Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/703695
12 nAugust 2016n www.thunderpress.net THUNDER PRESS The typically quiet and enchanted redwood forest is brought to life as a small city of thousands of rowdy devotees from across the states and Canada charge headlong into a week- end of embracing our inner wild child by dancing in the dirt, dipping in the drink and generally getting back to nature in ways that only a biker can. In a nice little change-up to the typical program, riders were invited to come down to camp in the rocky hillsides of the pit a day early this year when the gates were opened up on Thursday. The early-bird tickets sold out immediately and attendees were treated to a movie night that included screenings of Why We Ride and the cult classic, Easy Rider. By Friday afternoon's opening ceremonies most had already launched into high-octane party gear. The local color guard fi red off the ceremonial 21-gun salute, followed by a few announcements, before the all- day concerts began. As the volunteers came off stage I asked the bugler for a photo and he beamed. As a Kiwanis member who has been involved with Redwood Run since 1983, Eugene Womack proudly showed off his instrument. "This bugle has been to Vietnam, believe it or not," he told us. "I played it in the Boy Scouts in the late 50's and they gave it to me when I left. My mom sent it to me so I could play taps for the guys there in Vietnam." Some of the local Kiwanis members ride, most do not, but there are many vets on both sides of the fence, which fuels a bonding and respect that makes for a nice meld- ing between the groups. Locals volunteer to come out and clean up the property that otherwise sits idle all year. A noticeable change in this year's format was the fact that lesser-known bands were scheduled over the course of the weekend. Gone were the big- name (and big price tag) groups of the past, with the exception of Friday night's headliner, Jack Russell's Great White. Jack Russell was one of the founding members of the hard rock band, Great White, formed in LA in 1977. The group became popular in the 80's and 90's, known for their hit "Once Bitten, Twice Shy," and the audience did their level best to make the boys in the band feel welcome as they rocked their hearts out in a great performance. The Greg Golden Band, featuring one of NorCal's most recognized and beloved vocalists, Randy Scoles, rocking out next to Golden himself, opened for Jack Russell and our favorite LA rock- ers Royalush, topped off the night. Lead by Jacques, the guy with the top hat and beautiful blue hair, the closers kept folks on their feet and rocking out to the band's original tunes. The group's microphone stand is an artistic metal rendition of a chopper front end, complete with handlebars and mirrors, which adds a unique visual interest to the high-energy performance. The rest of the weekend was spent with famil- iar and beloved groups of recogniz- able personalities like Guitar Shorty, Amanda Gray, Charlie Brechtel and Savannah Blue. We'd never heard the group called Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers but the ZZ Top cover band was entertaining to watch and sounded spot on. As far as we're concerned, the musical program was fun and made for a more intimate feel since it wasn't Redwood Run Continued from page 1 See "Redwood Run," page 14, column 1 Talented stunt riders tore up the tarmac late in the day Lovely ladies posed with sparkling iron during the bike show on Saturday morning Tiny Tiffany was having trouble being noticed when working the bike show so she got high with a little help from her friend