This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Potentially thousands of bikers are riding into Memphis for a large gathering that could give the city’s tourism industry a boost.

It’s an annual event put on by the “Pound 4 Pound Motorcycle Club”. The group couldn’t hold it in 2020 but now, with COVID-19 restrictions loosening, it’s back on this year.

James Franklin is one of the club’s founders.

“Things are going great now,” he said, “We couldn’t ask for it to be better.”

The festivities are underway. There is a cookout Wednesday night, a meet and greet Thursday and a block party on Saturday.

“We gonna have a stereo contest, who got the loudest stereo?” Franklin said, “We’ll have different stuff going on.”

Franklin expects 4,000 to 5,000 bikers, and many of them are from out of town.

“I done got calls from people as far as Maine and all the way to Nevada, California, Washington state,” Franklin said.

It’s music to the ears of workers like Kevin Kern over at Memphis Tourism, who welcome the boost in sales tax revenue at a time when cities across the country continue to bounce back from the pandemic.

“Business travel is not back yet,” Kern said, “But right now, leisure travel is really what’s driving our industry, especially here in Memphis. Youth sports, common interest clubs like this that bring people together, are filling up hotels.”