Five State Run returns to Guymon, drawing riders from five states

The Five State Run gave Guymon one of its busiest weekends of the spring, with more than 1,000 bikes and trikes rolling into town, hotel rooms filling up and riders spending money at restaurants, fuel stops and shops across Texas County. Hosted by Iron Thunder Motorcycle Club since 2003, the ride covered about 300 miles through Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas before ending where it began, at the Texas County Activity Center.

That starting point, at 402 N Sunset Ln, kept the event centered squarely in Guymon rather than just passing through. Friday night registration took place at Main Street Guymon, 116 NE 5th, and the downtown Outback gathering added another layer of foot traffic for nearby businesses before the ride itself. Main Street Guymon partnered with Iron Thunder on the Friday night event, giving local storefronts and eateries a direct link to the crowd of riders, volunteers and spectators.

The timing also mattered. Guymon’s calendar was already crowded with early May activity, and the Five State Run landed in the same stretch as Pioneer Days, which has marked the first full weekend in May since 1933. The city says Henry C. Hitch Pioneer Arena hosts one of the largest outdoor PRCA rodeos in the nation, making the weekend a rare moment when two of the area’s best-known traditions overlap and push more people through town.

For a city of 12,397 and a county of 20,577, according to the Census Bureau’s July 1, 2024 estimates, that kind of turnout has a visible economic effect. Organizers say the run has grown to fill every hotel room in Guymon, a sign of how much demand the event creates for lodging, meals and convenience stops in a community with a limited number of rooms to absorb a surge of visitors.

Iron Thunder says the Five State Run is its only fundraiser, and that all profits go back to the community. The club says the money has helped with medical expenses, medical devices, house fires and funeral costs over the years. With the Guymon Convention and Tourism Board recommending up to $25,000 in support for the event, the run has become more than a motorcycle ride. It has become a spring economic lift and a long-running part of Guymon’s identity in the Oklahoma Panhandle.