Iron Horse Rally a no-show in Libertyville this year

The sounds of spring in Libertyville had come to include the roar of motorcycles, but that was missing this year as a rally that attracted thousands was silenced.

May 1 passed without the annual Iron Horse Roundup, a day of live music, hundreds of vendors catering to motorcycle enthusiasts and other activities.

There was no public announcement but organizer Mark Khayat, owner of Austin’s Saloon & Eatery in Libertyville, confirmed the event had run its course.

“The Iron Horse Rally isn’t happening,” he said. “I’ve got to think we’ve turned the corner on this.”

Khayat said the cost of security for the growing event was a determining factor, though he declined to discuss specific figures.

The event was held the first few years in Austin’s parking lot along Peterson Road (Route 137) west of Milwaukee Avenue. Police reported no problems but the crowd required traffic control for the state highway.

In 2008, Khayat decided to move it to larger quarters at the former Lake County Fairgrounds site in Grayslake. But village officials canceled the permit two days before the event, citing safety concerns. That decision was based on information that members of a motorcycle club, identified as an international criminal organization, planned to attend.

In 2009, the venue shifted to the Sundance Saloon in Waukegan with a reported attendance of 14,000. Last year, it returned home to Libertyville and was held at the Libertyville Sports Complex, with about 12,000 in attendance.

“We didn’t have a problem with him doing it. He did it last year and it went over well,” Libertyville Mayor Terry Weppler said.

Khayat said he paid for the time of local police officers. But paying the cost of extra police presence through the Northern Illinois Police Alarm System (NIPAS) was not in the budget.

Members of NIPAS, a consortium of suburban departments that can provide varying levels of responses, had been in attendance at previous Iron Horse rallies but had not charged for the service, Khayat said.

That changed this year when the Iron Horse was deemed to be a recurring event, he added.

“It would have driven our costs up. Something would have suffered for it,” Khayat said.