The Loudon Classic, originally named the Laconia Classic, is an annual motorcycle road racing competition held during the Laconia Motorcycle Week at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, New Hampshire. Founded in 1934 when it was originally sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA), the race is one of the oldest motorcycle competitions in the United States. The competition changed locations over the years, starting as a dirt track race before evolving into a road race. From the late 1930s until the early 2000s, the Loudon Classic was one of the most prestigious motorcycle races in the United States, second only to the Daytona 200.
Belknap County is a county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. As of the 2020 census, the population was 63,705. The county seat is Laconia. It is located in New Hampshire's Lakes Region, slightly southeast of the state's geographic center. Belknap County comprises the Laconia, NH Micropolitan Statistical Area, which in turn constitutes a portion of the Boston-Worcester-Providence, MA-RI-NH-CT Combined Statistical Area.
Gilford is a town in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 7,699 at the 2020 census, up from 7,126 at the 2010 census. Situated on Lake Winnipesaukee, Gilford is home to Governors Island, Ellacoya State Beach, Belknap Mountain State Forest, Gunstock Mountain Resort, and the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion, a seasonal outdoor concert venue. The lakeside village of Glendale lies within Gilford's borders.
Laconia is a city in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 16,871 at the 2020 census, up from 15,951 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Belknap County. Laconia, situated between Lake Winnipesaukee and Lake Winnisquam, includes the villages of Lakeport and Weirs Beach. Each June, the city hosts Laconia Motorcycle Week, also more simply known as "Bike Week", one of the country's largest rallies.
Lake Winnipesaukee is the largest lake in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, located in the Lakes Region at the foothills of the White Mountains. It is approximately 21 miles (34 km) long (northwest-southeast) and from 1 to 9 miles wide (northeast-southwest), covering 69 square miles (179 km2)—71 square miles (184 km2) when Paugus Bay is included—with a maximum depth of 180 feet (55 m). The center area of the lake is called The Broads.
Meredith is a town in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 6,662 at the 2020 census. Meredith is situated in the state's Lakes Region and serves as a major resort town. Meredith Village, the commercial center of the town, lies along the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee, and several other large lakes lie partially or completely within the town borders. It is home to the Stonedam Island Natural Area and the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad, and it serves as one of the ports of call for the MS Mount Washington.
The Lakes Region of New Hampshire is located in the east-central part of the state, south of the White Mountains Region and extending to the Maine border. It is named for the numerous lakes in the region, the largest of which are Lake Winnipesaukee, Lake Winnisquam, Squam Lake, and Newfound Lake. The area comprises all of Belknap County, the southern portion of Carroll County, the eastern portion of Grafton County, and the northern portions of Strafford County and Merrimack County. The largest municipality is the city of Laconia.
The Plymouth & Lincoln Railroad is a class III shortline railroad operating on the Concord-Lincoln rail line in central New Hampshire, United States. The railroad consists of two distinct passenger operations, the Granite State Scenic Railway, which offers passenger excursion trains in the White Mountains, and the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad, which operates passenger excursion trains along the shore of Lake Winnipesaukee in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. In addition to passenger operations, the railroad owns the Lincoln Shops, a railroad equipment maintenance and repair facility located in Lincoln, New Hampshire.
Laconia Motorcycle Week is an annual motorcycle rally held in Laconia, New Hampshire, United States. The rally originated as a motorcycle Gypsy tour in 1916 as, the New Hampshire Lakes Region became a popular riding destination for early motorcycle enthusiasts from New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Montreal. The popularity of the rally led to the formation of the Loudon Classic motorcycle race in 1934 which, became one of the most prestigious races in American motorcycle racing, second only to the Daytona 200. The scheduled events included races, shows and a motorcycle hill climb competition. The rally traditionally takes place over nine days in June, always the 2nd and 3rd full weekend. The rally was the largest annual gathering of North American motorcyclists until it was overtaken by the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally during the 1970s.
Paugus Bay is a 1,227-acre (4.97 km2) water body located in Belknap County in the Lakes Region of central New Hampshire, United States, in the city of Laconia. A short channel at its north end connects it with Lake Winnipesaukee in the village of Weirs Beach, and a dam on its southern end separates it from Opechee Bay in the village of Lakeport. The bay is named after Chief Paugus, who fought in the Battle of Pequawket during Dummer's War. The 19th-century construction of the dam in Lakeport raised the elevation of Paugus Bay to that of Lake Winnipesaukee. Water flowing out of Paugus Bay travels down the Winnipesaukee River to the Merrimack River.
The MS Mount Washington is the flagship vessel of the Winnipesaukee Flagship Corporation. Its home port is on Lake Winnipesaukee in Laconia, New Hampshire, in the United States. The historic ship makes several ports of call around the lake during its scenic cruises in the spring, summer and fall months. Ice-Out is declared when the Mount Washington can get to all of its ports of call.
