Daytona Biketoberfest 2021 rolls in with big crowds, perfect weather

DAYTONA BEACH — As Biketoberfest roared into its official opening day on Thursday, one motorcycle fan reflected on the event’s importance beyond a celebration of chrome and steel.

“It’s a lot more than about the bikes,” said Ed Wright, 60, who traveled on his Harley-Davidson Street Glide from Navarre in Santa Rosa County in Florida’s Panhandle.  “This is very spiritual to me.”

“It’s about how people come together, the brotherhood and sisterhood,” said Wright, who eased into Biketoberfest by sipping a Bud Light at a table outside the Boot Hill Saloon on Main Street. “They are the best people in the world. It’s spiritual freedom for me, man.”

Judging from the early crowds this week, Wright will have plenty of company on his spiritual quest as the four-day event shifts into high gear.

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In Ormond Beach, motorcycle fans were elbow-to-elbow on Thursday as they browsed vendors on the sprawling 150-acre outdoor space at Destination Daytona, at Interstate 95 and U.S. Highway 1.

At Bruce Rossmeyer’s Daytona Harley-Davidson, early customer traffic and sales at Destination Daytona were both up 20% over last year’s Biketoberfest, said Shelly Rossmeyer Pepe, general manager.

The event has spurred even bigger year-over-year increases at Rossmeyer dealerships on Main Street and in New Smyrna Beach, up by 81% and 50%, respectively, she said.

“We are clearly seeing a lot more people,” she said. “The weather is nice and people feel good about being vaccinated and they are feeling safer in crowds.”

Weather should be near perfect

Sunshine dominated the forecast again on Thursday, after a few scattered showers in the morning. Looking ahead, the weekend outlook called for sunny skies on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with highs of 85, 87 and 81, respectively.

It’s a near-perfect backdrop for Biketoberfest, the first time that one of Daytona Beach’s marquee motorcycle events has unfolded without COVID restrictions since the pandemic hit in early 2020

On the Rossmeyer showroom floor at Destination Daytona, Ed Woehl was checking out the color choices for 2022 Harley-Davidson models. He and his wife, who traveled from Columbia, S.C., to the event, were happy to see Biketoberfest unfolding without restrictions.

“It’s much better to be back to normal,” said Woehl, 62. “We came in on Tuesday and it looked like our hotel already had more bikes than they did last year.”

After hosting a limited number of outside vendors in 2020, Destination Daytona returned to something closer to its normal total of roughly 70 companies under outdoor tents selling everything from custom exhaust systems to high-end audio speakers and leather jackets, Pepe said.

Business has been brisk, said Mike Alex, owner of Largo-based Suspension Technologies, USA, among the Destination Daytona vendors.

“We have been absolutely slammed,” Alex said. “It has been a great turnout and the people have been awesome. Everybody’s so friendly. It really seems like night and day compared with last year. Many more people.”

The crowd at Destination Daytona included Bob Patton, 62, who had traveled 900 miles from Gadsden, Ala. Although he missed last year’s events, Patton has been a regular at Bike Week and Biketoberfest for more than a decade, he said.

He was happy that COVID restrictions had been lifted, but acknowledged that the biker crowd generally isn’t overly concerned with the pandemic.

“I don’t think it bothered any of the bikers,” Patton said. “But it’s out there. You’ve just got to learn how to behave and keep your distance.”

A few miles south on U.S. 1, there also was a big opening-day crowd at the Iron Horse Saloon, where a steady stream of motorcycles arrived mid-afternoon to join hundreds already parked on the gravel pavement amid the outdoor bars, souvenir stores and stage.

Sipping a beer at an outdoor bar, Ormond Beach resident Jerry Whiting, 65, said that it was good news for tourism and local businesses that the event had returned to normal. Still, he had some concerns related to the potential transmission of the virus.

“To be honest, I wish more people were vaccinated,” said Whiting, adding that he always wears a mask indoors although fully vaccinated. “You don’t know how many people are.”

Back on Main Street, merchants echoed the economic importance of the event.

“It’s going to be beautiful all week,” said Danny Yanesh, owner of Biker Brothers T-Shirts, Biker and Beach Apparel on Main Street. “It’s going to make up for the whole year of COVID, which will help the economy for a lot of people in town.”

Across the street, expectations also were high at Carol’s Cat House, the feline-centric souvenir shop owned by Carol Boprie-Daniel. Along with cat posters, pet toys, knick-knacks and T-shirts, the shop’s inventory also includes a few canine-friendly items such as motorcycle riding apparel for small dogs.

“I’m expecting to sell a lot of cat stuff,” Boprie-Daniel said. “This is my time to make some money.”  

The Cat House also is a rare quiet spot amid the party atmosphere on Main Street, she said.

“That’s because of my cats,” she said. “It’s a cat’s world. Cats don’t like loud noises and it’s all about cats.”

'Let's come out and have some fun'

The outlook also was optimistic behind the grill at the outdoor stand operated by Lakeland-based Bailey’s Concessions at the corner of Grandview Avenue and Main Street.

“Let’s come out and have some fun,” said employee Denine Priddy. “We’re here to make some money and pay some bills. We need bikers to come out and have a good time.”

After a tough 2020 due to COVID, the company’s business has rebounded this year, Priddy said. She has been on a stretch of 130 days working special events.

“We’re all trying to be as safe as possible, as respectful as possible,” Priddy said. “We’re working every weekend. It’s coming back.”

Priddy looks forward to Biketoberfest, she said.

“This is one of my favorite crowds, hands down,” she said. “They are some of the most gracious, fun-loving people out there.”

Beyond Main Street, the event also has boosted business at the Starlite Diner, the landmark eatery just north of the Ocean Center on State Road A1A, said owner Kevin Gelnaw.

“I think everybody has cabin fever,” Gelnaw said of the early crowds that started patronizing his restaurant this past weekend. “They are coming; the weather is great. I’m expecting a pretty big Biketoberfest. I expect we’ll see a boost that will stretch over two weekends.”