Motorcycle show returns to Snohomish

SNOHOMISH — The bikers are back in town. And now, they’re bent on changing the outlaw image of drunken, brawling motorcycle crowds.

Riders are set to rumble down First Street for the 18th annual Sky Valley Antique and Classic Motorcycle Show on Sunday.

Sky Valley ABATE is running the spectacle from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The nonprofit’s acronym originally stood for “A Brotherhood Against Totalitarian Enactments,” said leather-clad Roger “The Highwayman” Hanson.

Now, the group goes by American Bikers Aimed Towards Education. Hanson, 61, said it works to fight motorcycle regulation, such as mandatory helmet laws.

“It’s like freedom of choice,” the retired construction worker said.

The group does support motorcycle safety month, Hanson said. That’s why the show takes place in May. It also marks the start of riding season.

“It’s like a mini Sturgis,” said Hanson, of Snohomish, referring to the legendary annual motorcycle rally in Stugis, South Dakota.

This year, the show here boasts its first-ever beer garden outside of Stewart’s Tavern. First Street is scheduled to be shut down and lined with bikes on display, including choppers and antique hogs.

More than 40 vendors are lined up to sell biker gear, such as sunglasses, bandanas, leather accessories, and Harley Davidson paraphernalia.

Historically, the event has taken place in Snohomish. A clash with city officials over increased police costs in 2009 forced the event to move. The group held shows in Sultan and Everett instead. It was canceled due to a lack of funding in 2011. It returned to Snohomish in 2012.

Now, ABATE is set on ridding certain stereotypes associated with bikers and motorcycle shows.

“We’re trying to make it more of a family event,” said Rod “Red Dog” Hobelman. “Whatever we make off this thing, we put back into the community.”

The group plans to donate proceeds to the Snohomish Senior Center and the food bank.

“Unlike the ‘Sons of Anarchy,’ we actually do give back to the community,” Hanson said, referring to the TV show on FX.

Also, a different kind of crowd is into motorcycles these days.

“Now you see doctors and lawyers,” Hanson said. “We call them weekend warriors.”

The days of liquor-fueled fights are mostly a thing of the past, as he sees it.

Hobelman, 55, agrees. He has seen the change as an 18-year veteran organizer of the show. Still, the freedom of riding across America remains.

“The open road is the whole adventure of it,” said Hobelman, a construction worker.

Hanson also finds thrill through traversing the country. That’s one reason he’s been hooked for years.

“It feels like you’re flying,” he said.

“The sound of the engine exhaust, the girls drooling, you kind of become a legend in your own mind.”

Amy Nile: 425-339-3192; anile@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Alan Dean, who is accused of the 1993 strangulation murder of 15-year-old Bothell girl Melissa Lee, appears in court during opening statements of his trial on Monday, March 18, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Guilty: Jury convicts Bothell man in long-unsolved 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Everett police searching for missing child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive. The child was missing under “suspicious circumstances.”

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Former Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy Jeremie Zeller appears in court for sentencing on multiple counts of misdemeanor theft Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ex-sheriff’s deputy sentenced to 1 week of jail time for hardware theft

Jeremie Zeller, 47, stole merchandise from Home Depot in south Everett, where he worked overtime as a security guard.

Everett
11 months later, Lake Stevens man charged in fatal Casino Road shooting

Malik Fulson is accused of shooting Joseph Haderlie to death in the parking lot at the Crystal Springs Apartments last April.

T.J. Peters testifies during the murder trial of Alan Dean at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Bothell cold case trial now in jury’s hands

In court this week, the ex-boyfriend of Melissa Lee denied any role in her death. The defendant, Alan Dean, didn’t testify.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.