Lakeport is a neighborhood in the city of Laconia in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States. It was once known as "Lake Village" and is centered on a power dam on the short river channel between Paugus Bay to the north, and Opechee Bay to the south. Lakeport lies approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) north of downtown Laconia.
Funspot is an arcade which features one of the largest collections of early-1970s to late-2000s games in the world. It is located in the village of Weirs Beach in Laconia, New Hampshire, United States. Founded in 1952 by Bob Lawton, Funspot includes over 600 video games, pinball machines, and ticket redemption machines; an indoor miniature golf course; 20-lane ten-pin and candlepin bowling; cash bingo; a restaurant; a tavern; an ice cream stand; kiddie rides; and several other attractions on its grounds.
Alton Bay is an unincorporated community in the town of Alton in Belknap County, New Hampshire, United States, and is located on Alton Bay, a 4-mile-long (6 km) cove of Lake Winnipesaukee which forms the southernmost point on the lake. The village is part of the Lakes Region, a popular resort area of the state.
The Winnipesaukee Playhouse is a 200+ seat courtyard-style theater in Meredith, New Hampshire, United States, in the heart of New Hampshire's Lakes Region. The Playhouse produces both a professional summer stock season and a community theater season, and is arguably the only theater in the United States to do so. The Winnipesaukee Playhouse is the recipient of 46 New Hampshire Theater Awards over the past eight years, more than any other theater in the state during this time period, and in 2009 it was selected by New Hampshire Magazine as the best professional theater in New Hampshire. In 2013 the Playhouse moved from Weirs Beach in Laconia to the former Annalee Dolls campus in Meredith. The new theater has 200 seats as well as support spaces such as offices, dressing rooms, and a lobby, which the previous theater did not have.
Lake Winnipesaukee Ice-Out occurs when all the ice on Lake Winnipesaukee, the largest lake in New Hampshire, United States, has broken up after winter. Over the years this has been decided upon by a variety of means; as of 2018, Dave Emerson makes the call. Emerson flies two to three times a day over Lake Winnipesaukee to check on the ice. Ice-Out is declared when the MS Mount Washington can make it to every one of its ports: Center Harbor, Wolfeboro, Alton, Weirs Beach and Meredith. It is also considered the unofficial start to the boating season as well as the end of winter in New Hampshire. The earliest recorded ice-out occurred in 2024 on March 17, beating the previous record of March 18, 2016 and March 23, 2012. The latest ice out occurred in 1888 on May 12.
Lake steamers of North America include large, steam-powered non-government vessels with displacement hulls on American freshwater lakes excluding the Great Lakes. They may have served as passenger boats, freighters, mail-boats, log-boom vessels or a combination thereof. The construction of such vessels posed unique problems on water bodies located away from established dry-docks and marine railways, or connecting canals to such facilities.
Aquadoctan was one of the largest known Native American villages in what is now the U.S. state of New Hampshire. In an area commonly known today as The Weirs, the village lay on the north bank of the Winnipesaukee River at the outlet of Lake Winnipesaukee in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. The site is now in Weirs Beach, a summer resort and village of the city of Laconia. The Native American village, whose archaeological remains extend for a half mile along the river and a quarter mile along the lake, has been documented through archaeological investigation to have evidence of settlement from 9,000 BCE to the late seventeenth century. Colonial reports document that the site was abandoned substantially in 1696, when most of New Hampshire's remaining native population withdrew to join the Pequawket at present-day Fryeburg, Maine.
The New Hampshire Veterans' Association Historic District encompasses a large cluster of late 19th-century summer resort properties in the Weirs Beach area of Laconia, New Hampshire, United States. The district is a nearly 8-acre (3.2 ha) area developed by the New Hampshire Veterans' Association, which was formed to support summer reunions of veterans of the American Civil War. Over the following decades the group expanded its range to encompass veterans from all of the United States' war efforts. The architecture of the resort area the association developed is distinctive, as the resort houses were built to accommodate entire regiments. The district includes 18 buildings, five of which front on Lakeside Avenue and have expansive views of Lake Winnipesaukee and the Weirs Beach area. Most of the remaining buildings are located on Veterans Avenue, which runs roughly parallel to, and behind, Lakeside Avenue. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Geneva Point Center (GPC) is a historic non-profit conference center and summer camp in a natural northern New England setting. Located in the town of Moultonborough, New Hampshire, the campus includes 184 acres (74 ha) of wooded nature trails and one mile of lakeshore on Lake Winnipesaukee. There are more than 90 structures on the site, including cabins, small family cottages and private lodge rooms. The property has the historic Winnipesaukee Inn. The oldest existing structure is a barn documented to exist in 1839 and is likely much older, perhaps even 18th century. The center has a long-running summer season ice cream shop that is open to the public.
