Labor Day Weekend signals a pilgrimage into the West Virginia mountains. A small town named Bergoo is the destination. The Elk River, renowned for trout fishing, flows past Bergoo with hillsides rising sharply up from the riverbed. In case you aren’t aware, trout don’t live in ugly places. However, we don’t go there for the fishing, at least not over Labor Day Weekend, and 2025 will be no different. The Bergoo Bash is calling us back.
What The Hell Is the Bergoo Bash?
The Bergoo Bash is an off-road poker run sponsored by the Webster Springs Volunteer Fire Department. While there are plenty of four-wheelers and motorcycles involved, the event mostly consists of side-by-sides (SxS). Like how the cardinal is the state bird of West Virginia, SxSs are the state ride. In 2024, Bergoo’s population was listed at 66. Over Labor Day weekend, the population expands into the thousands, thanks to all the campers arriving with machines towed behind, ready to hit the 40-plus miles of trail designated for the Saturday Bash ride.
There is a saying among the hardy West Virginians, “If you could flatten West Virginia by rolling out the mountains like dough, it would be as large as Texas." Any time spent in West Virginia's jagged terrain is sure to impress. Many might not realize what an imposing barrier the Appalachian Mountains presented for the first 100 years of European settlement of North America.
The word “rugged” just does not do justice to the Webster County terrain located between the towns of Elkins and Summersville, where Bergoo lies. Snowshoe Ski Resort is approximately 45 miles east of Bergoo. This area of the state fully brings home the challenges of traversing the mountains. Even a car ride is not for the faint of heart.
Get Your Mud, Food, Drink, Poker, and Music On
The Bergoo Ballfield serves as the Bash hub of operations. Rider registration takes place there, and it’s a congregation point with food and drink vendors, raffles, and a mud pit contest once the ride ends. The Bash closes with live entertainment. The 2024 Bash was fortunate to have another state institution—the Davisson Brothers Band—providing the live concert. It was quite the show, providing perfect closure for a long day of outdoor fun. Fingers crossed, the Davisson Brothers Band are back for the 2025 Bash.
In 2024, 1,200 registered riders took advantage of the opportunity to claw their way around terrain that is usually closed to public riding. The various leaseholders and timber companies open their gates to help the Webster Springs Volunteer Fire Department raise funds with the poker run.
All major brands of SxS’s are represented — Yamaha, Polaris, Can-Am, Honda, Kawasaki — stretching from stock factory models to customized versions with suspension lifts, bulging tires, and tuned engines. The Bash path consists of logging roads carved into the side of mountains, transitioning into single-lane trails that leave you wondering who the first person was crazy enough to blaze the way through.
Flat mountain meadows serve as “playground” areas for riders wanting to spray some mud freestyle. Deep rutted sections beckon for machines to become sucked in. No one stays stuck for long, as someone is always willing to pass a tow strap to the bogged-down machine. The rule is that if you are the one to get stuck, you have to do the “dirty” work of wading into the muck to attach the strap for extraction.
The Webster Springs VFD set up multiple check-in stations for participants to “draw” their poker hand. The “playground” and poker stations allow riders a break from trail busting for “refreshments” and socialization. Typical of the mountains one minute you are sucking dust and next getting pelted by mud and water.
Stream crossings are handy “carwashes” with riders sending spray high into the air, cooling off and cleaning clogged radiators of both machines and riders. Camaraderie is high with Bash riders always willing to stop and help out a struggling machine or share some food and drink. Pepperoni rolls—a West Virginia food staple—are a favorite. If you know, you know!
Bashing With Friends Is Best
If you are familiar with the saying “the only thing better than having a pool is having a friend with a pool,” then having a friend with a spare camper and Polaris RZR is even more valuable. My wife and I are blessed to have known the Caytons — Bob and Cathy (Cat) — for over 20 years. Cat is the consummate hostess, and Bob is my go-to for fishing and ATVs. Bob and Cat have two campers set up at Homestead Acres and graciously allow us to stay in one during the Bash.
That is not the end of getting spoiled. They also allow us to use their Polaris RZR800. Don’t feel too bad for the Caytons, as they still have their Polaris RZR XP1000 or four-door XPedition XP they can ride in. Bob has self-customized all his machines to various extents with suspension and engine enhancements.
Did I mention Bob also wheels out an RZR XP900 that is set up just for the Bergoo Bash’s mud pit contest? Aggressive tires and stiff lifted suspension make sure all the power from the tuned motor fed off high-octane racing gas is taken advantage of. There may even be a special compartment for a bottle of nitrous if Bob chooses to hook up and apply. This man takes his off-road “bashing” very seriously.
The Isaacs — Brandon and Andrea — are another family we look forward to catching up with during the Bash. We have watched Emily and her younger twin brothers, Dylan and Aiden, grow up over the years. Sixteen-year-old Emily has grown up riding the trails and now pilots her own four-seat Polaris RZR. Emily is often Bob’s major competition during the mud pit competition. Her dad, Brandon, is an accomplished RZR “whisperer” in his own right. Her motto when on the trail is, “When in doubt, floor it.”
Bergoo Bash Mud Pit Finale
After hours of exploring mountain ridges around Bergoo, riders arrive back at the ballfield. The Bash closes with a mud pit competition. In 2024, this was made more difficult by severe afternoon weather, dropping several inches of rain in just a few hours.
The Webster Springs VFD had to respond by dispatching personnel to assist in clearing fallen trees that were blocking riders from getting off the trail. Welcome to the mountains! Bob’s machine was the only one to make a clean run—pun intended- down the excavated mud pit. Since Bob was the only rider to make it through the pit, his time of under six seconds had no challengers.
At the 2024 Bash, the Davisson Brothers Band took the stage around 8 pm to the delight of the tired yet appreciative Bash riders. The Davisson Brothers are a perfect pick to perform at the Bash. They typify West Virginian individuality, doing it their way since Chris and Donnie formed the band in 2006 in their hometown of Clarksburg, WV.
Their latest album, Home Is Where the Heart Is, was released in early 2023. The band has been celebrated as a Highway Find on Sirius XM, charted on country radio with “Foot Stompin’ and scored a hit song in Australia with “Po Boyz.” The Davisson Brothers Band find themselves just as at home at the Bash in front of hundreds or in front of tens of thousands of fans at different events they play.
The all-day Saturday Bash party generally breaks up around midnight, with weary riders making their way to campsites scattered along the Elk River. All sleep well, knowing that in the morning, machines exposed to the rigors of the Bash ride will need to be demudded and serviced. While numerous organized rides take place during the year, the Bergoo Bash is one of the most looked forward to and many plan their calendars around. The 2025 Bergoo Bash will be no different.
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