Thunder by the Bay rolls into Sarasota

Thunder by the Bay Motorcycle Festival is one of the biggest annual events in Sarasota. The celebration of bikes and music draws something like about 90,000 people to downtown Sarasota every year.

A lot of them are motorcycle enthusiasts, and the festival includes bike shows and a charity run designed with them in mind. But it's very much a family-friendly festival with lots of free live music.

The 2016 festival runs today through Sunday. The biggest events are Saturday and Sunday on Main Street in downtown Sarasota, and they're free and open to the public.

There's been live music at Thunder by the Bay since its early years, but as the festival has grown, the music lineup has gotten stronger. In the past few years, the lineup has included nationally known acts, including the Marshall Tucker Band and Great White.

This year's music, though, comes from regional acts. At the two-day Downtown Festival, the most popular part of Thunder by the Bay, the Saturday bands include Category Three (1-2:30 p.m.), Edge of Red (3-4:30 p.m.), ZZ Top tribute band Trezz Hombres (5-6:30 p.m.), Bon Jovi tribute band Keep the Faith (7-8:30 p.m.) and AC/DC tribute band Highway To Hell (9-10:30 p.m.). On Sunday, it's Lynyrd Skynyrd tribute band Nuthin Fancy (noon-1:30 p.m.), Lazy Bonez (2-3:30 p.m.) and the Bobby Friss Band (4-5:30 p.m.).

Today's events include a sporting clay tournament and a kickoff party. Friday brings a street party with music by the Billy Rice Band and the Sean Chambers Band, plus a bike show. Saturday starts with a charity ride, and another bike show winds up the festival Sunday evening.

Details: Jan. 7-10, Main Street, Sarasota and other locations around Sarasota. Admission: Most events free; some other events charge various admission prices. Information: 941- 487-7904, thunderbythebay.org.

-- Marty Clear

This story was originally published January 6, 2016 at 5:06 PM with the headline "Thunder by the Bay rolls into Sarasota ."