Coleslaw wrestling, friendly vibe make Samsula's Cabbage Patch Bar a Bike Week landmark

Coleslaw wrestling, Bike Week’s most odoriferous tradition, again will draw thousands of fans to the 5-acre field behind Sopotnick’s Cabbage Patch Bar, a well-worn, well-loved wood-frame watering hole that has been a fixture for nearly a century at the corner of State Road 415 and Pioneer Trail in Samsula.

“It’s still the single most-attended event of all Bike Week, next to the Daytona 200,” said Roger Luznar,  fourth generation family owner of the bar with his brother, Ron Luznar Jr.

Amid an entertainment lineup that includes dozens upon dozens of bands, motorcycle-related vendors and two national motorcycle shows, it’s still the prospect of watching women grapple in roughly half-a-ton of smelly sunbaked side dish that remains the Cabbage Patch’s Bike Week claim to fame.

When is Bike Week coleslaw wrestling at Cabbage Patch?

During Bike Week’s 10-day run from March 1-10, there will be two opportunities to watch the matches, at noon Wednesday, March 6, and Saturday, March 9.

If you go, be prepared to have plenty of company, with sweaty spectators expected to be elbow-to-elbow in the sprawling field behind the bar.

“We’re anticipating big crowds,” Luznar said. “Ever since COVID, our numbers have been up by 20%.”

The bar also received a boost in the wake of the catastrophic beachside damage left behind by back-to-back tropical storms Ian and Nicole in fall 2022, Luznar said. With some beachside hotels still facing repairs during last year’s Bike Week, more visitors opted to stay at the bar’s 5-acre primitive tent-camping grounds, just across Pioneer Trail, he said.

“We’ve found that we have more people coming over from the Main Street area,” he said.

Cabbage Patch loyalty bigger than Bike Week

Although Bike Week (and the annual fall Biketoberfest event) draw the big crowds, loyal Cabbage Patch regulars contribute to quiet neighborhood vibe throughout the year, said bartender Mary Kay Cheney, who has worked there for 17 years.

“The Cabbage Patch is like family,” she said, “all its employees, all of its customers. The people that work here, we’ve all been here for a very long time.”

History lesson: Daytona Beach's Bike Week: A history of beer, bikes, cole slaw and 'rowdyism'

The history of the place is reflected in its lived-in look.

Every inch of wall space is covered in old faded snapshots that span decades of bar patrons. On the ceiling, hundreds of messages have been scrawled, documenting wild nights or major life milestones:

“Bob and Jan were here 9/17/94”

“Evan & Babyette married Bike Week ‘89”

“Jeff & Connie ‘23”

“Torch ‘88”

For regulars, Cabbage Patch 'a comforting spot'

At the bar, longtime regulars Danny and Deb Lynaugh attest to the welcoming vibe.

“We’ve been coming here for 20 years or so,” said Danny, 56, a singer-guitarist who played his first gig at the Cabbage Patch in 2003 and has returned ever since as both a musician and a customer.

“What people like the most about it is that it’s always the same,” he said. “It’s a comforting spot where locals and out-of-towners are both welcome. It’s loved by everybody.”

On this afternoon, about a week before the Bike Week crowds arrive, the Cabbage Patch is a mellow scene, with about a dozen folks at the bar, a few roosters strolling outside the back door and music on the juke box.

That all changes during Bike Week.

“I always tell people that if you come any other time of the year, it’s like a little cantina in Mexico,” Danny Lynaugh said. “During the bike events, with all the activities and vendors, it turns into a big fairground. It’s really that kind of atmosphere.”

What's the Bike Week entertainment lineup at Cabbage Patch?

Visit cabbagepatchbar.com for the full lineup of events.

If you go

WHAT: Sopotnick's Cabbage Patch Bar

WHERE: 549 Tomoka Farms Road, Samsula

HOURS: 10 a.m.-2 a.m. daily

CALL: 386-427-8969

ONLINE: cabbagepatchbar.com

For Bike Week 2024, the Daytona Beach News-Journal will be doing quick profiles of landmark biker bars tied to the event. If you have a suggestion for a favorite, please email jim.abbott@news-jrnl.com

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: When is Bike Week coleslaw wrestling at Cabbage Patch Bar?