THE
SUNDAY
AUGUST 19, 2001		 A COPLEY NEWSPAPER
Journal Star
SERVING CENTRAL ILLINOIS SINCE 1855

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Born to be wet and wild

A group of motorcyclists waits to park in the rain during the bush Grand National TT Motorcycle Races RiverFront Rally motorcycle parade Saturday, which ended at Water Street along Peoria's downtown riverfront.  For advance coverage of the races, which take place today at the Peoria Motorcycle Club.





With headlights glistening, a long parade of motorcycles rumbles down Main Street in downtown Peoria on Saturday on the way to the Busch Grand National TT Motorcycle Races RiverFront Rally on Water Street along the city's riverfront.  The event preceded races scheduled for today at the Peoria Motorcycle Club.

By SARAH KONSKY                         
of the Journal Star

Bikers
rumble
through
rainy day		 PEORIA - Kathy Hayes didn't let driving downpours and ominous skies stop her from watching her husband participate in Saturday's motorcycle parade through town.  She and her friends huddled under an awning along Main Street as they waited for the long procession of bikers to zoom by.
     "Knowing Harley people, (the rain) won't slow them down a bit," said Hayes, of Morton.
     She was half right.
     More than 1,000 bikers braved the weather to ride in the weather to ride in the 10 a.m. parade kickoff to the Busch Grand National TT Motorcycle Races Riverfront Rally on Saturday according to event organizers.  About 1,500 motorcyclists joined the procession last year.		      The bikers rode from the Peoria Motorcycle Club on Cameron Road to the RiverFront Rally site along Peoria's downtown riverfront.      But upon reaching the parade's end, many soaking-wet bikers weren't too interested in grabbing a beer or buying a new motorcycle T-shirt.
     They just wanted to get out of the rain.
     Bikers crammed under the Gateway Building and the Murray Baker Bridge, peeling off sopping-wet layers of clothing and wringing excess water from their hair.
     "We're wet.  We're cold," said Eric Gauwitz, 23, of Chillicothe, who rode the entire length of the parade with a handful of friends.
     Event organizers and vendors were still optimistic that more than 25,000 people would come out to the rally by the end of Saturday.		      "This afternoon and tonight, there should be a lot more people out here," Josh Harlan, a Walters Brothers Harley-Davidson employee, said Saturday.  This keeps getting bigger and better."
     The event continues today with the Busch Grand National TT Motorcycle Races at the Peoria Motorcycle Club.  Gates open at 8 a.m. with time trials starting around 10 a.m. and races starting at 2 p.m.  Tickets can be purchased at the door for $18.
     "This is a family outing," said Melvin Dearing, club president.
     He promises the half-mile track, complete with a left turn, a right turn and a big jump, will provide big excitement for racing fans.
     And according to forecasts, the weather isn't expected to turn ugly again today.  Although skies might be cloudy, no rain is predicted, according to the National Weather Service in Lincoln.

Copied verbatim from Journal Star by Sharon Wick