Hollister
– While many residents complained about the rally’s new layout,
Police Chief Jeff Miller released preliminary figures Wednesday
that showed police actions during this year’s rally weekend fell 40
percent from 2005.
Hollister – While many residents complained about the rally’s new layout, Police Chief Jeff Miller released preliminary figures Wednesday that showed police actions during this year’s rally weekend fell 40 percent from 2005.
The chief said the figures show the new configuration improved public safety, and authorities will continue to review data from the Hollister Motorcycle Rally in the coming weeks. Miller released the numbers while addressing the Hollister Downtown Association during its quarterly meeting Wednesday at Maverick BBQ.
“I think this new configuration really reduced the problems,” Miller said.
Hollister Motorcycle Rally promoter Seth Doulton said he understands why people enjoyed the old layout with the spectacle of thousands of motorcycles lining San Benito Street. But the new layout, Doulton contended, makes the rally safer, and thus, possible.
“There’s just so many positives and pros to it,” Doulton said. “You can’t just say, ‘It was tradition.'”
Those positives, Doulton said, mainly have to do with public safety.
In previous rallies, law enforcement personnel acted as crossing guards to protect rally goers from traffic on San Benito Street.
“I knew that was a real security issue with the bikes parked the way they were,” Doulton said.
But Marshal Robbie Scattini, who sits on the rally committee, said he acknowledges the new layout is better for law enforcement and vendors. Keeping the bikes off San Benito Street, however, may keep people from attending future rallies, Scattini said.
“I think in the long run it will hurt more than help,” Scattini said. “It’s not just my feelings. It’s anyone who’s used to seeing the motorcycles parade down San Benito Street.”
Scattini said he received at least 60 complaints about the new layout before and after the rally weekend.
“Today at lunch I got a complaint,” Scattini said Wednesday.
The new layout allowed officers to focus on crime prevention rather than traffic control, Miller said. The configuration led to a smoother weekend, the chief said.
“Overall, this was a quieter and mellower rally than in 2005 and 2004,” Miller said.
There were fewer police actions, which include anything from warnings to citations to arrests, than in previous years.
In 2004 and 2005, when the city held official rallies, there were a total of 554 and 414 police actions, respectively, Miller said. Citing unofficial figures, there were 248 police actions during this year’s rally, the chief said. No official rally was held in 2006.
Miller said the patrols in the city also were smoother than in previous years.
“I think this new configuration also benefited the rest of the city,” Miller said.
The figures cited Wednesday did not include statistics from the California Highway Patrol.
While some have complained, Doulton said he plans to keep vendors on San Benito Street. Vendors play an important role since they provide the rally’s sole source of revenue, Doulton said.
But that doesn’t mean the layout won’t change.
The promoter said he didn’t like the location of the food alley on Fifth Street and will most likely move the food vendors elsewhere in 2008. Doulton said there will be picnic tables in 2008, which were largely missing from the food area this year.
Doulton hopes to have more organized motorcycle rides, in which several hundred people ride to Pinnacles National Monument or San Juan Bautista at a set time for an event.
As for spectators checking out the bikes, Doulton hopes to improve that by having grandstands or viewing areas near the motorcycle parking.
“I don’t want to lose focus with the motorcycles,” Doulton said.
