOR BIKE WEEK. IT IS DISAPPOINTING THAT A CITY WOULD NOT WELCOME BIKERS IN THEIR CITY IN SUCH HARSH ECONOMIC TIMES LIKE THIS ONE. I PERSONALLY DONT WANT TO GIVE THE CITY OF MYRTLE BEACH ONE CENT OF MY HAR EARNED MONEY IF IM NOT WELCOMED THERE. I AM MEETING WITH THE PUBLIC OFFICIALS NOW ABOUT HOSTING BIKE RALLIES HERE IN JACKSONVILLE FLORIDA ON OUR BEACH. I WAS MET WITH ALOT OF QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS BUT EVERYTHING SEEMS POSITIVE. I WILL KEEP EVERYONE POSTED. ANYWAY, I DECIDED TO HEAD TO MIAMI INSTEAD FOR THAT WEEKEND. I AM SURE MY 1500.00 DOLLARS IN PAID FOR THE HOTEL ROOM IS QUITE APPRECIATED THERE.

I have stated my protest against what the City of Myrtle Beach is doing against the bikers and the rally by writing a song. It is on Youtube and it is in the cowboy storytellers way of telling things . Kind of a poem into a song. Please check it out and pass it around if you are interested. Please check out www.youtube.com/blueswalter and see/hear the song.It is called the Biker and Myrtle Beach.

The North Carolina man charged with trying to kill a biker with his truck during the May 2006 Bile Rally in Myrtle Beach is back in his NC home under monitoring by the South Carolina Department of Mental Health. Circuit court judge Stephen H. John found 69-year-old Larry Gilbert Jacobs not guilty by reason of insanity Oct. 30, 2008 in Conway. Myrtle Beach Police charged Jacobs, of Sugar Grove, NC, with hitting Makino Robinson while Robinson was riding his motorcycle down South Kings Highway. At the sentencing hearing in October, John ordered Jacobs held at the at the South Carolina Department of Mental Health in Columbia for 120 days to undergo further treatment and evaluation, and was supposed to have another hearing this month to determine his status. In December, the department of mental health determined Jacobs was ready to be released under monitoring, according to 15th Circuit assistant solicitor Donna Elder. John said in his order that the South Carolina Department of Mental Health found that at the time of the incident, Jacobs could not “distinguish moral right from moral wrong,” “as a result of mental disease of defect,” John’s order dated Oct. 28 read. Jacobs told police on May 28, 2006 that after Jacobs hit the biker he drove four miles with the motorcycle lodged under his vehicle and witnesses reported that Robinson was on the hood of Jacob’s vehicle until he fell off, according to police reports.

Who wants to go to the redneck riviera anyway. Myrtle is nothing but strip mall after strip mall, disgustingly dirty beaches, nasty water and only one decent hotel. The whole place has gone down hill each and every year. I can't think of any reason to go there at all when we have so many other beautiful beach towns in NC. Or for that matter a quick and cheap plane ride to Nassau is about the same as gas to myrtle these days.

It may sound wonderful to say that the bike weeks inject X millions of dollars into the MB economy. However, you also have to look at where that money goes. If every hotel room in the town is booked, that is more income for those particular hotels. If the restaurants and bars are full and the shopping districts, then that is income for those particular businesses. As far as MB making any money, the only income the city gets will be from taxes. If there is an occupancy tax on the rooms, they will get a portion. They will get a portion of any sales tax generated on purchases. The rest of the money spent goes to actual business owners. The normal average citizens in MB get nothing. They are the ones who voted the administration into office. The workers in the stores, restaurants, hotels, etc are earning their normal hourly wages. Tips may make a difference but otherwise Bike Week translates into a whole lot more work for them and possibly no change in compensation. The city of MB is responsible for paying out overtime for police officers and any other city employees that it takes to maintain order through that time. They also have to pay for maintenance and cleanup costs associated with the event. While the city itself may make a good deal of money at first glance, once all of the expenses on behalf of the city for the businesses to earn the bulk of the income are factored in, it may not benefit the actual city of MB to hold this event. If that is the case and the general population wanted a stop put to it, then it is easy to see why they came to that decision.

