Hundreds of bikes flooded Downtown Plant City for the Chamber of Commerce’s 15th anniversary Bike Festival.
The festival partnered with the United Food Bank of Plant City and had a collection for nonperishable food items for the organization. The cost was $10 a class for bike registration, however, if a rider brought a donation they received a free class.
Though the festival is in its 15th year, Alice Bullard, the Bike Festival committee chair, said the Chamber worked hard to ensure this year would offer many new experiences for all the families in the area to enjoy.
“The biggest thing I want to communicate is it’s a family orientated event because so many people think bike events are hardcore bikers, but really this is a family event,” Bullard said. “We have food vendors and merchandise vendors, live music and a live DJ. It’ll be a fun time.”
One of the new events featured this year was a wing eating contest, which was sponsored by Duke’s Brewhouse. Contestants were given two minutes to finish 20 wings covered in sauce. If they finished before the time was up, another 10 were added. At the end, the competitor’s basket was taken and weighed by a judge. The first, second and third place winners were awarded an official trophy and bragging rights as the Duke’s Chicken Wing Champion.
The Chamber also included a stunt show featuring Adam Holbrook with the FERE Thrill Show. Holbrook made his debut in national competition at the age of 15 and finished as the 1999 High School Class National Champion.
During his motorcycle thrill show, Holbrook took his bike through a balancing tango on tight ledges and even jumped without the aid of ramps over his assistant, who happened to also be his father.
After the show Holbrook signed autographs and took pictures with children in attendance. As night fell, the Rock Street band played classic songs at one end of the festival while DJ Iceman spun tunes at the other end of the event.
There was a 50/50 raffle and Charlie Humphries from Florida Full Throttle Magazine was the master of ceremonies and announced the winners for the bike contest. Alex Anglin won Best of Show with his 2003 Harley Davidson Police Edition Road King. Anglin also won first place in the custom bike class.
“Typically our October show is one of our larger events,” Bullard said. “We usually have between 200 and 300 that attend. But because we’re adding the stunt show and wing eating contest and partnering with UFB it’s larger this year. This is a great event and we’re excited to offer all of the new events. As years come the Bike Fest will only continue to grow.”