Once again, our region played host to the Americade Tour Expo which annually brings in over 45-50,000 motorcycle touring enthusiasts from all over the country...no... make that all over the world! This year i had the pleasure of meeting a woman who was purchasing a whole lot of yummy goodies at the Perfect Blend Cafe in Maynard Square on Canada Street--she was from the UK. One word out of her mouth confirmed it...what a lovely accent! In any case, she explained to me and the owner of the cafe, Adele that she and her husband ship their bikes here and have been coming over for the past 6 years. This was her 7th Americade and she loves it! Last year I met a lovely gentleman from Israel.
While working at the Lake George Rotary booth at the Holiday Inn on Monday and Tuesday of Americade week as a volunteer I had the pleasure of meeting people from Wisconsin, California, Texas, Connecticut, lots of folks from New Jersey (my home state-have to give that a plug) , tons of folks from Canada (they are so glad their money is worth more here now) and of course a great throng of New York folks who just love the fact that they have this beautiful region to call their own playground in the mountains.
By all accounts the event was another great year! My friends from New Jersey who have been coming for the past 6+ years and stay at the Twin Pines on Trout Lake in Diamond Point had a marvelous time once again. They spent a good part of the time in LGV, at the Americade Trade Show and then did day outings to Lake Placid and touring our beautiful mountain countrysides.
Economically, according to a SUNY Plattsburg study conducted last year, Americade Tour Rally is responsible for a $46 million dollar economic impact to our region. Some businesses in the area would not exist...or at minimum could not sustain through a rainy summer without having Americade as the lead position of opening season in the Adirondacks. Is there a downside? yes, for one week we listen to motorcycles, we stand in line at a restaurant or at a gas station ( they only take a few gallons of the precious stuff to fill their bikes), it takes a bit longer to get out of your driveway or parking lot (which as one savvy business person told me just "ka-chings" money in her mind) and the upside...besides great for business? we learn that there is a lot to be said about aging gracefully, with great spirit and the wind in your hair---many Americade participants are well into their 60's, 70's and 80's and enjoying the ride more now than when they were 20!
We would love to hear your comments about Americade!
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2 comments:
This was our second year attending the Americade adventures.
We got there Friday around 11:00am to a rather quiet village in a mist of rain and left Sunday around 10:30am in very warm muggy temperatures which is fine with us. :)
The downside are the outrageous prices the motel owners charge and the price of eating being high in almost all the places. Where we stayed the two nights the price was a little over $190 an night. Ridiculous!! The service was great but it ought to be at that price.
Charging the bikers to park was a nice slap in the face. I bet attendance will be down next year.
We didn't care for any of the bands either.
The upside is that we had a great time. Our favorite part is just watching the motorcycles hum/bark up and down the street. The parade was awesome this year too.
We do have to mention the Lake Side Dinner. We love to eat there. The prices are reasonable, the food is awesome and the service is great.
Will we return to Lake George to attend the Americade? Yes, but we will stay in VT. :o)
Susie
Susie,
Thanks for taking the time to post to our blog. glad you had a great time at Lake George again this year.
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