Thunder in the Glens

Last updated

Thunder in the Glens is an annual Harley-Davidson bike rally held in Aviemore, Scotland, established in 1996. The event is run by the Dunedin Chapter Scotland (#9083) of the Harley Owners Group (HOG), based in Edinburgh. [1] Running over the last weekend of August every year, the event consists of Harley-Davidson displays, rallies and live music. Scottish rock band Big Country, and band RPJ [2] performed at the 2016 festival. [3] [4] People travel from around the world to attend. [5]

Thunder in the Glens is currently the largest HOG chapter rally in the United Kingdom [6] and Europe. [1] [2] Although mainly for Harley-Davidson bikes, the event is open to all bikers.

The rally on the Saturday consists of an organised ride from Aviemore through the Scottish Highlands to Grantown on Spey. [3] [6]

When the event first started, there were around 200 participants in the rally. [1] In 2015, there was over 3000 bikers, [2] and by 2016, it rose to 4000. [3]

There are over 60 charity stands at the event, as well as opportunities to test bikes and Jeep cars. [6] The profits from Thunder go to local charities. [2]

The event is said to substantially boost the local economy of the town of Aviemore. It was suggested the event contributed £15million to the Aviemore economy in 2016. [3] Although local residents were initially hesitant about the event, nervous the bikers would be similar to those depicted in films such as The Wild One , the bikers are now welcomed into the town every year. [1]

In 2016, Thunder in the Glens celebrated its 20th anniversary. [1] [2] [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harley-Davidson</span> American motorcycle manufacturer

Harley-Davidson, Inc. is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression along with its historical rival, Indian Motorcycles. The company has survived numerous ownership arrangements, subsidiary arrangements, periods of poor economic health and product quality, and intense global competition to become one of the world's largest motorcycle manufacturers and an iconic brand widely known for its loyal following. There are owner clubs and events worldwide, as well as a company-sponsored, brand-focused museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grantown-on-Spey</span> Human settlement in Scotland

Grantown-on-Spey is a town in the Highland Council Area, historically within the county of Moray. It is located on a low plateau at Freuchie beside the river Spey at the northern edge of the Cairngorm mountains, about 20 miles (32 km) south-east of Inverness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cairngorms National Park</span> National park in Scotland

Cairngorms National Park is a national park in northeast Scotland, established in 2003. It was the second of two national parks established by the Scottish Parliament, after Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, which was set up in 2002. The park covers the Cairngorms range of mountains, and surrounding hills. Already the largest national park in the United Kingdom, in 2010 it was expanded into Perth and Kinross.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rolling Thunder (organization)</span>

Rolling Thunder is a United States advocacy group that seeks to bring full accountability for prisoners of war (POWs) and missing in action (MIA) service members of all U.S. wars. The group's first demonstration was in 1988. It was incorporated in 1995, and has more than 90 chapters throughout the US, as well as overseas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Motorcycle club</span> Group of individuals whose primary interest and activities involve motorcycles

A motorcycle club is a group of individuals whose primary interest and activities involve motorcycles. A motorcycle group can range as clubbed groups of different bikes or bikers who own same model of vehicle like the Harley Owners Group.

Road Wild was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Championship Wrestling (WCW) that was held in the month of August from 1996 to 1999. It was a free event held in Sturgis, South Dakota during the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. After the first event, WCW changed the name to Road Wild because of a potential trademark issue with the Harley-Davidson club Harley Owners Group (HOG). In 2000, it was replaced by New Blood Rising. Hulk Hogan appeared in the main event of all four editions of the event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harley Owners Group</span>

The Harley Owners Group (HOG) is a sponsored community marketing club, operated by Harley-Davidson for enthusiasts of that brand's motorcycles. The HOG is "the grandaddy of all community-building efforts," serving to promote not just a consumer product, but a lifestyle. The HOG has also served to open new revenue streams for the company, with the production of tie-in merchandise offered to club members, numbering over one million strong, making it the largest factory-sponsored riding club in the world. The Harley-Davidson community was the prototype for the ethnographic term subculture of consumption, defined as "a distinctive subgroup of society that self-selects on the basis of a shared commitment to a particular product class, brand, or consumption activity."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harley-Davidson Museum</span> Transport museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

The Harley-Davidson Museum is an American museum located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin celebrating the more than 100-year history of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The 12,000-square-meter (130,000 sq ft) three-building complex on 81,000 square meters along the Menomonee River bank contains more than 450 Harley-Davidson motorcycles and hundreds of thousands of artifacts from the Harley-Davidson Motor Company's 120-year history.

