Budweiser cans Bike Week

Beer has long been part of Bike Week and this year Bike Week will be part of beer with the debut of a special edition of commemorative 16-ounce can by Budweiser sporting the official "Laconia Motorcycle Week" logo.

Anheuser-Busch, a primary sponsor of the rally for the past two years, began distributing the collectible cans to licensed retailers in the Lakes Region last week and will continue to stock the shelves through the rally. Altogether the brewer filled 96,000 of the cans, which will be stocked and sold in cases of 24, six-packs and singly according to the preference of the retailer.

The cans mirror those distributed at the motorcycle rallies in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Sturgis, S.D. In New England, Anheuser-Busch has also packaged its beer in special cans to honor the achievements of the Boston Red Sox and New England Patriots.

The Laconia Motorcycle Week Association, which promotes the annual rally, will share in the proceeds from the sale of the cans in return for the rights to its logo.

The Budweiser Clydesdales will be on hand during this year's rally. The 12 tons of horses and wagon will make the circuit of downtown on Sunday, June 11, as part of the vintage motorcycle exhibition races. In addition, Anheuser-Busch, the world's largest recycler of aluminum cans, has partnered with New Hampshire Distributors, Waste Management, Inc. and the Laconia Department of Public Works Department in major campaign to collect and recycle cans and bottles during the rally. The proceeds from the sale of recyclable materials will be donated to the city, which will also be spared a major share of the cost of cleaning up from the rally that last year topped $18,000.