Being a former rider, there are aspects of both sides of this issue that make sense. I've seen signs in MB that call the decision stupid. Business will certainly suffer, especially now that the economy has gone tango uniform. But, there are other locations that would love to have this influx of free spending folks that want to have a good time, and don't mind spending a lot of money to do so. Once MB sees how much these events pour into the coffers of North Myrtle and south, they'll be sorry they canceled these events. The residents who may have been inconvenienced for a couple of weeks, will see that these activities have helped to keep taxes lower, and provided income to thousands of vendors, gas stations, restaurants etc. I'm sure another area can be found and would be grateful to have these events to help local revenues. So, until MB comes around, find a location which will show riders hospitality, and gratitude for the millions of dollars MB wants to pass up. In the next election, Business owners will force MB to do away with this silliness.

A naked man on a motorcycle who crashed with an Arkansas state trooper's cruiser on a night when it was sleeting faces misdemeanor charges. A police report said a 35-year-old man kept riding when a trooper tried to pull him over during the Jan. 26 incident, yellingn he was on his way to Myrtle Beach! The man stopped abruptly several times in the street and then sped up quickly, until the trooper bumped him on one of the stops. The report didn't indicate any injuries but both vehicles were damaged. A witness quoted in the police report said the man was "naked as a jaybird." Searcy police cited the man for indecent exposure, fleeing and not having a vehicle license. State police are still investigating.

If this statistic from the paper is True : Bike week generates 90 Million(two weeks) to 180 Million(whole month of May) Do the math. About 90 percent of race participants usually come from outside the Myrtle Beach area, bringing two to three people with them and staying two to three nights on average, said marathon president Shaun Walsh. Their spending was expected to inject $15 million into the local economy this year, based on a formula provided by Coastal Carolina University, Walsh said.

Take away bike week and all your businesses, don't cry because of the money you lose. I would like to see the bikers go somewhere else to spend their money instead of in a town of cry babies!

The Blue Knights have positive activities that benefit the community. It’s not all about the rides, although they are important. I mean, that’s why bikers have bikes to begin with — to ride. But they do work with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, the Fayetteville Police Department, the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Falcon Children’s Home to raise money for toy runs and good causes. The members are a little upset about Myrtle Beach, S.C.’s stricter rules for the annual bike weeks in May. It seems that the city is not happy with the loud noise the bikes make and has passed what would seem to an outsider as some mighty strange laws — especially seeing that the city of Myrtle Beach stands to lose millions and millions of dollars from these bikers, whom they seem to be trying to discourage from attending the rallies. The members of the Blue Knights here are in agreement to boycott Horry County, S.C.

The Blue Knights have positive activities that benefit the community. It’s not all about the rides, although they are important. I mean, that’s why bikers have bikes to begin with — to ride. But they do work with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, the Fayetteville Police Department, the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Falcon Children’s Home to raise money for toy runs and good causes. The members are a little upset about Myrtle Beach, S.C.’s stricter rules for the annual bike weeks in May. It seems that the city is not happy with the loud noise the bikes make and has passed what would seem to an outsider as some mighty strange laws — especially seeing that the city of Myrtle Beach stands to lose millions and millions of dollars from these bikers, whom they seem to be trying to discourage from attending the rallies. The members of the Blue Knights here are in agreement to boycott Horry County, S.C.

Since many writing have never been to MB during either bike week, but as a blah, blah, blah... and sex out in the open in business parking lots, the trash generated, and the elevation in criminal acts and reports I have received Please, Anyone have any second hand stories of people who have been abducted by Aliens, probed.... If any of the stories are true, which I'm some are- but most created or exaggerated- then passed on, and on. My question is- where were trials & arrests. there always seemed to be a huge amount of police that never seemed overwhelmed or had lost control. Is that what is alledged? I for one think the police did a great job of controlling issues and problems, and feeel MOST stories are fabricated. History has proven MANY examples, and this will go down in history of another example.