Ok, so I've heard about Sturgis most of my life. My cousin and my uncle used to go every year. They used to just smile and say how great it was there, but I guess I don't know what you actually do there.

I've seen photos of the main street with thousands and thousands of harleys parked. People walking up and down the street in their leathers and looking cool and dropping in on the bars and restaruants. But what else? There's got to be more to it than that.

I'd like to go this year, but it'd be nice to know what to expect. Can you fill me in? Share some experiences, memories?

 

Sturgis is different for everyone. You make it what you want to make it. If you want to spend all week partying hard and hanging out at the bars and campgrounds-Go for it! If you want to spend the week talking to venders and shopping your hiney off, you can. You could park on Main St and just watch everyone pass by and you'd see something different every day of the week.

Dave and I ride all week. Last year we were there we put well over a 1000 miles on the Deuce, and that was limited because I have a low pain tolerance on the 4 inch passenger seat. We've been to Rushmore, Devil's Tower, CrazyHorse, Rapid City, Deadwood, Custer State Park, the Badlands. All kinds of great stuff to see out there!

 

Was visiting my dad last week, he has lung cancer and is on Chemo and radiation treatments right now but they end in Feb. He has an Ultra Classic and wants to go to Sturgis this year. We have never been before and I would like to take him if he is feeling it. I would like to see what people have to say about this as well. I allready told him I would go with him this year, or drive him there is that is what it takes.

 

I went in 06', I rode from Florida and back which ended up being 5100 miles round trip. While there we spent a lot of time on a main street just people watching, we got to meet Russell Mitchell from Exile choppers. We always started the day at the church at the end of main street for the all you can eat breakfast. We rode to Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, and Custer State Park. On that trip we ended up in Deadwood at a casino that had all you can eat crab legs (we put a hurting on those legs), played some slots (won $300). With all the riding we did there was still more we could have done. We plan on riding more this year, we were going to go to the Bad Lands but met people coming out that said it was 119 there, we passed.

We ended up staying at a motel 6 in Rapid City after the camp ground we were going to stay at burned down. I recommend staying as close to Sturgis as you can. The ride to Sturgis from Rapid City is about 40 miles from where we were so it cut into time down town.

The campgrounds Buffalo Chips and Glencoe all have concerts during Sturgis from big name bands like, This is a short list of some of the bands that have been to the Chip, they also have VIP tickets. You can even rent tents and camping gear or a travel trailer, it will be set up for you when you get there.

George Thorogood & the Destroyers Tesla Sheryl Crow Our Lady Peace Seether The Allman Brothers Band Lynyrd Skynyrd Jonny Lang Kenny Wayne Shepard Def Leppard Styx Geneva Paul Rodriguez REO Speedwagon Tim McGraw Ted Nugent Eric Burdon Joe Bonamassa Ratt w/Stephen Percy Warrant Blue Oyster Cult Billy Idol Cheap Trick 38 Special Blues Traveler Kingsmen ZZ Top Dustin Evans Lita Ford John Kay & Steppenwolf Classic Rock All Stars Confederate Railroad Buckcherry Jerry Jeff Walker Iron Butterfly
Toby Keith Twisted Sister Alice Cooper Montgomery Gentry The Beach Boys
Poison Motley Crue Smash Mouth Grand Funk Railroad Roy Rogers & the Delta Rhythm Kings Doobie Brothers Paul Rodgers Kentucky Headhunters Travis Tritt

This isn't all of them, so far this year they have Aerosmith and George Throgood.

There are a bunch of sites on the web also as to what to do and where to do when you get there. Hope you go, it you will have a good time.

 

http://www.sturgis.com/

Lots from concerts to drinking to eating to skin to drag races to wild night parties to big johns that need to be bigger, cool bikes, free rides, lots of bling and thing, info, "interesting" people, interesting rides, . Lineups to get on the highway and lineups to get off. Great riding around the area. Huge very cool desert. Stone head monuments. History...and making some for yourself. Buffalo. Cowboys. Weird guys with no teeth...weird women with no teeth. Storms and or heat, or both. Lots of shows. Smoke shows. Main street. Getting there and back. Probably more but my head hurts.

