hundreds of motorcyclists to descend on kentville for weekend rally
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devil's half acre motorcycle rally organizer harlon wood was out friday setting up barricades and cones in kentville ahead of hundreds of motorcyclists arriving in town this weekend for the event.
ian fairclough
/
the chronicle herald
hundreds of motorcycles, their riders and enthusiasts will roar into kentville this weekend for the annual devil’s half acre motorcycle event, which started 10 years ago.
organizer harlon wood said the event has grown annually, with well over 1,000 motorcyclists registering last year.
“last year was our biggest year,” wood said friday, taking a break from putting out barricades and traffic cones. “hopefully it doesn’t rain.”
there are some showers in the forecast, but the heavier showers, with only 2-4 millimetres forecast, are during overnight hours saturday. it’s still a long way from the 50 mm that fell on the inaugural weekend for the event in 2017.
a number of motorcycles were on display for the show and shine portion of the devil’s half acre motorcycle rally in kentville back in 2024.
ian fairclough
/
the chronicle herald
new events are being planned this year.
“you have to keep changing it and make things new to keep people coming,” wood said. “if you don’t change it, people won’t come.”
street closures
events and attractions will be taking place downtown, with some areas closed to traffic.
webster street will be closed from bridge street to station lane from saturday morning at 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on sunday, and aberdeen street will be closed from station lane to main street from 5 p.m. on friday to 4 p.m. on sunday.
the town’s centre square is also closed to vehicle traffic both days.
“it’s something to bring everyone to the town,” wood said. “it’s family friendly. hopefully it will bring business in and create different opportunities for people. it’s about having fun and bringing people together.”
he said the benefits go to surrounding communities, as well.
lindsay young, the community economic development officer for kentville, said that while she doesn’t have data that tracks the benefits, “any time we have an opportunity to showcase kentville to a broad audience is a good thing.”
she said other benefits include collaboration between groups and bringing excitement to the town.
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“i think kentville benefits from hosting a wide variety of events and festivals. everything we host is a little different than the one before; for example, the apple blossom festival and a motorcycle rally are not the same thing at all but still serve a broad audience.”
young said events in town are family friendly, regardless of who is organizing, “and we’re happy that we’re a place that organizations and committees choose to host their events.”
she said economic benefits aren’t limited to the weekend, as events can introduce people to the town and lead them to come back for a visit.
attractions over the weekend include music, stunt riders, axe throwing, beard contests and a veterans’ memorial ride.
a stunt rider flies through the air in downtown kentville during the devil’s half acre motorcycle rally in 2024.
ian fairclough
/
the chronicle herald
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