The Loudon Police Department will be all hands on deck this week, with increased safety patrols to accommodate for Laconia Motorcycle Week.
Demo rides, where fans can try out different motorcycle on a course stemming from the New Hampshire Motor Speedway and through Loudon, will take place throughout the week.
Chief Dana Flanders said in addition to standard patrols, Loudon police will have special units conducting extra patrols for the demo rides.
“We’re all systems go here, pretty much,” Flanders said.
No road closures are expected, he added, but police expect heavy traffic on Route 106 as Bike Week runs from Saturday, June 13 to Sunday, June 21.
Flanders said his department is the most staffed it’s been in years, with a new full-time officer, an additional part-time officer and another who recently returned from the police academy. In addition to the chief and sergeant, the department’s website lists four full-time and four part-time patrolmen.
“It’s gonna take all of us, plus the part-timers, to get this done, but we’ll figure it out,” Flanders said.
Loudon officials skirmished with the Motor Speedway last fall over a local mandate to insulate the rides with marshals, who would patrol the course and accompany motorcyclists to ensure safety and communication. That mandate went disregarded.
Select Board Chair Dwayne Gilman said the board came to an agreement with the Motor Speedway that the town will not require marshals this year but monitor how things go. The Motor Speedway said it would advise riders about local police presence and encourage them to obey local speed limits.
“We have full faith in our Police Department taking care of the issues outlined by residents and assisting in allow the demo rides to happen in a safe and least intrusive manner,” Gilman said in an email.
Last June, local police issued 53 traffic citations related to the demo rides, according to the police department. About halfway through Bike Week last year, the police department had made 50 motorcycle stops, received 77 calls from the public and dealt with two motorcycle accidents.
The full schedule of Bike Week events at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway is available online at https://www.nhms.com/events/motorcycle-week-at-nhms/schedule/.