 

Hey, go for it! Have the best time of your life with him! Sounds like he'll love it and so will you!

 

cool! What about safety? I've read about problems with M/C's fighting. Is that media hype?

Also what about camping? I was hoping to just sort of show up. I saw a picture of a huge camping area, could have been the buffalo chip campground, what would it be like to stay there? Can you leave your camping stuff during the day when you're out for a ride?

 

When in Rome do as the Romans do. Take in the sites, and lady watching, oh and maybe some sudsy refreshments.

 

The Black Hills has some of the most beautiful riding in the country. Hundreds of miles of great roads. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Custer Park, The Badlands. Hundreds of thousands of great people. Little towns full of history. Every kind of bike and person you could ever imagine. I would guess every maker or vendor of every motorcycle and accessory made is there somewhere. Sturgis isn't just the town of Sturgis, it covers hundreds of square miles. I go every year and a few years ago we never even bothered to go into the town of Sturgis at all.

And, if you are interested, Harley introduces all the new models and accessories to the public at the Civic Center in Rapid City. The first day is for HOG members only, the rest of the week is open to the public. Everything is packed up from the Dealers show in July and shipped directly to Rapid City. The new bikes are available for test rides too. Last year I rode the Harley Trike, The SE Road Glide, and the Buell 1125R.

Many years ago we needed a new place to stay out there. We called around and found a couple who had just purchased a little motel in Hill City, SD. We booked it, it was an amazing little six unit place right on the main street and the owners were great people. Several other couples also booked with the new owners and over the years we have all gone back. For us it is like family. We all get together there every year, sit outside and watch the bikes and people, eat together, and share the years stories. Sometimes we ride together, sometimes we do our own thing during the day. The owners live in Florida during the winter and Mike is an ocean fishing guide. One night during rally week he does a huge fish fry. We all go out and get food to share and enjoy ocean fish. I love it and I don't even like fish...I do like the shark though. We don't make reservations, Connie calls us in the spring and asks us what days we all want. She doesn't begin to book the Sturgis weeks until we all pick our days first.

Our first year in Hill City I did something very stupid. I was in Rapid City in the evening and I could see some lightening in the hills. I thought we could make it back to Hill City before it rained so with our daytime clothes and no rain gear we headed back. A rainstorm in the hills is nothing compared to what you have ever seen and about 1/2 way back it suddenly hit us. It was black, the rain was so heavy you couldn't see ten feet in front of you, and the temperature dropped about 40 degrees. Luckily it was raining so hard that a truck had stopped along the road and I pulled in front of him for some protection from any other blinded riders/drivers on the road. We put on our Rain gear over our soaked clothes to get warm and waited it out. When we finally got back to the Motel (about 10PM ) Mike and Connie were outside waiting and Mike was going to go out in his truck looking for us. Do you think the Holiday Inn would do that?

Most of us keep in touch during the year. I was just packing up Christmas Cards from our "Hill City Family." As long as Mike and Connie own the Harney Peak Motel We will keep going to Sturgis. If, or when, they retire and sell, My wife and I, and the other five couples that stay that week, will probably quit going west in August and spend a couple weeks somewhere else every year... but still get together. So for me it is Bikes, People, Food, and mainly Family.

 

If your pops isn't up for the bike ride, take him out there another way. Rent a convertable and drive the rides. To be able to look up while you're going through the Spearfish Canyon is amazing. You can't get the true experience in vehicle with a roof. Same with the Wildlife Loop in Custer Park, the Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road. Take him to the Aladdin Store on the way to Devil's Tower - it's like stepping back 100 years in time.

Sturgis is OK for a day, I like to look at the bikes after that I'm bored with it.

It is truly a beautiful part of the country and a trip you and your dad will never forget. I'm watching an outdoors show as I'm writing this and they are in the Black Hills driving buffalo in the park. It makes me wish I was there.