By JOHN KOZIOL
Staff Writer
LACONIA — Bike Week activity is "starting to creep up a little, but certainly
within the range we anticipated," said Laconia Police Capt. Tim Cavanaugh on
Wednesday.
Cavanaugh made his remarks during the daily Bike Week press conference at the
Dexter Shoe complex.
Laconia Police on Tuesday night made "a couple" of arrests for intoxication,
driving while under the influence and possession of drugs, but given the size of
the crowd, the number of arrests was "anticipated," said Cavanaugh.
The arrests do underscore, however, the need for Bike Week visitors to take
personal responsibility for not only their own well being and safety but also
that of others, Cavanaugh continued.
As he and other members of the LPD have stressed all week long, there will be
"zero tolerance" of violations of state and local laws relating to alcohol, said
Cavanaugh.
Laconia Fire Chief Ken Erickson said his department, too, was relatively
quiet on Tuesday with the most pressing case being that of a young woman who
requested assistance with a bad case of sunburn.
Otherwise, despite some "minor crashes" that the Fire Department responded to
on Tuesday, the overall low number of calls to date shows that "people are
listening to what the police are saying" about consuming alcohol, said Erickson.
Charlie St. Clair, who is the executive director of the Laconia Motorcycle
Rally and Race Week Association, said Tuesday’s weather "couldn’t have been any
better for our visitors" and that it contributed to those riders traveling to
and appreciating many other parts of New Hampshire.
The only highway fatality to occur in the area since Bike Week began occurred
early Wednesday morning when a Barrington man died after his motorcycle went off
Route 11 in Gilford near Ellacoya State Beach and struck a utility pole.
