With today's blog we'll continue our discussion of motorcycle rallies and bike week stuff by focusing on the Daytona, FL motorcycle rally also known as Daytona Bike Week. Daytona competes with the Sturgis, SD motorcycle rally for bragging rights as the most popular bike rally in the country. Daytona usually draws 500,000 guests or more annually.
Daytona bike week began in 1937 as an impromptu biker gathering surrounding the inaugural Daytona 200 motorcycle race. Thousands of bikers traveled from across the country to Daytona Beach to attend the race, which was won by Ed Kretz of Monterey Park, CA. The following year's race brought more bikers to sunny southern Florida - and the rest is history. While the Daytona 200 race did not run for five years during World War II, the bike week rally continued unabated.
Today's Daytona Bike Week rally continues to draw bikers from all over the country, and even all over the world. Perhaps the beautiful weather of Florida's the late winter is one compelling aspect that draws bikers, but surely just the history of the event and the ability to say, "I was there" is another huge factor. If you attended Daytona in any previous years and drove away without purchasing any patches or memorabilia, thecheapplace.com has the patches and pins to get you ready for 2011.
Their Daytona Bike Week inventory begins with the shield patches bearing the year of the event along with the over-sized "Daytona" text. The cheapplace.com also covers previous years in case you're trying to build the entire collection and have some missing pieces. And of course, if they don't carry the particular year you're looking for, simply a drop them a line and they'll custom make it for you. So before you prepare to visit the 2011 rally, be sure to have your 2010 shield patch sewn to your vest so everyone knows you did Daytona last year.
Along with their shield patches, thecheapplace.com carries a Daytona 69 Skeleton patch featuring male and female skeletons in the aforementioned position, along with the Bike Week text and the bold number 69 commemorating, we hope, the 69th anniversary of the official rally. This is one of those patches you've got to have just for the novelty value alone. In fact, take this one on the back of your vest to the 2011 rally, and we're sure you'll get a ton of positive comments from all the other bikers that see it.
While you're browsing the website for Daytona patches, be sure to take a look at the cheapplace.com's Daytona pin collection. They have some pretty cool looking ones that you can wear on a ball cap or heavy jacket during those months when it's too cold to walk around in a vest. Especially if you're in the North, there's is no reason to stop displaying your Bike Week stuff just because it's winter. These pins, along with some vests with patches thecheapplace.com carries, make it possible for you to display your Daytona pride all year long.
