That fading rumble

Riders leave Northwest Arkansas after 16th rally

The last signs of this year’s Bikes, Blues & BBQ will be swept up from Dickson Street in Fayetteville today, as thousands of revelers pack up and head to their respective homes.

Some, of course, are only minutes from home. They’re actual residents of Fayetteville or greater Northwest Arkansas; but the bulk of the crowd that occupied Fayetteville over the past few days is not from around here.

Bike lovers ride in from all over America for this annual rally, which is wrapping up its 16th year.

Promoters say it has grown to the point that an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 people now come to participate, showing off their unique rides or just enjoying the spectacle, the food and the music.

All those bodies have an impact on the local economy each year. In fact, a University of Arkansas estimate, based on 2014 participation, figures the out-of-towners spent an average of about $400 each during their stay on food, lodging and shopping. The locals spend money, too, even if they go home to their own beds.

This year, with absolutely perfect weather to greet them, the crowd could have set a record, as its supporters claim year to year.

The expansion of the festival itself over the years to multiple venues, including Arvest Ballpark in Springdale, is testament to the fact that more businesses and communities want in on the Bikes, Blues & BBQ action. Some organizations even schedule related events around the region to try to draw the riders’ attention.

And, of course, the bikers are always out on the roads of Northwest Arkansas, snaking their way through hills and valleys, taking in all the Ozarks have to offer. So even outlying places can benefit from the rally’s economic impact.

Oh, and that includes the charitable element of the rally, which has donated more than $600,000 to local charities since its inception in 2000.

Nevertheless, even with all the pluses promoters put on the Bikes, Blues & BBQ experience, it has its opponents, particularly in Fayetteville.

As the annoying noise of revving engines quiets and the city gets back to normal, thousands of local people will come back out of their houses where they’ve purposely avoided interaction with the visitors.

The rally is just not their thing. And it won’t ever be.

A report in the newspaper last week acknowledged that, while the rally is clearly a boon for many businesses, some actually close their doors during Bikes, Blues & BBQ.

They include a few of the shops and restaurants at ground zero for the rally, which has spread well beyond Dickson Street in recent years but continues to center on that famed artery.

A bookstore here, a bakery there, a café, an upscale restaurant — all locked their doors and sent employees home for a few days. The decision, as one owner who actually supports the rally said, is a practical one.

This crowd is generally into barbecue and beer, not the fare found in, say, Vetro 1925 Ristorante.

Angelo Amabile, a co-owner of the establishment, estimated sales there drop by about half because of the rally. The visitors prefer what street vendors are selling and his usual customers don’t want to fight the motorcycle traffic or search for parking in the congested area.

Amabile considers it a “slap in the face” that Fayetteville has allowed the festival to continue.

But other owners welcome the crowds and encourage businesses to adapt for the four-day rally.

Joe Fennel, for example, sees a drop in business at his upscale Bordino’s Restaurant and Wine Bar but finds Jose’s Streetside packing people in.

There, he said, the business is equivalent to “a couple of football games’ worth of traffic each day over a four-day period.”

The comparison to what happens in Fayetteville when the Arkansas Razorbacks have a home game is a common one, although the numbers aren’t anything alike.

The rally draws several times the crowd that can fit in the stadium and rally attendees are here for days longer.

Game-day traffic does have a disturbing impact on some of the city’s population, but the games are more universally tolerated than the annual biker invasion.

That could be because the games have been happening here, with ever-increasing crowds, for decade upon decade and are part of the fabric of Fayetteville.

As each year goes by, so, too, it seems, is Bikes, Blues & BBQ.