Gettysburg Bike Week celebrates motorcycle community, culture and safety

Gettysburg Bike Week continues through Sunday, with performances, vendors and other attractions for the motorcycle community.

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  Haley O'Brien joined WITF in 2026. A native of Scranton, she enjoys exploring Pennsylvania's diverse communities. Haley previously worked at NPR/PBS stations in Northeast Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley, and has won awards for video storytelling and beat reporting.

The winding roads of York and Adams counties are seeing an influx of motorcycles this weekend as riders cruise to Gettysburg Bike Week.

“It’s just a gathering of motorcyclists and motorcycle enthusiasts and also music,” event coordinator Kelly Shue said. “It brings it all together.”

The 25^th annual event at Barn Resort combines many of riders’ favorite pastimes in one place: live music, poker, tattoos and custom motorcycles.

The four-day event, which ends Sunday, features concerts, poker runs, a vendor village and plenty of cool bikes.

Live entertainment includes Memphis May Fire, The Funeral Portrait, Molly Hatchet and many other artists.

Inside the barn, a tattoo expo allows attendees to get some ink on the spot.

“Bike week and tattoos seem like a really good combination,” said Maeve Gorman, a tattoo artist from Malvern. “I loved it last year so I had to get myself in again this year.”

A bike show is scheduled for Saturday morning, while antique bikes are on display all weekend.

Bike games are held at 1 p.m. Saturday and the 5^th Annual Jeremy Plank Memorial Ride/2026 Gettysburg Bike Week Parade is that evening at 5 p.m.

Other attractions include a drone show in honor of America’s 250^th anniversary, fireworks and a “Globe of Death” motorcycle stunt performance.

Awareness and Advocacy

Theresa Downey from Hanover started riding a motorcycle at 62 years old.

“It’s something I always wanted to do. And I realized as I was getting older I needed to get it done,” she said. “So I did.”

Since joining the motorcycle community almost two years ago, Downey said she’s come to appreciate the importance of rider education and public awareness.

The Alliance of Bikers Aimed Toward Education, known as ABATE of PA, is using the event to encourage riders to enroll in the  Pennsylvania Motorcycle Safety Program, which is free for licensed motorcyclists.

Sonnie Mauk is public relations officer for ABATE of PA.

“There’s no reason why anybody in Pennsylvania with a motorcycle license should not take that class,” said Sonnie Mauk, the public relations officer for ABATE of PA.

Karlene Fink credits the program with helping her feel safer on the road.

“I first took the motorcycle course, I passed that, but I decided I wasn’t really comfortable on two wheels,” she said. “Then I actually took the three-wheel course like two weeks after that.”

“It’s the other people out there that you have to worry about,” she continued. “There’s three wheels and two wheels out there and everyone needs to be more aware of that so that we don’t have any more accidents that we’ve just been experiencing a lot of lately.”