Gabrielle Bou Rached is a Lebanese model, actress and motorcyclist. In 2005 she was crowned Miss Lebanon. After 2015, she shifted her focus on motorcycling and was appointed in 2018 as Director of HOG Abu Dhabi Chapter. In 2021, she was elected as President of HOG GCC. She is the first female Arab biker to achieve King Of The Road/ Bun Burner Gold motorcycle challenge. She featured on the cover of the Harley-Davidson Owners Group Magazine- Issue 1- 2019

Laughlin River Run was an annual motorcycle rally held in Laughlin, Nevada. It was the largest gathering of bikes and bikers in the Western United States. The event drew an estimated 70,000 motorcycle enthusiasts in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bubba Blackwell</span> American motorcycle stunt performer

James Blackwell is an American stunt performer and motorcycle jumping world record holder who is sponsored by and promoted by the Harley-Davidson motorcycle company. Before his association with Harley, Blackwell was sponsored by the now-defunct Buell Motorcycle Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harley-Davidson XR-750</span> Type of motorcycle

The Harley-Davidson XR-750 is a racing motorcycle made by Harley-Davidson since 1970, primarily for dirt track racing, but also for road racing in the XRTT variant. The XR-750 was designed in response to a 1969 change in AMA Grand National Championship rules that leveled the playing field for makes other than Harley-Davidson, allowing Japanese and British motorcycles to outperform the previously dominant Harley-Davidson KR race bike. The XR-750 went on to win the most races in the history of American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Bike Week</span> Annual motorcycle rally in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Black Bike Week, also called Atlantic Beach Bikefest, Black Bikers Week, and The Black Pearl Cultural Heritage and Bike Festival, is an annual motorcycle rally in the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina area, held on Memorial Day weekend. Called a "one-of-a-kind event" and "an exhibitionist's paradise" by Jeffrey Gettleman, Black Bike Week is "all about riding, styling and profiling," in the words of Mayor Irene Armstrong of Atlantic Beach, South Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buffalo Chip Campground</span>

The Buffalo Chip Campground is an event venue in Meade County, South Dakota, United States. The campground is a place for motorcycle enthusiasts and music festival visitors each year, and has been since its founding in 1981. Host to a 10-day Concert Series and thousands of motorcyclists each August during the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, the Buffalo Chip provides a music festival, various other forms of entertainment, and full service tent, RV and cabin camping on almost 600 acres in rural Meade County. The motorcycle and music festival also features entertainment including multiple disciplines of racing, exhibits, beauty pageants, dance performances, bike shows, world-record-breaking stunts, midget bowling, and military tributes.

Harley-Davidson India was a wholly owned branch of Harley-Davidson, based in Gurgaon, Haryana, India. Harley-Davidson India commenced operations in August 2009 and appointed its first dealership in July 2010.

Dudley B. Perkins was an American champion motorcycle hillclimb competitor and Harley-Davidson motorcycle dealer. The American Motorcyclist Association's highest award, the AMA Dud Perkins Lifetime Achievement Award, was named after him in 1970, and he was its first recipient.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Bike Week</span>

European Bike Week is an annual motorcycle rally held at Lake Faak in Austria. Attendance in 2018 was 200,000 people, the largest rally in Europe and the third largest worldwide.

Bill Hufnagle, who writes and performs as Biker Billy, is an American motorcyclist, cookbook author and television personality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wharf Rat Rally</span> Canadian motorcycle rally

The Digby Wharf Rat Rally is one of Canada's largest motorcycle rallies, attracting thousands of motorcycles, riders and other spectators to Digby, Nova Scotia. From August 31, to September 3, 2017 the Wharf Rat Rally had an overall attendance of more than 8,000 motorbikes and nearly 22,000 individual participants, including almost 17,000 out of town visitors.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Riders take part in 20th Thunder in the Glens in Aviemore". BBC. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Aviemore gears up for Thunder in the Glens". Daily Record. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Thunder in the Glens: 4,000 Harley-Davidson bikers take to Scotland's roads". Press and Journal. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  4. "Get ready for the roar as bike rally Thunder in the Glens marks its 20th anniversary". National. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  5. "Thunder In The Glens 2016". Cairngormmountain.org. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 "Thunder in the Glens Aviemore". Welcome to Scotland. Retrieved 8 November 2016.