How will Hurricane Helene impact the 2024 Fall Myrtle Beach Bike Rally? What we know

As Hurricane Helene is expected to make landfall in Florida Thursday night and continue north across the southeastern United States, thousands of bikers from around the country are preparing to travel to the Grand Strand for the Fall Myrtle Beach Bike Rally .

Here’s how inclement weather could affect the rally, which will run from Sept. 27 to Oct. 6.

While Helene is forecasted to stay a few hundred miles west of the Myrtle Beach area, according to the National Weather Service’s Wilmington office , the area will get some “peripheral effects” because of the size of the storm.

On Thursday night into Friday, the Grand Strand could see tropical storm force gusts, localized flooding in areas with poor drainage, isolated tornado threats and storm surge.

Based on these current forecasts, Myrtle Beach Bike Rally promotions committee chair Lee “Spider” Webb doesn’t think Helene will cause any major issues for the rally.

“Even though the rally starts on Friday, Sept. 27, the first weekend is always a big warm up for the rally, and most of the biker bars and biker-friendly venues generally have most of their activities inside the first weekend,” Webb said.

Although most rally vendors set up outside, Webb says many won’t start selling their goods until next week, at which point the risk of severe weather in the Myrtle Beach area is expected to have passed.

Regulations within individual municipalities vary, but outdoor vendors at venues in Horry County will only be permitted to sell their goods from Monday, Sept. 30 to Sunday, Oct. 6. Georgetown County will permit outdoor vendors to sell starting Friday, Sept. 27.

While these vendors will have some overlap with the predicted impacts of Hurricane Helene, vendors are accustomed to dealing with rain, Webb said.

Next week, the latest NWS forecast for Myrtle Beach lists a 30% chance of precipitation on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

“There’s always a chance of a shower passing through, here at the beach, and the vendors are very resilient,” Webb said. “They just simply close for an hour or two when it rains and then pop back open immediately after that.”

The rally will also feature a variety of live entertainment events outdoors at biker favorites like the Beaver Bar, Spokes and Bones, Captain Archie’s and Suck Bang Blow. However, the venues’ performing areas aren’t erected specially for the Fall Myrtle Beach Bike Rally.

“Those stages endure weather year round. It’s just a matter of, prior to the rally and prior to the entertainment coming, getting the lights and sounds set up,” Webb said. “And those folks are entertainment professionals, and they know, if inclement weather’s coming, what to do and what to prep for, so that’s really not an issue with getting ready and getting started and having entertainment.”

Storms make for poor biking conditions. Between slicker roads, decreased visibility and exposure to the elements, riding in the rain is both more dangerous and more difficult. But with Hurricane Helene expected to move past the Grand Strand through the weekend, organizers anticipate plenty of clear weather for rides.

“Sometimes people think that when a tropical storm is possibly coming in our area, that it’s going to linger. [The storms] don’t. They move fast and then the next day is gorgeous, period,” Webb said.