NSBNEWS.net videos by Sera Frederick. Throughout the course of the late afternoon and the overnight hours Thursday, some 10,000 bikers partied at Pub 44 for the State Road 44 bar's signature Bike Week event, the vaunted "Bike Bash," which included not only the destruction of a vintage Japanese motorcycle, in this case a rusty 1976 Honda 360, but live performances by two classic rock bands, West Palm Beach-based L3-16 and New Smyrna Beach's own "Scared Straight."
WARNING: There is some raw language in the second video.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
NSBNEWS.net photos by Henry Frederick and Sera Frederick.
At far left, Pub 44 bartender Kelly West, 40, is proud of her assets. In the middle, a Honda is sacrificed with flames. At right, Pub 44 General Manager Kevin Hannah chats with waitress Cassie Welander, 19.
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Sex, fire and rock and roll. What more could you ask for after a turnout of 10,000 partying bikers? Not a thing as far as Pub 44 General Manager Kevin Hannah was concerned and all smiles as the night wore on.
That's because the bikers kept coming in and the crowd swelled to the point where every chair, bar stool and floor space was occupied, both inside and out.
The first five days of Bike Week were abysmal. Hannah's the first to admit that so this highlight event would either propel his profitability or the 10-day rally would end up a wash.
NSBNEWS.net photo by Henry Frederick. Robin Hannah, wife of Pub 44 General Manager MKevin Hannah, rings up merchandise sales on hats, shirts and other Bike Week memorabilia.
"This is great," Hannah said as Thursday spilled into early Friday and "Scared Street," a New Smyrna Beach band was still rocking the night crowd. "I couldn't ask for a better night. Through the course of the Bash this afternoon and evening, I'd say 10,000 (bikers) easily.Patch coleslaw wrestling event in Samsula was successful, he, too, would find success. Some 15,000 bikers tyurned out for the Samsula raunch-fest.
Bike Week 2010 got off to a slow start Friday with cold, rainy weather and got worse Saturday. It warmed up a bit Sunday to the low 50s, but with strong winds, even that was a challenge for bikers Sunday and Monday.
With the national economy in the tank,and the weather up north particularly harsh with lots of snow, Hannah played it conservative with supplies, with smaller beer and food orders. He played it smart. By mid-week of the 10-day rally, traffic started picking up, especially with nicer weather Wednesday.
What a kick start for Pub 44's 29th annual "Bike Bash," where a Japanese motorcycle is started and revved until it blows its engine -- a sacrifice to the Harley-Davidson gods, and all that is made in America, the anthem of beer-swigging, leather clad and tattoo-adorned bikers, many of them getting up there in their Baby Boomer ages.
For these diehards, Pub 44 is still referred to as "Gilley's Pub 44, formerly owned by Gilley Aguilar who sold the State Road 44 bar to partership that includes West Palm Beach residents Mike Delpercio and Bob Lowrey, along with Hannah, and his wife, Robin, who run the day-to-day operations.
Hannah, 53, whose background is in hospitality and food services, has worked 7 a.m. to midnight, with nightly stops at his Port Orange home, leaving nothing to chance with food preparations, prompt delivery of beverages and coordination of live entertainment and crowd control and comfort. Not one to skimp on staff, Hannah had 115 booked for the week, 60 more than on a typical week, with plenty of security for parking and crowd safety.
The only notable incident during the last few days was the removal by two Sheriff's deputies of a woman who was intoxicated, flung off her sneakers and was bumping into a bunch od people the night of the Bash.
As Hannah anticipated, colder weather meant slightly increased sales of liquor, but by mid-week with the warmer temperatures, the beer sales picked up tremendously.
"You have to realize in planning something like this that everything is weather driven," Hannah said.
NSBNEWS.net photo by Henry Frederick. This classic Honda ended up in flames during the 29th annual Bike Bash at Pub 44.
Speaking of driven, Hannah had another potential headache Thursday: The 1976 Honda CD 360 wouldn't start when it came time for the bike bashing at 9 p.m. "With all this cold, I had it on a battery charger," Hannah said.
Not to fret, though. With the rock band, "Scared Straight," entertainment the bikers, the biker was simply lit up in flames and thrown down to burn to a loud applause of the overwhelming Harley-riding crowd.
As for the kind of bike that Hannah rides? It's a 2001 Yamaha Roadstar, 1600 cc.
Said Hannah with a sheepish grin: "It looks like a Harley. It's what I can afford."
.