The Republic of Texas Rally was held last weekend at the Travis County Expo Center. This annual three-day event attracted thousands of bikers to Central Texas. Again this year, a parade of motorcycles traveled the eleven miles from the Expo Center to downtown Austin on Friday evening.

Bill and I waited patiently along Congress Avenue until the first bikes finally arrived around 8:30 PM. It was a nice evening, so we’re not sure why there seemed to be fewer spectators than usual.

Led by police escorts, a steady stream of motorcycles cruised up and down Congress Avenue. Most cyclists were sporting “biker style”—leather jackets, jeans, boots—but a few wore costumes.

One guy even brought his dog along for the ride.

The bikers zoomed up and down Congress Avenue, slowing down to negotiate sharp U-turns at the Congress Avenue Bridge and in front of the Texas State Capitol. We were glad that we had remembered to bring our earplugs. After making one or two laps, drivers parked their bikes in the center of the street. A sea of motorcycles stretched from Second to Eleventh Streets.

Once all were parked, everyone strolled along Congress Avenue to admire the bikes. This is always my favorite part of the ROT Rally Parade. If I had a motorcycle, I would definitely decorate it with LED accent lights.

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