Sturgis
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2018
Posts: 4,124
Likes: 2,116
From: W. MI.
Thanks, Bass Player. I intend to plan carefully.
Old bass player here too. Began playing again in January of 2018 as an old HS buddy (drummer) and I decided to put together a band for our 50th reunion. Played the next class’ reunion too! Still playing and bought a Stratocaster to get back to a little “blues” lead work.
Old bass player here too. Began playing again in January of 2018 as an old HS buddy (drummer) and I decided to put together a band for our 50th reunion. Played the next class’ reunion too! Still playing and bought a Stratocaster to get back to a little “blues” lead work.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 5,269
Likes: 3,363
From: Idaho Panhandle
If it were Moe and I, I'd head towards Huntsville using 20, 35, 72, then North to Fayetteville on 231, west on 64 to 45 and North to Henderson for the first night.
Next morning we'd hit 45 North, probably have breakfast in Jackson and keep heading North on 45E, 72, 8 to St James. That's if we don't stop at our friends in McLeansboro....
Next morning I'd head North on 63 to Macon, MO for breakfast, then West on 36 to Washington, KS, if they had a motel, otherwise Marysville.
I don't love 36, but I'd stay on it to Phillipsburg, North on 183 to Ansley, and 2 to Thedford, NE and the Arrowhead Lodge. Don't ask me how we know.
At this point, I can smell Sturgis, metaphorically speaking, West on 2 to Alliance looking for 385 right up through Hot Springs ( We love that town), Wind Cave NP, Custer, and on into Deadwood and Sturgis. If you are tired, you can pop onto 79 and run the freeway to Rapid City and then take I-90 into Sturgis.
So you see the problem, we'd be 5 days and enjoy every bit of the ride.........even Kansas.*
Of course you can do it in 3 days, I-24 to Mt Vernon, crash, I-70 to Kansas City, then North on 29 to crash in Omaha. Get up, head North on 29 to Sioux Falls and 90 to Sturgis. But I promised Moe we would never ever go through St Louis in rush hour traffic again, Omaha and Sioux Falls are okay.
So, you have to ask yourself, "Do I feel lucky?"....oops, wrong movie.
I'm only 72, so being just a youngster, I realize we have lots to learn and see. We spent a month riding to Maine, then South, then West last year. Passed through or by Sturgis twice. I already have a Chinese printed tee shirt, so we did not have to stop. I only hit Sturgis when Lynyrd Skynyrd was playing. That sort of trumped all other plans. Either way, you'll have a great ride, a great time. Even hail, torrential rains, boring views, hot sun can't stop you from smiling .
* We have a great Kansas straight road story, but probably everyone who rides it goes.
Next morning we'd hit 45 North, probably have breakfast in Jackson and keep heading North on 45E, 72, 8 to St James. That's if we don't stop at our friends in McLeansboro....
Next morning I'd head North on 63 to Macon, MO for breakfast, then West on 36 to Washington, KS, if they had a motel, otherwise Marysville.
I don't love 36, but I'd stay on it to Phillipsburg, North on 183 to Ansley, and 2 to Thedford, NE and the Arrowhead Lodge. Don't ask me how we know.
At this point, I can smell Sturgis, metaphorically speaking, West on 2 to Alliance looking for 385 right up through Hot Springs ( We love that town), Wind Cave NP, Custer, and on into Deadwood and Sturgis. If you are tired, you can pop onto 79 and run the freeway to Rapid City and then take I-90 into Sturgis.
So you see the problem, we'd be 5 days and enjoy every bit of the ride.........even Kansas.*
Of course you can do it in 3 days, I-24 to Mt Vernon, crash, I-70 to Kansas City, then North on 29 to crash in Omaha. Get up, head North on 29 to Sioux Falls and 90 to Sturgis. But I promised Moe we would never ever go through St Louis in rush hour traffic again, Omaha and Sioux Falls are okay.
So, you have to ask yourself, "Do I feel lucky?"....oops, wrong movie.
I'm only 72, so being just a youngster, I realize we have lots to learn and see. We spent a month riding to Maine, then South, then West last year. Passed through or by Sturgis twice. I already have a Chinese printed tee shirt, so we did not have to stop. I only hit Sturgis when Lynyrd Skynyrd was playing. That sort of trumped all other plans. Either way, you'll have a great ride, a great time. Even hail, torrential rains, boring views, hot sun can't stop you from smiling .
* We have a great Kansas straight road story, but probably everyone who rides it goes.
Last edited by son of the hounds; Jan 22, 2020 at 03:07 PM. Reason: Hate spell check
Tourer
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 284
Likes: 24
From: Kansas
Maybe instead of staying in Rapid City check out Keystone, we stay there occasionally when we just want the riding not the partying. Reasonable rates and very close to some great riding. Nice quiet night town, lots going on during the day.
Road Warrior
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 1,349
Likes: 142
From: Sioux Center, Iowa
Of course you can do it in 3 days, I-24 to Mt Vernon, crash, I-70 to Kansas City, then North on 29 to crash in Omaha. Get up, head North on 29 to Sioux Falls and 90 to Sturgis. But I promised Moe we would never ever go through St Louis in rush hour traffic again, Omaha and Sioux Falls are okay.
Last edited by Firebike32; Jan 22, 2020 at 09:00 PM.
