Thousands of motorcyclists, enthusiasts and curious onlookers packed downtown July 4 and 5 for the Independence Rally that roared into downtown Hollister, bringing with it a major boost to businesses and very few problems.
Several business owners said they saw their best weekend in years.
Cosmos Bar & Grill Manager Karla Lobos said the restaurant was packed both days, but they were prepared for the crowds with a limited menu that allowed for a more efficient kitchen and shorter wait times for diners.
“Let’s just say it was a good weekend,” she said, adding that she thought they did about double the business they would do on a normal Friday and Saturday. “Not a lot of regulars. Mostly different people and a lot of bikers.”
Sponsored by the City of Hollister and event promoter Roadshows, Inc., the rally was stalled for the past eight years but has come back with flare.
Rolan Resendiz, District 2 Hollister City Councilmember, said he’s heard nothing but good things about the rally.
“It was highly successful and very smoothly run,” he said, adding that he met people from all across the country and throughout the world.
“One shirt vendor told us they sold out of merchandise and thanked us,” he said.
Paulina Gonzalez, manager at La Catrina Mexican Grill, said they too were very busy.
“It was one of the busiest days we’ve seen in the past five years,” she said, adding that business was at least twice what they would see on a normal Friday and Saturday.
Calling it a “different dynamic,” she said the staff had a great experience with the customers.
Gonzalez said she and her staff met people from Monterey and Santa Clara counties and served a group of four bikers who visited from Oregon.
“It was a very good experience,” she said, adding that she hopes it comes back again next year.
To that end, Resendiz said the rally is part of the city’s heritage.
The local motorcycle rally started in 1947, and Hollister has been touted as the birthplace of the American biker since then. The rally used to occur annually, but has been on hiatus as a sanctioned event since 2017.
“We need to honor and preserve it,” Resendiz said. After the past council declined to hold the rally, new leadership was voted in last year and the first thing the mayor said was, “We’re having a rally,” Resendiz said.
He said he’s going to ask staff to put a ballot measure on the next election cycle that will legally bind the city to holding the annual rally.
“Let’s get to work,” he said.
