A fidgety hello to Hells Angels

Right before the 4-H kids come to town to show their sheep at the fair next month, Missoula, Mont., will play host to 400 Hells Angels and about 1,500 of their friends and family.

Residents and business owners in the Western Montana college town hope members of the notorious motorcycle club bring their wallets along July 23 during their annual USA Run and help lift Missoula out of an economic slump.

But law-enforcement officials fear seven days of violence and tension and plan to beef up the city police force. Missoula Police Chief Pete Lawrenson said 80 officers would be coming from Utah, Idaho, Washington, California, Arizona, South Dakota and Canada.

Lawrenson said he had received information from federal agents estimating that more than 50 percent of Hells Angels have felony convictions.

The motorcycle club, founded 52 years ago in Fontana, Calif., boasts three dozen U.S. chapters and thousands of members worldwide. The club was founded by former elite U.S. paratroopers who found it hard to adjust after World War II. Members gained notoriety for their roles in violence at celebrations in Hollister, Calif., and Altamont Speedway.

Missoula County Sheriff's Lt. Greg Heintz said he's worried about what a visit from the Angels could cost the financially strapped county government.

"This will be like turning 500 inmates from the federal prison loose and saying, `Here, have a good time in Missoula,' " Heintz said.

George Christie, president of the Ventura, Calif., Hells Angels and one of the Missoula run's organizers, said locals have nothing to fear from vacationing bikers, who would rather fish than fight.

"If the police chief is courageous enough to take control of his town, if he remains in control, he's not going to let anything happen that's going to escalate the situation," Christie said.

When the Hells Angels showed up in Steamboat Springs, Colo., for their 1996 run, Police Chief J.D. Hays said what followed was a four-day spell of violence marked by a half-dozen fights, a stabbing and a shooting.

With only 24 officers on duty, the town was ill-prepared at the beginning of the rally.

By the time the Hells Angels left, Steamboat Springs (population, 9,000) had spent about $15,000 on overtime and meals, lodging and gasoline for the 160 police officers called in from 27 agencies.

"Would I want them to come back? No," Hays said. "And if they did come back, we would have 200 to 300 police officers out there the first day."

Hays said locals started most of the brawls by trying to look at or talk to the Angels.

"There were no fights," Hays said. "There were several beatings."

Lawrenson said he's warning the 78,000 Missoula residents to keep to themselves while the bikers are in town.

"We've got cowboys and athletes who could get a little bit of liquor in them and challenge them," Lawrenson said. "But I think that they'll find out that fighting a Hells Angel isn't like a normal fight."

Steve Garr owns the Top Hat, a downtown Missoula bar where he said Hells Angels are more than welcome. He just hopes the testosterone-charged college men keep their distance.

"You don't walk up to a rattlesnake and grab its tail," Garr said. "And if they approach it like that, everybody's going to have a good time, and Missoula's going to make some money."

Montana ranks 47th in the nation for per-capita income. It lags 25 percent behind the national growth rate, Bureau of Economic Analysis figures show. Missoula's economy is largely dependent on tourists and college students.

Some in the community, including Lawrenson, are concerned that a huge police presence could backfire, either by provoking the bikers to violence or dissuading them from spending money in Missoula.

"I'm not terribly concerned about them coming," said Sandra Talbot, owner of The Uptown Diner, a 1950s-style burger joint. "I don't know - are they really that bad?"

Well, no, said Ty Lockhart, who owns four clothing stores in Steamboat Springs. He said the bikers who strolled through his stores were polite, nice, ordinary people with plenty of cash.

"You just sort of noticed them a little bit more, obviously, because they dress a little bit differently," Lockhart said.

Hays agreed that most merchants in his town had no problems with the Angels.

"They came in and spent a lot of money. They were big tippers, and so the merchants, they were pleased," Hays said. "They want to overlook what these people are really about because they bring in money."

Many in Missoula say the Hells Angels are just too old to cause problems.

"I think it'll be an absolute blast," said Paul Koller, who runs a Missoula fly-fishing shop. "But they ain't the same as they used to be. They're a bunch of lawyers and accountants now."

And they'll cost the city plenty of money to entertain. Lawrenson expects to spend up to $75,000 of his $500,000 operating budget while the Hells Angels are in town.

In contrast, his department didn't spend an extra dime when a 1998 International BMW motorcycle rally brought 6,000 bikers to town. He said he's spending the money to bring in more police officers based mainly on the Hells Angels' reputation.

Christie said Lawrenson should do what he thinks is right, and if hiring more police officers is what it takes to make him feel safe, then so be it.

"We work hard for our reputation," Christie said. "Some of it is deserved - some not."