Motorcyclists head to Murrysville for Freedom Fest
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Less than three hours into Freedom Fest 2021 — the second annual fundraiser and campout hosted by the Alliance of Bikers Aimed Toward Education’s Westmoreland County Chapter — it was 92 degrees and shade was already at a premium.
Late Thursday afternoon, the shady treeline along the edges of Murrysville’s White Valley Park was rapidly filling in with motorcyclists pitching tents, parking trailers and preparing for a weekend of music, food and fun.
Prior to making it a public event and re-christening it Freedom Fest, the weekend camp-out served as ABATE Westmoreland’s annual private party, according to chapter President Zeke Barr of Latrobe.
“Our summer party has been held here forever, and before that we actually had the District 3 party here with eight counties’ worth of members,” Barr said. “But when me and the rest of the new board members came on, we decided why not make it our annual fundraiser and open it up?”
This year Freedom Fest has expanded to include Thursday. Barr said about 200 people attended last year as public events began popping up throughout the region, and he isn’t sure what that number means.
“I’m not sure if a lot of people came last year because there was nothing else to do, or if a lot of people didn’t come because of coronavirus,” he said. “We have no idea how many to expect this year.”
And while the chapter is based in Westmoreland County, Barr said there are attendees coming from Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio and western New York.
The weekend is full of special events. Local bands Results May Vary, Contagious and the Breakdown Band will perform nightly at 8 p.m., there will be an 11 a.m. ride on Friday, a bike show on Saturday with registration starting at 11 a.m., and at 2 p.m. Saturday there will be a “Biker Games” competition.
Barr said between eight and 10 vendors will set up shop and food trucks will be on-site.
“The grounds are perfect for what we do,” he said.
In addition to the Freedom Fest fundraiser, ABATE also held a “Patriot Thunder/Back the Blue” ride over the Fourth of July weekend that raised money to help endow the Officer Dale T. Provins Memorial Scholarship at California University of Pennsylvania.
The scholarship was created in memory of Provins, a Jefferson Hills police officer who died following an on-duty crash in June 2020.
The ride raised about $3,000, Barr said.
Freedom Fest will take place through Sunday morning at White Valley Park, off Ball Park Court in Murrysville. A Friday entry weekend pass is $25.
For more, see WestmorelandABATE.com