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They were issuing tickets for Noise Friday night at the Galveston Lone Star Rally. Now the way I see it - they need the return business as do the vendors and businesses. Why would you issue tickets unless its a money grab for the city. They need to watch it or they'll run people away from the Strand and lose business. How did Sat night go?? Friday night there was no noise so people didn't close in on the street so much which is more like a Rally Event than anything... They stopped burn outs a few years ago and I understand that - I saw a couple of collisions and that was a safety issue.
There was a guy about 50ft from me that fired up his bike (it was parked) and rapped it out 2 or 3 times and the Police came over and grabbed him by his arms like he was fighting or something and hauled him AWAY... gone! What are you thinking Galveston... yea some people go overboard - but some people just want to hear some Rally Noise... don't ruin a good thing. This has become the 3rd Largest Rally in the Nation almost instantly - don't over regulate it. And I'm all for those who serve... but don't make mountains out of molehills. That guy didn't deserve to be snatched up and hauled off like he was going to jail... and they were pulling people over that were cruising down the strand and revving there engine. Even the Crotch Rockets (which aren't that loud) were getting ticketed... Oye!
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There must have been TWO Lonestar Rallies. The one I went to was like a loud pipe contest. Perhaps the OP saw the result of police action from another incident. I have always found the Galveston Island/sheriff/DPS pretty low profile and non-confrontational. I am glad I went to the OTHER Lonestar because I have loud pipes. This year is probably gonna be an attendance record that will be hard to beat and the Island got to refill some very empty cash registers. John
In Oregon the DB noise violation has exempted motorcycles from the rules. But to ticket bikers at a Motorcycle event is a little bush league if you ask me. If I went to a rally or event for motorcycles and received a noise violation ticket probably the last time I would want to go to that event.
They shut down traffic on the Strand near eleven o'clock on Saturday. Basically shutting down the Strand. Which didn't make sense. I saw them towing cars near the Float. As we were going to the Spot. Definitely more police presence this year with a different attitude. I have made this rally from the first year --even when it was in Rosenberg. First year it was free in Galveston but since then we have had to pay a nominal fee to ride down the Strand. I think they need to shop the rally around. There could be a friendlier place to hold it.
They shut down traffic on the Strand near eleven o'clock on Saturday. Basically shutting down the Strand. Which didn't make sense. I saw them towing cars near the Float. As we were going to the Spot. Definitely more police presence this year with a different attitude. I have made this rally from the first year --even when it was in Rosenberg. First year it was free in Galveston but since then we have had to pay a nominal fee to ride down the Strand. I think they need to shop the rally around. There could be a friendlier place to hold it.
I've been to Galveston many times on a Harley, but never to a bike rally. Just rode through mostly I guess you would say. However, I have heard from several people over the years that Galveston is NOT really all that biker friendly. I don't know this to be true myself, but I've heard enough bad to make me a little shy of going there for any big motorcycle event. ..................Just wondering how it really is, I suppose?
__________________ '02 Ultra & '96 1200 Custom Sportster.
The Beauty--The Beast--& The Bike!
They shut down traffic on the Strand near eleven o'clock on Saturday. Basically shutting down the Strand. Which didn't make sense. I saw them towing cars near the Float. As we were going to the Spot. Definitely more police presence this year with a different attitude. I have made this rally from the first year --even when it was in Rosenberg. First year it was free in Galveston but since then we have had to pay a nominal fee to ride down the Strand. I think they need to shop the rally around. There could be a friendlier place to hold it.
Methinks if i was putting on a motorcycle rally i'd hold it in a town w/o BS noise ordinances.
Let em host a Bicycle Rally next year if they want to keep the noise down.
There was a guy about 50ft from me that fired up his bike (it was parked) and rapped it out 2 or 3 times and the Police came over and grabbed him by his arms like he was fighting or something and hauled him AWAY... gone! What are you thinking Galveston... yea some people go overboard - but some people just want to hear some Rally Noise... don't ruin a good thing. This has become the 3rd Largest Rally in the Nation almost instantly - don't over regulate it. And I'm all for those who serve... but don't make mountains out of molehills. That guy didn't deserve to be snatched up and hauled off like he was going to jail...
I was there and heard plenty of loud pipes. The guy may have been drunk,had a warrant or something along those lines. Galveston cops are usually pretty mellow, but have a low tolerance for asshats. There were a few of those there along with the usual suspects.
__________________ I always keep a supply of stimulant handy in case I see a snake----which I also keep handy.
Maybe it was just Friday night then... I paid my $10 and was heading through the strand and a group of people were walking down the strand telling everyone "hey their writing tickets for revving it up..." Sure enough got a little further along and they were standing there and signaled a guy to pull it over after he revved his motor... I would agree it has been biker friendly EVERY OTHER TIME but that's what was happening Friday night. Then they had a couple of groups of "Asshats" that were encouraging people to rap it out - KNOWING the cops were 20ft down the line and sure enough - they where nabbing the bikers KNOWING THE GUYS WERE ENCOURAGING THEM... I left around 11pm and headed to The Spot where they were making some noise and rolling the tires off..
I would agree that Galv IS or HAS BEEN biker friendly in the past - that's why I was hacked they were changing it into a walk the line or else Rally!!!!
Sounds like maybe it was just Fri night... I would like to get the inside scoop on how the Galv PD was briefed before the event~!
I didn't make the rally this year. I was out of town. I did talk to some friends that went though, and from what they told me this was going on Sunday too. Damn shame, as I have always enjoyed the Lone Star Rally. A lot of the long time, and more well to do residents of Galveston don't want the rally, or anything that isn't their crappy Dickens on the Strand or Galveston Marde Gras. They are either too stupid to see how much money the rally brings into the island or just don't care. I went to Marde Gras this year, and there wasn't a tenth of the people there that the rally brings.
On the other side of the coin, in the past years that I went you had a lot of azzhats that would hold their bike wide open and let it sit on the rev limiter. You get a couple people or several doing that at the same time and it gets ear splitting loud on the Strand. Even some of the crotch rocket guys do it. I can understand the police writing those guys tickets. Unfortunately though, you have cops that go overboard when enforcing laws and noise ordinances. They go from ticketing those really being a nuisance to ticketing everyone that blips their throttle. It only takes a few bad eggs to ruin it for everyone.
Lone Star Rally - Tickets for Noise... Crazy
'02 Ultra & '96 1200 Custom Sportster.
I always keep a supply of stimulant handy in case I see a snake----which I also keep handy.
