Interesting weekend, as I've posted in earlier threads I haven't been back since 91-92'. I was not aware of the loud exhaust ban. Auggie doggie thru down on me going thru Main St, Thursday night. He and his crew come out of the woodwork and confronted me with a nasty attitude. His first words were, 'You're going to jail, pull that bike over'. Screw Main St and the police hounds running up and down the blvd, that was way out of line on his behalf. Cost me a $100 ticket only after someone that knew him and me, intervened. I'm not happy with what I saw on the beach side of Daytona and what it has become, damn shame and far from them pulling you over for outrageous apes or throwing the exhaust sniffer up your yin yangs years ago.
The amount of money brought into that community with bikes and here we are in this day and age getting thrown down on over silliness, hell, few girls telling me they cant flash their ***** any more in fear of jail and a stiff fine.
Think I'll stay on the west side of the friggin bridges next time, as eventually we did this time after the auggie doggie incident this year.

 

Let's face it, Daytona doesn't want Bike Week or Biketoberfest. They want your money, but nothing else. Hell, they won't even make Main St "Bikes Only" for the entire event. Very little promotion of either event. Cops get more strict each year. City fathers seem to want to make both events a family affair. Bike Week is when they want it, in early March when the weather can still be iffy, to get a jump start on the busy season. Another 2 or 3 weeks later would guarantee good weather and an unofficial 2 week event. Biketoberfest is only 4 days, when it could easily be 10 and bring in a lot bigger crowd. Maybe even get as many attendees as Leesburg!

Daytona should look at what Laconia did to their rally in the late 60s & early 70s. That so called major rally has never made a complete come back, even with a lot of more people within riding distance of that small town than either Daytona or Sturgis.

They say all the right things about bikers, but don't do anything to make bikers feel welcome or special. If Daytona had their way, bikers would stay away and just send a check. Once Harleys aren't the "In Thing" with the rich, trendy, cool crowd, the events are doomed.

 

It seems like its all Risk and Reward. These cities want the events and the participants money, but then they want to charge the organizers for security, and crazy fees for the vendors. I noticed at Myrtle Beach last spring where I have been attending since before the helmet/noise issue, a lot of the vendors say they wont be back. Where they have to set up and the fees charged make it impossible to make money, let alone break even. Myrtle has never, to my knowledge had any biker only streets and it still draws a crowd. Could be because of the time of year, don't know.

Point is, the Cities want the revenue, but don't provide much else to make the event enjoyable.

 

Most noise tickets are given to people sitting at a stop in traffic and they want to hit the rev-limiter. Yup....pay the man.
This year, crowds were so small....hardly any cops were out. (remember the days of cops riding segways up and
down main Street?).
Let me sit outside your house at 11 PM and rev my bike...for a few days. See if you can put up with it for 75 years.
Daytona is my town. Respect me. Have a good time. Don't be stupid. Not much to ask, when it comes down to it.

Chuck

 

lmbo...whatever
EDIT: Sitting here filling in the pertinent ticket info and MS Word the envelope, surprised myself commenting with a laugh.

 

Did I hear right? You got a noise ticket on Main St. just riding along at traffic speed/rpm?

Or was it a result of winding the throttle unnecessarily?

If it's the latter; it's all on you.

 

All good things shall pass so too has Bike Week. What once was a non stop party week filled with bike people, frivolity and gratuitous nudity not to mention a celebration of the V-Twin motorcycle is now nothing more than a money grab. Yessiree, thems was shinin' times they was back then.

I remember several years back I think it was Full Throttle magazine or Born To Ride that got a Tampa Bike Fest going down in Ybor City. I think it was held a couple of years and then the city I think brought in event planners and consultants and tried to turn it into a cash cow for the city. That's when it fell apart.

 

Yep, times have changed no doubt that one. I always did think the Ybor City thing was going to be a bad idea due to the security cameras that monitor the people.
As for Daytona Beach Main St, lesson learned. I forgot about it the next morning and had fun on the west side the rest of our sty up into Sunday.
EDIT: I'll leave thi part out...*laffs

 

Gonna add to this thread: Went to send what I thought was a traffic violaton and the payment off but I couldnt read the carbon on the paper, so I called. I have made 3 calls trying to get over this nonsense and the reply I get is it takes up to 2 weeks to hit their computers. I then realize the last time I got hit with a misdemeanor charge and not a traffic citation. I'm pissed, and ***** all of you that thnk thats cool. I'm fightin it, I'm not cool at all with that. Rev my engine and get a misdemeanor charge? Have you lost your minds?

 

Look what happened to Myrtle Beach...all that took was one lousy mayor for one lousy term. He said it wasn't worth it to have the bike weeks and lumped Harley week in with "Atlantic" bike week, instead of cracking down on hoodlums. Check out restaurant row now....so many closed restaurants and bars. He only lasted one term because the economic impact was so big. I watched the same thing happen to Nascar at Watkins Glen, they made it a "family" event and now it sucks. If you want to camp anywhere NEAR the track, you gotta have a camper, and quiet rules are enforced after 11pm...really. ....??!! The pussification continues....I'm hitting the "Vous" this spring..