The river run was started in 1983 with 426 participants. It was "conceived by Harley-Davidson dealer Dale Marschke, who wanted to bring his customers on a fun weekend ride." The name comes from the fact that riders are riding out to the Colorado River, on which Laughlin sits. Other riders go across the river to Laughlin's sister city, Bullhead City, Arizona, Route 66 rides to Oatman, Arizona and Kingman, Arizona and also down to Lake Havasu City, Arizona.
