SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — David Campbell stared directly across the headlight of his bike as he drove in a straight line.
Leaning forward, a bandana tight around his head, he managed to ride his silver Harley-Davidson all they way to the finish. He’d just won $100 in the Ride the Plank, one of several games at the second annual SPI Bike Rally.
“That’s my $100,” said his girlfriend, Laura Salinas. They’d come from Donna for the rally at Isla Blanca Park yesterday.
Campbell and his brothers own Campbell Kustoms where they do custom work on motorcycles.
They were all enjoying the rally, which included live bands, games and a bike show.
“We try to attend all the bike shows here in South Texas,” said Campbell, 33.
Last year’s rally was held at the South Padre Island Convention Center. This year it was all booked up, which proved to work in favor of the rally, said Alex Hinojosa Jr., one of the organizers.
“We are 10 feet from the water,” said Hinojosa of Hino Electric.
The smile on his face and the cranked-up energy in his every move showed he was pleased with the turnout.
“They’ve come from Monterrey, Guadalajara, Harlingen, Dallas, Laredo, all over,” he said. “We’ve got all kinds of bikes. It’s about camaraderie, it’s about brotherhood.”
Bike enthusiasts who’d rolled in from throughout Texas and Mexico had parked in rows where they could be easily viewed. The choppers were customized in a broad range of colors and details. Red flames flashed across one gas tank, another was painted a deep blue and still another was painted in glittery emerald green.
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