Get ready Squamish, the bikers are coming out of the garage and rolling down district streets and trails.
Suzanne Jolly ultimately wants Squamish’s annual motorcycle festival to be a west coast mecca for riders and bike-enthusiasts of all kinds, she says.
Jolly organized last year’s successful inaugural festival in downtown Squamish and is back with a larger and more dynamic festival planned.
The second annual Squamish Motorcycle Festival takes place this weekend and is expected to be double the size of the festival last year, which saw about 1,000 motorcycle enthusiasts take over the downtown streets.
“We are just growing by leaps and bounds,” said Jolly, who has been riding for four years. “I just intrinsically knew, even after my first season of riding, that this place needed this festival. That there were enough riders that were excited about riding and there were enough people who visit that could really make this town essentially excel based on tourism from motorcyclists.”
Lead festival volunteer and bike mechanic Jamieson McKay Murray agrees that there is an untapped passion for motorcycling in Squamish.
Murray recently left his full-time job to open up his own motorcycle repair shop downtown and business has been steady, even before the shop officially has a name.
“I just wanted to do it part-time, but the response has just been unreal,” he said.
“There was a major void in the [street bike] market here.”
Jolly said there are also a lot of collectors in Squamish with amazing vintage motorbikes and they come out and put their two-wheeled treasures on display for the festival.
The three days of festival events kick off Friday night with the only ticketed event of the festival: dinner and a presentation by well-known three-time Dakar Rally competitor Don Hatton at Fergie’s Cafe.
A mechanic’s clinic, the show and shine and a vendor display take place Saturday downtown as does the most popular draw from last year, the VanCity Stunters performances.
Sunday is ride day. There are multiple destination rides throughout the corridor for street, dirt/enduro and trials riders.
As for what she has planned for next year?
“There is so much more we could do and there are so many more opportunities,” Jolly said. “The third year will be even bigger.”
For more information on this weekend’s festival go to squamishmotorcyclefestival.com.
