Could H2oi be making a return to Ocean City?

OCEAN CITY. MD. – Is it Havoc or is it really just harmless? some businesses are preparing for H2oi  to make its way back to Ocean City, and some locals are not too thrilled.

“I don’t know if any restaurant, hotel or motel in his town is actually happy with them coming in,” Phil Houck, owner of Bull on the Beach, said.

For over a decade, car enthusiasts have been cruising to Ocean City to show off their rides. But in recent years, Ashley Miller, Deputy Communications Manager for Ocean City Police, said officers have had to crack down on the event, for public safety.

“We were seeing large scale people, like thousands of motorists, coming into town, trying to take over our highways and sidewalks and business parking lots,” Miller said.

The problem is, Ocean City officials don’t actually know if, and when, H20i will be making an appearance this year. Miller said law enforcement will have to stay vigilant.

“Now, our intel is that the event is not going to be happening here, in Ocean City, but we’re holding on to the fact it is pop up rally and they could pop up anywhere, anytime,” Miller said.

“The speed limit in the Town of Ocean City is down to 30 miles an hour maximum, so if you normally used to drive 40 miles an hour on Coastal Highway, be mindful,” Miller added.

And even if you’re able to avoid a speeding ticket, Miller said those car tricks drivers may want to show off are not worth the risk.

“Certain offenses are now arrestable; your drag racing, spinning the wheel, that type of behavior, can actually be arrestable, and your car ends up getting impounded and you have increased fines as well,” Miller said.

If you do still plan to make the drive to Ocean City to show off your wheels, Phil Houck has a message of mindfulness.

“At your age, don’t be such a rally group,” Houck said. “Be friendly, be nice like the other cars that come here, and then we’d be happy to have you. But the way you are now, we don’t need you, we don’t want you.”