Quiet 4th of July weekend bad for business

Quiet Weekend Great for Law Enforcement, Bad for Business

The quiet Fourth of July weekend made law enforcements job easier but it didn’t add any desperately needed funds to the coffers of local business or government. Johnny’s history makes us a favorite biker destination and I am grateful for the folks that came in to eat, drink and soak up some history. However, if I did a small fraction of the business that I would do during a rally how disappointing was it for the rest of the businesses that benefit from one? Many suffered a loss, hundreds of unemployed missed out on a least some temporary work, and non-profits didn’t earn any money for their charities. The First Methodist church has counted on their Biker Breakfast for a huge chunk of their annual income for years and it has all but vanished. I’m past being angry and am sad and disgusted. The city council needs to understand that we can’t afford not to have a rally. It doesn’t take a math wiz to see the loss to our city, our county and even the entire state of California.
People came from all over the world to attend our rally. If they are riding down from Washington and Oregon or up from Arizona and New Mexico they need to travel through much of California to get to our sleepy little town. As a biker I know that on a long ride we make several stops to rest our tired back sides and they almost always constitute purchasing gas, food, and beverages. In this lousy economy many motorcycle enthusiasts could not afford to go to Sturgis or Daytona and we could have been a vacation destination for tens of thousands of them.
The loyal bikers that did show up were tailgated on San Benito Street by law enforcement who hoped to find a reason to site them. They had a quota to meet. I’ve never gotten confirmation that quotas exist but if you don’t believe they do I have some ocean front property in Phoenix for sale. Many citations were issued for things that are ignored all year long. Welcome to Hollister. Since there was no rally the stabbing down town was not considered an incident. It didn’t involve bikers or Johnny’s patrons but I assure you if there had been a rally the incident would have been mentioned and even associated with it.
Most people understand that mine is not a selfish struggle. Hollister needs our rally. Without the rally we are not a tourist destination. We have many wonderful wineries, a chocolate factory, the Pinnacles National Monument and very scenic countryside. None of that draws more than a hundred thousand people to our county. Because of our undeniable place in history a motorcycle rally does. And guess what? Once they are here they find out about all of the wonderful things our area has to offer and a lot of them come back to visit again, not just on Fourth of July weekend.
What is it going to take to get the Hollister City Council to take off the blinders and see the big picture? If a hundred business owners and residents would show up at a council meeting and address the council during its public comment portion they could not ignore us. Many people want the rally but they don’t care enough to do anything about it. Take a few hours out of your Monday night and support something that you believe in. You don’t like to speak in public? I don’t either, but I got past it. All you need to do is state your name and your address and say, “I want our rally back.” How hard can that be? Standing by idle and complaining will not fix this problem. I beseech all of you who care to show up at city hall on Monday August 2nd and tell your council members how you feel. Sincerely, Charisse Tyson

July 4th weekend party

I can't believe another fourth of July weekend is around the corner and we are rallyless once again. We plan on having a great weekend anyway. There are plenty of bikers that refuse to let the tradition die and we love and appreciate each and every one of you. The Boozefighters that call Johnny's their home will be here with bells on and they are the life of the party. We're kicking off the party on Thursday July 1st with Karaoke at 9:00. We open at 8:00 am Friday through Sunday for breakfast serving chicken fried steak and eggs and many other favorites. Our famous BBQ will be ready at 11:00 featuring our great burgers, pork sandwiches, teriyaki shirt steak, my award winning chili and more. A Boozefighter favorite the Los Hightops band will be playing for us on Friday from 8:00 to 12:00. This is a Boozefighter party so if we are at capacity Boozefighters will be our priority. Thanks for your understanding. These folks do a lot for us at Johnny's. Saturday night the party continues with Karaoke at 8:30. At sunset Sunday we'll have our annual show in the alley with our safe and sane fire works. Ice cold beer, great food and good friends, what more could you ask for?

A Great Cinco De Mayo

We had a great Cinco De Mayo.

Good food and good times were had by all. Our feature burger the Hollister Heat, entered by our own Pastor Henry got the first "10" rating since our contest began. I saw my friend Terra that enjoyed the burger today and she down graded it to a 9 because of next day issues. Those Serrano chili’s will come back to haunt you. Yesterday Annie’s entry the Rolling Thunder got a 10 followed up with an OMG in the comment section.

We’re having a hard time getting people to try the specials because they are hooked on either our standard cheese burger or their own concoction. We’re having fun with the contest though so come on down and judge one of our entries.

I'm slipping.

It seems like time is flying by so fast that I can't keep up. I'm trying to work on my book, get ready for my tax man, run the bar and sneak in some down town with my husband and I'm getting way behind on my web site and blog. Consequently events come and go and I forgot to announce them at all. So here's a run down of what's happening at Johnny's in March.

Friday March 13th at 7:00 p.m., we are honoring Cathy Micheal, a friend we lost to ovarian cancer with a benefit that will include great food and a raffle with all proceeds going to The American Cancer Society in her name. We'll follow it up with one of Cathy's favorite past times, Johnny's Karaoke.

I shouldn't need to tell you what Wednesday the 17th is. The annual Johnny's Saint Patrick's Day Bash promises to be a good one. We will be serving corned beef and cabbage at lunch as always and the free spread is at 6:30 p.m. Get here early for a good seat. We have been Hollister's St. Patty's day party headquarters for more than sixty years. The camaraderie is great and the corned beef melts in your mouth.

Saturday March 27th the Bomb Shell Bullies are back at 9:00 p.m. If you haven't heard them you don't know what you're missing. Put on your dancing shoes and come on down.

Sunday March 28th the Top Hatters annual Bike Blessing is at noon at Sacred Heart Church. Sign ups for the ride and event at Bolado Park afterwards are at Whiskey Creek starting at 10:00 a.m. At Johnny's we'll be serving breakfast beginning at 9:00 and our famous burgers and steaks from 11:00a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Join us for a blessed time.

Well that's March for you. April is full events too and i promise to be more diligent with my posts. Thanks for tuning in, Charisse