GENEVA-ON-THE-LAKE — Straps of bare, black leather held a well-worn cowhide Victory Motorcycles jacket Sunday afternoon to the chrome of its namesake, the sun warming the dark material in the final days of summer.
The old Victory stood stoic against a backdrop of glittering chrome and pristine, high-gloss paint. The lineup of Harley Davidsons, Suzukis, Yamahas, Hondas and Indian motorcycles competing for top honors in the motorcycle showcase at the Thunder on the Strip event at Geneva-on-the-Lake was as long as the resort strip itself. Thousands of people strolled amid the showing of new, classic, historic and custom cycles, stopping to grab the last Eddie’s hotdog of the summer with a glass of lemonade or dish of ice cream.
For Larry Robinson, the quick drive from Conneaut earned him a pizza and a bottle of beer with friends Steve Therrien and Cynthia Bolger of Wickliffe.
“This is a great event,” Robinson said. “How can you not love it?”
Robinson said Thunder on the Strip has some work to do before it can compete with Sturgis and Dayton festivals.
“But this is every bit as good as Ohio Bike Week in Sandusky,” he said.
“Oh yeah,” Bolger said, “This is the new Ohio Bike Week. Watch out Sandusky!”
Wearing some plastic wrap, tape, and a smile, Kevin Moore of Eastlake had more than pizza to share at Thunder on the Strip as he bragged about his new tattoo.
“This is my third tattoo and you know I got to show off the new ink,” he said. “This is a beautiful weekend. We stayed at Indian Creek and made a weekend out of it.”
At Goblin Custom Cycles on the west end of the strip, Seth Hooper put a red, white, and blue motorcycle through its paces to test the chopper’s horsepower.
Hooper of Canton Cycles and the Harley Davidson Contraband Stunt Team said the patriotic bike put out 141 horsepower while bystanders covered their ears against the roar of the spent engine.
At a marginally quieter end of the strip, motorcyclists strapped on their helmets and said their goodbyes, ready to go home after a long weekend of leather-clad, exhaust-filled play.
A shiny pink helmet rested behind the seat of a rust colored, rusty motorcycle parked along Lake Road, but the bike had more to say about its owner than deferred maintenance and favorite colors.
“GOTL” said the oval sticker on the back of the seat.
Local News
Gotta love it
Visitors give Thunder on Strip big thumbs up
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