Keep Those Earplugs Handy

Organizers of the Republic of Texas Biker Rally are dead-set on making your ears bleed and the City of Austin is all about it, baby. According to the Austin Business Journal, rally organizer Jerry Bragg has moved to Austin from Addison to focus his energies on making the RTBR one of the three biggest rallies in the country, right behind Daytona Beach and Sturgis. And Bragg has his sights set on a more immediate goal for this year: breaking the Guinness record for the largest parade of motorcycles.

The city, which received an economic impact in the neighborhood of $37 million last year, wants to help that dream come true and is expanding the rally's downtown street party space from 36 square blocks to 52. That's a lot of leather. The event allegedly brings in about 200,000 visitors, more than a quarter of the city's population. So be prepared. It's gonna get bigger. And louder. So grab a coozie and get ready to drink a cold one with these nice folks - in the past we've enjoyed beers with blue collar bikers, doctors, business owners and unemployed rednecks - but we think we'll sit this one out. Our ears are still ringing from SXSW, and we plan to head deep into the Hill Country and sit in a river while noise pollution reigns supreme. This year's rally takes place June 1-4.

*Image (c) of Basykes on Flick*