Thread Starter
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Tourer
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 435
Likes: 117
From: NW Georgia
Thanks, Man! I’ll look at all this and give it serious thought. I’d like to know where I’ll stop each day to make a hotel reservation, but then kind’a want to “wing it” every day and stop when I’m ready, not because I put a pin in a city on a map. That “loosely-goose” approach to the trip kind’a keeps with the freedom of being able to do this trip “motorcycle back.” Then again, what if there are no hotels with vacancies when I do decide to stop?
Lots to ponder when I’ve never done this before...yet exciting at the same time!
Lots to ponder when I’ve never done this before...yet exciting at the same time!
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 5,269
Likes: 3,363
From: Idaho Panhandle
We wing it a lot. We have reservations in places we know will be busy. Last trip to Sturgis, we had a cabin outside Deadwood.
When winging it, we decide how far we want to ride around 2. It that point, I search for motels in the town we want to stop in and call ahead and make our reservation. Almost every time we get a room and a discount on the first call.
Rarely, have we needed to call a second place. Lots of times we tell them we are on motorcycles and there are lots of motorcycle friendly motels. When it is hot, we look for ones with a pool, when it is cold, a hot tub. We get about 50/50 as many smaller towns do not have these amenities. Just nice clean rooms.
At destinations, say Moab, or near Sturgis, we have our room reserved. When I camped, I always found a campsite at the destination, but still called ahead. For both motels and campsites, with my 2 o clock reservation in hand, I've arrived many times to see "No Vacancy " signs lit up, but our reservation was good.
For some reason, lots of car travelers wait until after 3 or later before they even start thinking about where to spend the night. I figure they are too comfortable inside their car, too removed from environment, and it is too easy to jump back in the car and try the next motel.
When winging it, we decide how far we want to ride around 2. It that point, I search for motels in the town we want to stop in and call ahead and make our reservation. Almost every time we get a room and a discount on the first call.
Rarely, have we needed to call a second place. Lots of times we tell them we are on motorcycles and there are lots of motorcycle friendly motels. When it is hot, we look for ones with a pool, when it is cold, a hot tub. We get about 50/50 as many smaller towns do not have these amenities. Just nice clean rooms.
At destinations, say Moab, or near Sturgis, we have our room reserved. When I camped, I always found a campsite at the destination, but still called ahead. For both motels and campsites, with my 2 o clock reservation in hand, I've arrived many times to see "No Vacancy " signs lit up, but our reservation was good.
For some reason, lots of car travelers wait until after 3 or later before they even start thinking about where to spend the night. I figure they are too comfortable inside their car, too removed from environment, and it is too easy to jump back in the car and try the next motel.
Last edited by son of the hounds; Jan 24, 2020 at 10:01 AM.
Cruiser
Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 230
Likes: 162
From: Northwest
I’ve ridden to Sturgis 5 times now. It’s 3,400 miles round trip for me... but I ride from the west. Our goal is to do everything possible to stay off the freeways. We run the routes that best keep us in the wide open spaces with little towns, wildlife and scenery.
We always stay at the Chip because of the venues. We usually spend 4-5 days there to do all the local rides. Of that time we will only spend one afternoon in Sturgis itself. We don’t want to drink and drive and you can only see so many vender merchandise...and the day rides are great. I can’t think of anyplace else where you can see hundreds of thousands of bikes. Bikes everywhere you look for hundreds of miles in any direction.
We go for the ride. Part of the ride is just to experience what it’s like to be on the road surrounded by so many bikes. This year we will expand the trip to 5 weeks and 12 states! Can’t wait! We’re camping half that time.
We always stay at the Chip because of the venues. We usually spend 4-5 days there to do all the local rides. Of that time we will only spend one afternoon in Sturgis itself. We don’t want to drink and drive and you can only see so many vender merchandise...and the day rides are great. I can’t think of anyplace else where you can see hundreds of thousands of bikes. Bikes everywhere you look for hundreds of miles in any direction.
We go for the ride. Part of the ride is just to experience what it’s like to be on the road surrounded by so many bikes. This year we will expand the trip to 5 weeks and 12 states! Can’t wait! We’re camping half that time.
Last edited by EGS; Jan 24, 2020 at 08:39 PM.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 3,596
Likes: 9,899
From: Florida's gorgeous East coast
If your preparations haven't already told you this...take every bit of "Riding Gear" you have. Before I ever went to Sturgis, I had the opportunity to look at lots of pictures of friends who had made the trip. One of the things I noticed was...from the SAME trip...there were pictures of happy riders in tank tops, shorts and T-shirts. There were also pictures of happy riders in chaps, gloves, scarfs, lined leather jackets...AND...there were pictures of (sometimes) not-so-happy riders in full Rain gear suits, looking a lot like a pack of drowned rats.
Point is...Summer in Sturgis can be a lot like Winter in Georgia. HOT, COLD, and lots of Thunderstorms....OR NOT.
Point is...Summer in Sturgis can be a lot like Winter in Georgia. HOT, COLD, and lots of Thunderstorms....OR NOT.
Road Warrior
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,313
Likes: 376
From: Mississippi
I would go ahead and make a reservation if you plan to stay the last day within 350 miles of Sturgis. Like Sioux Falls, SD or Valentine, NE. Pretty popular spots. The first time I went, we like to have froze riding from Sioux Falls to Sturgis.