Daytona Bike Week
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Daytona Beach Bike Week, also called Daytona Bike Week, is a
motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...
event and
rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Political demonstration, a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a North American school or college sporting event Sport ...
held annually in
Daytona Beach Daytona Beach is a coastal resort city in Volusia County, Florida, United States. Located on the East Coast of the United States, its population was 72,647 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach metropo ...
,
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
. Events occur throughout
Volusia County Volusia County (, ) is a county located in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Florida between the St. Johns River and the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2020 census, the county was home to 553,543 people, an increase of 11.9% from the 2 ...
, including th
DeLand Bike Rally
in Downtown DeLand on the first Saturday of Bike Week and other events in DeLeon Springs. Over 400,000 people make their way to the rally area for the 10-day event. The festivities include motorcycle racing, concerts, parties, and street festivals. The event is usually held on the first full week of March (including the Fri-Sat-Sun prior to) and contends with the
Sturgis Motorcycle Rally The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is a motorcycle rally held annually in Sturgis, South Dakota, and the surrounding Black Hills region of the United States. It began in 1938 by a group of Indian Motorcycle riders and was originally held for stunts ...
as the most popular motorcycle rally in the United States.


History

The Daytona Beach Bike Week rally started as the
Daytona 200 The Daytona 200 is an annual motorcycle road racing competition held in early spring at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida. The race was founded in 1937 when it was sanctioned by the American Mo ...
race on January 24, 1937. This first race was a beach and pavement course. It was won by
Ed Kretz Ed Kretz, Sr. (September 24, 1911 – January 30, 1996), aka Ed "Iron Man" Kretz, was an American professional motorcycle racer in the 1930s and 1940s. He is best known for winning the first Daytona 200 race in 1937, riding an Indian Sport Sc ...
from California riding an Indian motorcycle with an average speed of . This yearly race took a break from 1942 to 1947 due to
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and again in 2020 because of a global pandemic (although the pandemic situation began in the middle of Bike Week, as the Daytona Supercross had finished the week before). During the years off, an unofficial event was still taking place commonly called Bike Week. In 1947 the official race resumed and gained in popularity. The event was then promoted by "Big Bill" France, co-founder of
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
, and the family business (now known as
International Speedway Corporation International Speedway Corporation (ISC) was a corporation whose primary business was the ownership and management of motorsports race tracks. ISC was founded by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. in 1953 for the construction of Daytona International ...
) still promotes the 200 and the entire Bike Week races at
Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States, about north of Orlando, Florida, Orlando. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race ...
, including the Daytona Supercross which is known for its world-class pyrotechnics and light show. In 2010, Daytona Beach Municipal Stadium officials made renovations in the stadium that eliminated the quarter-mile flat track for
American Flat Track American Flat Track is an American Motorcycle sport, motorcycle racing series. The racing series, founded and sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) in 1954, originally encompassed five distinct forms of competitions including ...
motorcycle events during Bike Week races. Officials moved those races to the Speedway on a quarter-mile track near Turn 1 of the superspeedway at a track used also during KartWeek. However, in 2021, the series moved flat track races out of Daytona, agreeing with
World Racing Group World Racing Group, Inc. (WRG) is a licensing, sanctioning and promotional organization aligned with oval dirt track auto racing. Through its World of Outlaws and DIRTcar brands, WRG supports individual races and racetracks, and also operates ...
, which sanctions the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars, DIRT Modifieds, and other dirt track events, to hold the events in DeLeon Springs at World Racing Group-owned
Volusia Speedway Park Volusia Speedway Park (formerly known as Volusia County Speedway and Barberville Speedway) is an auto racing facility located near Barberville in Volusia County, Florida. It currently operates as a 1/2-mile dirt oval and a 1/5-mile dirt oval f ...
.


Deaths

Most years there are deaths at the festival due to rider accidents.


Law enforcement

Law enforcement for Bike Week is provided by the
Daytona Beach Police Department The Daytona Beach Police Department (DBPD) is the primary law enforcement agency for Daytona Beach, Florida. Its current chief of police is Jakari Young. The main headquarters is located at 129 Valor Blvd. In January 2009, the former location ...
and the
Volusia County Sheriff's Office The Volusia Sheriff's Office (VSO) or Volusia County Sheriff's Office (VCSO) is the primary law enforcement agency of unincorporated Volusia County, Florida, Volusia County, the cities of Deltona, Florida, Deltona, DeBary, Florida, DeBary, and O ...
.


Trademark dispute

In April 2009, a New York-based holding company named Mettemp filed a claim in the State of New York as being the owner of the phrase "Daytona Beach Bike Week." Daytona Beach area businesses that have marketed T-shirts and other products with this slogan have been contacted by the NY company, claiming infringement of trademark. The Daytona Regional Chamber of Commerce, which actually sponsors the Bike Week event, has challenged the NY Trademark and has hired the law firm of Cobb Cole to contest Mettemp's claim and block the New York company's bid to obtain a federal trademark.


Biketoberfest

In 1991, the Daytona Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau created a second motorcycle festival event in October, named ''
Biketoberfest Biketoberfest is an annual motorcycle rally held in the fall in Daytona Beach, Florida since 1991 or 1992. In 1992 it was known as "Daytona Fall Tour"; in 1993, it started to be called Biketoberfest, and is now known as the "little brother" of the ...
''. Biketoberfest is usually scheduled for the weekend immediately following
Columbus Day Columbus Day is a national holiday in many countries of the Americas and elsewhere, and a federal holiday in the United States, which officially celebrates the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas. He went ashore at ...
, although some participants arrive on Columbus Day weekend and visit for the entire week. Part of the fun is a twelve-mile ride along a scenic route, known as the
Ormond Scenic Loop and Trail The Ormond Scenic Loop and Trail is a series of scenic state and county highways in Volusia County, Florida. CR 2002 (Highbridge Road and Walter Boardman Road) is the northern leg of the trail. CR 4011(Old Dixie Highway and North Beach Street) is ...
. Daytona International Speedway also sponsors some motorcycle races to coincide with the dates of Biketoberfest.


References


External links


Daytona Beach Chamber of Commerce Bike Week WebsiteBike Week News and Updates
* {{coord, 29, 13, N, 81, 01, W, type:landmark_region:US-FL, display=title Festivals in Florida Motorcycle rallies in the United States Tourist attractions in Daytona Beach, Florida 1937 establishments in Florida Recurring events established in 1937 Events in Daytona Beach, Florida