Biketoberfest® ‘s Birthmother — Janet Kersey, a Daytona Beach native and the official “The Birthmother of Biketoberfest®” – was hired as the director of tourism events by the DBACVB to create new festivals and events that would attract visitors during the off-season periods. Her first assignment was to create a special event, similar to the ever-popular Bike Week, centered on the American Motorcycle Association’s annual fall races held each October at Daytona International Speedway. This first event, originally named “The Daytona Fall Tour,” was held on October 16-18, 1992.

The Daytona Fall Tour featured a 125-mile scenic touring ride through Volusia County, bike shows, races at Daytona International Speedway and Bikefest — a series of activities offered by Main Street merchants. The motorcycling festival attracted 5,000 new visitors, mostly from the Florida market, to the Daytona Beach area.

Biketoberfest® Is Born — The success of the Convention and Visitors Bureau’s Daytona Fall Tour attracted increased interest from local merchants and the surrounding community. In 1993, local companies — such as The News-Journal Corporation, Daytona International Speedway and Daytona Harley-Davidson — sponsored concerts, trade shows, and other activities. Under the CVB’s direction, the Biketoberfest® Development Committee was established and as a result, the number of activities increased to 40 in a three-day time span.

That year, the event’s name also changed from The Daytona Fall Tour to the newly created Biketoberfest®. The new name became popular domestically and internationally, especially among motorcycle enthusiasts in Germany where the Oktoberfest celebration is held nationwide. The CVB’s London office began a marketing campaign aimed at drawing European bikers who wanted to escape Europe’s winter weather and enjoy a fun-filled Florida holiday.

Biketoberfest® 1993 drew 15,000 new visitors and generated more than $4.6 million dollars for the Daytona Beach area. In 1993 the CVB registered the name Biketoberfest® with the US Trademark office, marking it the first US trademark registered motorcycle event in the country. The CVB has since actively pursued any violations and maintains all legal rights under the US Trademark laws.

Biketoberfest® 2010 – The 18th version of the annual event had its usual great activities — street festivals, touring rides, bike shows, food sensations. But there was more excitement than there had been in a while in 2010. Maybe it was the beautiful beach weather. Maybe it was prompted by biker cabin fever. Maybe it was just the inevitable resurgence of a local tradition. Whatever the reason, local restaurants, vendors and hotels said Biketoberfest® was back in 2010, meeting their hopeful expectations and fueling their optimism for future biker rallies. The weekend literally rocked. You could find live music anywhere and everywhere, with the highlight being Saturday night’s Jam for America, which featured Gretchen Wilson, John Anderson, Bucky Covington and Chris Cagle jamming at City Island Park. Although there were no races at Daytona International Speedway because of the repaving project, DIS didn’t miss a beat — offering manufacturer demo rides, as well as parts, accessories and the latest and greatest from industry manufacturing leaders. As part of the destination’s new “Festival Season 2.0 promotion,” Biketoberfest® garnered even more nationwide attention than usual, especially on its web sites, Facebook site and on Twitter. Blogger Kathy Catron won several awards for her reports, video and social networking during the event. Seems like Biketoberfest® was everywhere in 2010.

We can’t wait for 2011!  October 13 – 16, 2011