The Four Corners Motorcycle Rally is kicking into gear this weekend for its 23rd annual event in Ignacio.
Seventy vendors were setting up shop Wednesday and Thursday at the Sky Ute Fairgrounds, preparing for Thursday's Locals Day and thousands of visitors expected Friday through Sunday.
"We're almost sold out of VIP tickets," said Johnny Valdez, the rally's new owner. "The boxing ring is up. The zipline is running. We're ready to go."
The camping sites with water and power sold out long ago, but dry camping spots are available, and anyone is welcome to pitch a tent for free anywhere on rally grounds all weekend.
Poker rides raising funds for veterans groups, the Powerhouse Science Center and breast cancer charities are set for each day of the rally.
"This is my favorite rally," said Christine Lake of Bika Chic as she set up her booth on Wednesday evening. Last year, she and her husband had engine problems on Wolf Creek Pass and coasted in to Ignacio. Rally staff and volunteers helped them get their engine fixed, and she had a successful weekend here.
"It's pretty much volunteers," she said of the rally workers. "There's really good kharma here." The native of Queens, N.Y. sells custom bike clothing and makeup that doesn't wear off during a long ride.
A new vendor this year is Sante Alternative Wellness, a marijuana dispensary. Marijuana sales are forbidden on tribal land, so the owners are providing information and coupons that can be redeemed at the Durango location, said Shannon Brown, the rally's vendor coordinator.
Other vendors sell bike lights, leather, knives, bras (yes, they're supposed to prevent road vibration) and patches. A vendor who sews patches on leather is returning this year, Brown said.
A full schedule of events is at www.fourcornersmotorcyclerally.com
