Related:

• Rally on the River schedule
• More biker events

IRONTON -- They are Harley-Davidsons, hear them roar.

More than 30,000 bikers and music lovers are expected to flock to downtown Ironton as the Friends of Ironton host the seventh annual Rally on the River.

The four-day, free festival kicks off at 11 a.m. today, Aug. 19, and the barbecue, the biker blues-basted rock 'n' roll, and the good times don't stop rolling until 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 22, in downtown Ironton. The festival takes place from Bobby Bare Boulevard to Third Street and from Park Avenue to Adams.

Come and check out motorcycle daredevil Bubba Blackwell, who has broken all of Evel Knievel's jump records on the same kind of bike, as well as a nightly stream of national-act southern rock including a double-shot of Atlanta's Blackberry Smoke and Black Stone Cherry on Friday night, and radio personalities, Lex and Terry, and Unknown Hinson on Saturday night.

Rick Jansen, president of Friends of Ironton, which organizes the Rally, said they've really turned the entertainment heat up.

At the Rally for the first time is Edmonton, Ky.-based, Black Stone Cherry, Roadrunner Records rockers who've headlined X-Fest and played all over the world.

Drummer John Fred Young, son of The Kentucky Headhunters's rhythm guitarist Richard Young, started the band back in 2001, and the band took over the Headhunters' famous practice house that they'd used since 1969.

The band, which has toured Europe with Def Leppard and Whitesnake, has released two CDs for Roadrunner and charted seven singles on the rock charts.

Opening for Black Stone Cherry Friday will be the Atlanta-based Blackberry Smoke, whose latest CD is "Little Piece Of Dixie" with producer Dann Huff (Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts). Blackberry Smoke has shared the stage with ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Shooter Jennings and others.

Saturday night, the Dallas-based radio personalities, Lex Staley and Terry Jaymes, (Lex and Terry) the morning drive radio team whose show is heard locally on 92.7-FM, the Planet and syndicated nationwide, will meet and greet with fans at 6 p.m. The duo will then step onto the Planet Stage on Second Street in front of the depot and bring on the wild and wonderful, Charlotte, N.C.-based rockabilly guitarist, Unknown Hinson, the self-proclaimed "King of the Country Western Troubadours."

"We're looking for another record year," said Jansen, who is also the general manager at Charlie's Harley-Davidson in Huntington. "We're upgrading the talent on a national level and we're thrilled to death to be bringing in these bands. Black Stone Cherry has a huge following around here and a younger demographic. They're great, young southern rock artists."

In addition to the steady stream of music, which also includes a who's who of locally-based rockers such as The Return, Haulin' Dust, Blues Crossing, Derailed, River Town and Southern Thunder, the Rally is also packed with hot wheels and events to show off the area's best motorcycles.

A 6 p.m. Thursday, a poker run kicks off the bike events. Another poker run leaves at noon Saturday, and from 3:30 to 5 p.m., there will be a full plate of motorcycle field events (such as the slow race during which whoever goes the slowest without touching their feet to the ground wins). At 5:15 p.m. Saturday, there will be a parade of heroes.

On Sunday, Bobby Bare Boulevard will host a bike show from noon to 2 p.m., while a Full Throttle Service starts at 10:30 a.m., at the First Church of the Nazarene on Fourth Street.

Last but not least, for the fourth year, Buell-riding motorcycle daredevil Bubba Blackwell comes wheelie-riding back to the Rally.

Blackwell, of Bon Secour, Ala., (the town noted in "Forrest Gump"), was only 8 years old when he bicycle jumped a line of garbage cans after seeing Evel Knievel on television for the first time.

Since then, Blackwell, who is in his mid 40s, has broken every Knievel jumping record while riding the same style Harley-Davidson motorcycles.

At the Rally, Blackwell will perform a variety of outrageous and incredible stunts on his Buell motorcycle at 10 p.m. Friday and 11 p.m. Saturday at the American Daredevil Exhibition Area on Second Street.

Blackwell first flew onto the national scene in 1999 when he jumped his Harley over 14 semi-trucks live on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno."

For the Ironton show, Blackwell, who has broken 42 bones in his career, will do one of his non-jumping shows full of tricks, wheelies and stunts, and all of them with Blackwell talking through a microphone in his helmet.

"This is a way for the Tri-State to show up for the weekend and welcome in the people who are coming in from all over the country," Jansen said. "We're inviting everyone from the river cities from Portsmouth to Huntington and Ashland to come over and show some pride in the area and have a great weekend. People like Bubba Blackwell aren't around every day."

While the first Rally only drew about 1,000 people, the Rally, which has a $125,000 budget this year, has grown to drawing in about 30,000 people last year.

Jansen said they could very well top that this year.

Any money raised over expenses gets poured back into the Ironton community as the Friends of Ironton, which also helps organize the Gus Macker 3-on-3 tournament in June and the Ironton Oktoberfest in the fall, is raising funds for a sprayground in downtown Ironton.

New this year is an American Legion-run campground on the banks of the river. It is eight blocks from the festival and will have shuttles running back and forth.

"We try and make it a family event with stuff for everybody to do," Jansen said. "We try and do the things and to be about the right things so there should be no reservations no matter what your age is. There are no barriers for people to come and enjoy the event. It's not just for motorcyclists, it's a community festival."

Rich Blankenship, the mayor of Ironton, said the city appreciates the hard work of all the Friends of Ironton volunteers and the legions of sponsors that put on the event, which pours money into area businesses.

"Obviously it attracts a lot of out-of-town people to the city of Ironton to see our city, and we appreciate that," Blankenship said. "The Friends of Ironton's impact and what they've meant to the city is just astronomical. Without them and a lot of other volunteer groups we couldn't do a lot of things because we have such a small workforce. We appreciate them hosting this event and putting their time and effort into doing the same things we want to do, attract people to the city of Ironton."

Mark Webb/The Herald-Dispatch

The Friends of Ironton host the city's seventh annual Rally on the River Aug. 19-22.