By Eddieboy
As printed in the July 2002
Sky Valley Chapter ABATE of Washington, after spending the winter wondering if their 5 year-old bike show and rally would ever see the light of day again, could let out a well-deserved collective sigh, when at the end of the day, Sunday May 19th, another very successful event was wrapped up.
Perhaps the light of day never quite shown down on the Pacific Northwest's second largest one-day rally due to stubborn cloud cover, but then again neither did the notorious Puget Sound 'convergence zone' weather-front materialize into rain drops, at least during the day. What began as a rather nasty early morning weather forecast seemed to parallel the earlier warning generated by the town Police Chief, last summer, when a recommendation to not re-issue a permit to ABATE for the Old Snohomish Motorcycle Show was made to the city fathers. Forecasts and warnings to the contrary, higher powers interceded and a fine time was delivered up to riders and enthusiasts alike from British Columbia down to Oregon, and over to Idaho - - the Antique and Classic Rally lives!
Double your pleasure, double your fun, just don't double park down the middle of the street, to avoid being a bum. Or experiencing a bummer. In a concession to law enforcement concerns the traditional Sturgis-like quadruple-lined motorcycle parking that decorates First Street from one end of the Victorian downtown to the other was limited to curb-side with a single row down the middle of the drag.
Except for a brief threat of enforced towing during the morning when four bikes were found by authorities to be a foot out of line (count'em - 12 inches), everything went off without a hitch. With nearly a hundred tie-died yellow t-shirted ABATE volunteers on the prowl (thanks, guys and gals!) to keep the peace and point out the toilets, the only other incident of note was Police Chief Sofie himself assisting the local high school year book staff with impromptu photo portraits of the rabble, including group shots of the red'n'white concession stand. Cooperation was the watchword of the day, and peaceable enjoyment the result.
"I think it's gone well every year," shared Snohomish Police Patrolman Joe Bodmer. "I've never seen any real problems, and I have seen them (the rallies) since the beginning."
Brad Watson, Chapter Coordinator (editor's correction: Committee Chair, not Chapter Coordinator), feels confident the future of this popular motorcycle event, which kicks off the summer season in the same manner as the older, larger Oyster Run predicts the fall season with winter inevitably not far behind, is secure. "We worked studiously at satisfying the concerns of the City Council, and they listened to us I'm happy to say. 'We' is a big beast - - I'd like to thank not only the volunteers from Sky Valley, but also North Snohomish ABATE, as well as Great Northwest H.O.G. of Lynnwood and the Christian Motorcycle Association, King's Riders Chapter out of Everett."
At the center of the Old Snohomish Show, surprisingly, isn't politics but motorcycles - - lots and lots of all kinds and vintages, lining the main streets, side streets and alley ways. And people, good friends really, clad in a rainbow of leathers and t-shirts fawning over customized and restored two-wheeled contraptions of all ilk, poking heads into colorful antique stores which are a hallmark of this venue, and occasionally imbibing of the tasty treats both solid and liquid, which the many taverns and restaurants offer up. At the center of the hubbub is the peoples-choice antique, vintage, classic and contemporary ride-in motorcycle show. To enter, one must be able to ride the damn bike under its own power; no sandbagging, you high handicappers out there! Judging is a serious endeavor and occupies the 12:pm to 2:pm time slot exclusively, with the small exception of when everyone runs off to see the Seattle Cossacks perform from 1:pm to 2:pm, this year up on Union Street rather than in the middle of First Street - - probably to prevent an overly zealous tow-truck operator from nabbing one of those beautiful white-and-maroon knuckleheads in case it crossed over into the 'no-fly zone', I guess…No need to fear, as our boys never mess up!
Winner of the Chopper Class contest in 2000 by default (who's fault??), Big Al, a Bay Area transplant of long-standing to the Northwest, was this year left to explain the virtues of pedal-power and how small electric motors "can really make a big difference in getting around on a three-speed bicycle. They're really promoting these down in Santa Cruz!," Big Al intones, not so much with the environment in mind as much as waiting for the ink to dry on his soon-to-be-updated driver's license. I just hope-to-gawd they don't create a class for those things in the show as well...
It's too bad the deadline for entry is high-noon, as at about 12:15ish an absolutely gorgeous Indian square-four in two-tone red and black found its way illegitimately into the vintage class of the judging. It's a good thing to, because no one else would'a stood a chance to come out 'numero uno'; excuse me while I wipe up the drool, okay?
Speaking of deadlines, its about four hours later on the ferry boat back to Kingston, a dejected independent small-shop motorcycle repair owner is spied starring down at his rain-and-road-grime-stained creation. "I hit rain as soon as I left Sequim early this morning", says Kevin Karns, who will remain nameless. "I finally got over on the ferry, the rain stopped, but by then it was 12:30 or so, and they wouldn't let me in (to the show bike contest). Besides, the bike, which I stayed up late the night before polishing, was a mess." he finishes mumbling to nobody in particular.
Yup, it's all fun in the sun up here at the Old Snohomish Show...wait; make that 'proud under the clouds'. See everyone next year!
http://www.snohomishbikeshow.org/00reporttp.htm-- Revised: 18 JUN 2004
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