Old Videos Show That Motorcycle Rallies In NYC Are Totally Nuts
Police are investigating after a gang of motorcyclists chased and badly beat a man driving a Range Rover in New York City this weekend. Exactly what happened is unclear, but police have made two arrests (though the second biker will not be charged).
According to the NY Daily News, New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the ride, which involved hundreds of riders, was organized by a group called Hollywood Stuntz.
Last year, Kelly said, "well over a thousand motorcycles, dirt bikes, quads, four-wheel vehicles" rode through Times Square. They did little more than snarl traffic, but YouTube videos show that rides from previous years were just as wild, even if they did not end in violence.
A September 2008 video titled "HOLLYWOOD STUNTZ BLOCK PARTY 3," shows bikers doing wheelies and other tricks while riding through New York:
"Hollywood stuntz 9/4/11," uploaded on September 5, 2011, gives a sense of how many riders show up for events like these:
This video shows how the mass of riders can create a frightening presence, on Woodhaven Boulevard in Queens:
Last year, about 1,000 riders showed up in Times Square, disrupting traffic. Screenshots from the August 2012 video, "Hollywood Block Party Takeover of Times Square," show bikers taking over the crowded area:
