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It’s dubbed the “best adult party in town,” but it will at least be the loudest as hundreds of leathered Thunderers and their chromed hogs pack Greenhouse Park along Tire Hill Road for Thunder in the Valley’s annual three-day “Thunderbash.”
With eight bands taking the stage throughout all three nights, commemorative group rides to the Flight 93 memorial, “biker games” and a wet T-shirt contest, the party will rage on long after downtown Main Street empties.
The Pennsylvania branch of Alliance of Bikers Aimed Toward Education (ABATE) will once again rent out the Greenhouse Park campground – its gates will open to the 21-and-over crowd at 5 p.m. on Thursday. Admission is free as well as parking for bikes, but those who bring cars should expect a parking fee.
ABATE President Jill Werner says she thinks this year’s “Thunderbash” will be the biggest yet.
“Every year, it seems to grow,” she said. “We’re anticipating a great crowd again this year.”
This year, ABATE plans to join the growing list of food, apparel and automotive vendors at Thunderbash.
ABATE’s nonprofit status means all funds go to supporting the group’s operations, such as the upcoming “Tiny Memorial Run,” which benefits The Juvenile Diabetes Foundation.
This is also the first year ABATE needed to secure an official permit for the Flight 93 memorial ride. Last year, ABATE public relations manager Mark Walker estimated that at least 100 bikes lined Route 219. The permit allows the convoy to be even longer. Sign-ups for the Flight 93 rides are on Friday and Saturday. The ABATE road captain will lead riders out to the Shanksville memorial and return to Greenhouse Park by 4 p.m.
The riders will arrive just in time for the slew of “biker games” planned at Thunderbash. Contestants can compete for cash prizes in “barrel-pushing,” “slow rolls” and the “hot dog bite,” where a bike passenger must jump midride to chomp a hot dog tied to a string.
But the games aren’t the only live entertainment.
Aside from the wet T-shirt contest, eight bands that run the gamut between modern and classic rock will be on stage each day from the afternoon hours to the wee hours:
• 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Saves Nine.
• 8 to 11 p.m. Thursday, Frankie and The Nomads.
• 3 to 6 p.m. Friday, Who’s Your Daddy?
• 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, Blue Collar Fate.
• 9 to 12 p.m. Friday, Rust.
• 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Dakota Rose.
• 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Octane.
• 9 to 12 p.m. Saturday, Driveline.
“It’s always been a great event,” said Werner.
“There’s always rumors that it’s a rowdy bunch, but they’re really not.”
With so many Thunderbash events under their belt, Werner said keeping the peace and enforcing ABATE’s 21-and-over policy at the front gate are second-nature.
“(It will be) very tight security, as it always has been,” she said.
It could also be very tightly packed, if last year’s event is any indication. Walker said that while some stay only for the festivities, many prefer to spend their nights at Thunderbash under the stars, prepping for another day of cruising through downtown Johnstown.
It’s an event Walker said he’s always looking forward to.
“We work our butts off, but it’s all well worth it in the end.”
For more information, go to the official Thunderbash website at www.thunderbash.com.
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