Some fall bike rally events canceled amid hurricane warning in Myrtle Beach, others still on
Some events have been canceled more than halfway through the fall Myrtle Beach Bike Rally as area prepares for impending storm.
The annual event, which runs from Sept. 26 through Oct. 2, is much smaller than the more popular rally in May, which draws hundreds of thousands of bikers to town.
Tropical storm Ian is expected to regain hurricane strength before hitting South Carolina Friday, which has prompted a hurricane warning for Horry County, according to the National Weather Service.
Jenn DeLuca, the events coordinator with Myrtle Beach Harley Davidson, said Thursday the business’s remaining events have been canceled.
Bike Night, which was scheduled for Thursday evening, and Saturday’s Scene Rally Ride were both on the delearship’s itenary for the week.
Both Harley-Davisdon shop locations are also going to close Thursday at 5 p.m. and could reopen Friday at 11 a.m. depending on the weather, DeLuca added.
She said the plan is to be back open for the weekend.
“We still have all of our rally memorabilia, and as long as everything goes as planned, our big tent and everything’s going to be back up...” DeLuca said.
She said she wants bikers to be safe, but ultimately they must decide if they want to ride out the storm.
“Hopefully, we’ll get some good weather at the end of the weekend for them to soak up some riding,” DeLuca said. Also, our dealerships will be open, so hopefully they can still swing through there and grab some rally merchandise.”
Spider Webb, a spokesman for the Myrtle Beach Bike Rally, said many businesses as of now will stay open despite the weather.
But that might change if the weather gets worse, Webb added.
He said folks have boasted about the good crowds during events the first weekend and earlier this week.
“There’s possibly a few people that have left in advance of the storm just to cut their vacation short, but we haven’t seen that being a big trend,” Webb said. “The biggest trend is that most people are hunkering down Friday and just finding other activities to do.”
He said businesses still open are prepared to move activities and entertainment inside when that times comes.
“So, that’s what they’re doing for at least a night or two because you can’t have a concert in the rain, but they’re not going to let it rain on their bike parade.”
This story was originally published September 29, 2022 at 5:19 PM.