More than 20 community members spoke in front of a packed house
at Monday’s Hollister City Council meeting in regards to the
Hollister Independence Rally’s future.
More than 20 community members spoke in front of a packed house at Monday’s Hollister City Council meeting in regards to the Hollister Independence Rally’s future.
Not a single person spoke against the rally’s continuance.
Between the grandeur of Hollister’s biker mystique, the rally’s national and international acclaim, the organizations benefiting from the rally, and the overall excitement it creates for an otherwise sleepy town, disassembling the rally wasn’t an option for the community members present.
“This is not just on the Fourth of July. This is something where these people come into town… and they continue to drive through here year-round,” said resident Robert Gatto. “What else do we have here in Hollister? We’ve got nothing.”
The two most common aspects of Hollister’s existence have become earthquakes and motorcycles, said resident Clifford Cardoza.
Killing the rally would essentially be killing the “goose that laid the golden egg,” he said.
“I am sure we would all agree to promote Hollister’s recognition on motorcycle rally activities,” Cardoza said. “Without this rally event, government and businesses stand to lose a lot more than just an Independence Day rally – we lose eight years of the longest and best organized motorcycle rally in the Western United States.”
Money the rally generates helps fund many nonprofits in the community, including the Girl Scouts and children with cancer, said Rotary Club President Richard Ferreira.
The fact that much of the money comes from outside the community almost doubles its worth, because it isn’t draining the businesses and resources inside the community, he said.
“It’s unbelievable the things that we have been able to do in the past five years because of this rally,” Ferreira said.
The rally’s organized inception eight and a half years ago has beget Hollister and its residents something more than financial benefits, more than excitement and increased tourism, more than international publicity, said Hollister resident Ruth Erickson.
It has become an event people can enjoy with their entire families, she said.
“It’s for the smiles on the faces,” she said. “There are very few events that are for the whole community.”
Historically, bikers have been making the trek to Hollister for the Fourth of July since the 1930s to have a good time and show homage to their love of motorcycles. Attempting to stop that now would be almost impossible, said Michael Huckabay, president of the Marina Boozefighters motorcycle club.
Dissolving the structure and positive benefits it now affords the community and taking away something that the majority of the vocal public are in favor of would be pointless, he said.
“We should be grateful to (the Hollister Independence Rally Committee) for making an organized event,” Huckabay said. “Because whether it’s organized or not, we’re going to come to party.”
After the public comment portion was closed, and almost every speaker received a round of applause after he or she finished speaking, the Council voted unanimously to support the rally and allow organizers to move ahead with planning.
Now that the support is there, getting business back up and running is of the utmost importance for HIRC, said president Bill Rodgers after the meeting.
The negotiations, which should have been resolved months ago, create a kind of frenzied atmosphere now, he said.
“It’s crunch time, but we can still pull it off,” Rodgers said. “We’ve got all our ducks in a row, it’s just a matter of getting it going. And I really feel that the Council is behind us.”
Garnering an adequate amount of police protection for the event will still be tough, said San Benito County Sheriff Curtis Hill.
While his responsibility lies directly in securing public safety for the unincorporated areas of the county (not the city), along with watching out for outlaw motorcycle groups, he was pleased with the positive comments made by HIRC.
“Hopefully they’ll be able to negotiate that contract where everybody’s happy, and then they’ll have the rally,” Hill said. “And that’s great.”
