Store barbecues oysters for popular motorcycle run

Hundreds of motorcycles will rumble through Whidbey Island this weekend on their way to Anacortes for the Oyster Run, the largest motorcycle run in the Pacific Northwest.

The owners of Seabolt’s Smokehouse decided it is the perfect time to hold a barbecue and open house to welcome both riders and the community to the store near Deception Pass.

In honor of the motorcycle run, the store will barbecue oysters with plenty of butter and garlic. Of course, the store’s famous salmon will also be cooked over the coals. The barbecue will be on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

“We want people to know we’re open,” store manager Deborah Burke said.

Burke explained that the store was closed for two years, but then re-opened in the same spot a couple of months ago. Vinton and Charisse Waldron also own the popular Seabolt’s smokehouse and restaurant in Oak Harbor.

Anyone driving to the barbecue should take care with so many motorcycles on the road. Police officers will be out in force all weekend.

The Island County Sheriff’s Office, the Oak Harbor Police Department and the Coupeville Marshal’s Office will be joining their counterparts in Skagit, Snohomish, Whatcom counties and the Washington State Patrol in a multi-county traffic safety enforcement effort. They will concentrate on stopping speeders and impaired drivers.

The grant for the special emphasis patrol is from the Washington State Traffic Safety Commission.

Contact Whidbey News Times Assistant editor Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewsgroup.com or 360.675.6611 ext. 5056.

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