Documentary to look at Harley Bike Week and Bikefest

Ricky Kelly had been coming to Myrtle Beach for 20 years and on a recent trip, he saw swarms of police making their way to the beach as well.

He began asking questions and found out the police were moving in for Atlantic Beach Bikefest during Memorial Day weekend. When he’d taken the trek from Durham, N.C., just weeks earlier, he didn’t see the same amount of police.

“I always felt that there was a story to tell here,” said Kelly, who is producing and directing a documentary called “A Tale of Two Beaches” that will look at similarities and differences of Harley Davidson Bike Week, a rally with predominantly white bikers traditionally earlier in May along the Grand Strand, and this weekend’s Bikefest with predominantly black bikers.

“Maybe I can play some role in the young people seeing what’s going on. I’m not going to sugar coat it. I’m not trying to show these are white people trying to beat us down or make us look bad. If we’re going to come down here and act a fool, I’m going to show us acting a fool. I’m not going to sugar coat anything. We have to hold up the merits of our own society sometimes.”

Law enforcement for Bikefest is being handled differently this year as a reaction to three people being killed during the Memorial Day weekend last year. The violence prompted state and local police to step up security around the county.

“We are here on vacation. This is not Afghanistan,” Kelly said. “Why are you dressed like you’re ready for a war? That’s intimidating in itself.”

Kelly met with Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes and area police officials, and learned a bit when he visited Atlantic Beach.

“As I went to Atlantic Beach, and saw the beautiful land that is unused, there are just lots and lots, and the history is so rich with Atlantic Beach, then my storyline took a turn,” Kelly said. “There’s just a lot of rich history that comes out of there. It’s so undeveloped, as far as the land is. Maybe we can bring attention to that plot of land, national attention, because it is a black beach and one of the last, if not the last, black beach in the country. It’s just sad when you look at it and it’s full of potential that is not being reached.”

As for what will make the documentary and what will end up on the cutting room floor, Kelly is not sure yet. He is aiming to have a finished product by the start of 2016, however he said he will not force a completion unless he is satisfied with the finished product.

Until then, he and his crew will continue rolling the cameras trying to capture as much of this weekend’s Bikefest to one day share with the public.

“It’ll definitely be brought to America because they need to see this,” Kelly said. “The cameras don’t lie.”

This story was originally published May 23, 2015 at 1:00 AM with the headline "Documentary to look at Harley Bike Week and Bikefest."