Sturgis in the Rear View Mirror

© Ken Bingenheimer / RumBum.com

The Sturgis Bike Rally is over and it’s time to sort through the memories. This was my second trip to the rally and it was a vastly different experience than my first time. How do they compare?

Probably the number one impression you come away with from your first Sturgis rally is the astonishment at the sheer number of motorcycles. If you’ve never been there you cannot comprehend the experience. From the thousands of bikes parked on Main Street, to the never-ending bumper to bumper traffic on Lazelle Street and Junction Avenue, to the roads through the Black Hills thick with riders, the experience is jaw-dropping.

And then on my second visit it was just what I expected. I took it for granted and in fact, was surprised that I didn’t reach the major hordes of bikes that I remembered until I got close to Deadwood.

© Ken Bingenheimer / RumBum.comIn 2006, when the OFMC did Sturgis, we actually stayed in Rapid City, 30 miles away, and paid a visit to Sturgis for half a day on one day. This time I tented in a campground right in Sturgis and I was there for four days. I feel like I really experienced the rally this time.

In the campground I met people from all over. We talked about our experiences and our reasons for making this pilgrimage. We swapped suggestions about things to do, places to go, and how to get around town on lesser-traveled streets. And we didn’t lay out the obscene amounts of money that the OFMC paid for our rooms in Rapid in ’06. At $15 per night for camping there was money left over to pay for the over-priced food and drink down on Main Street.

With more time to spend in town, there wasn’t the mad rush to try to see it all, to shop for souvenir merchandise, to have a couple beers at the ginormous bars--all in just a couple hours. There was time to consider going to the Jackpine Gypsies races that were the genesis of this entire rally 70 years ago, although I didn’t end up going. But I did explore the town and figure out where the racetracks are and how to get to them.

With four days in town I had time to meet up with several people I had known only online, who I knew were also coming to the rally. Regulars at the rally will tell you they go each year to see friends from other places who they almost never see otherwise. If you need an excuse to get together, you’re not going to find a better one.

I also had a chance to really see one of the big, big campgrounds, where they host musical acts and operate self-contained small towns. The two biggest are the Buffalo Chip and the Broken Spoke; I went to the Broken Spoke.

The one very negative thing about the Spoke is that there is not a tree to be found. On the blazing hot days I spent in Sturgis, shade was crucial. I’m not sure what the tenters did during the day, other than go somewhere else, but the majority of those staying there were in RVs, and they had air conditioning.

The campground did have a very nice swimming pool, food offerings of all kinds, two stages, and a very classy bar that rivaled anything to be found in town. And while the Buffalo Chip was featuring Bob Dylan and Kid Rock, for huge covers, the Broken Spoke had Gallagher and .38 Special for no cover.

The bottom line is this: Some people will tell you there is no reason to go to the rally, that you can better enjoy the roads in the Black Hills when there are not several hundred thousand other bikers around. They are correct about that.

But they’re missing the point. The reason to go to the rally is to experience the rally. If you never want to go again you will nonetheless have unforgettable memories that you will be talking about the rest of your life. And you may find, after a little time passes, that you do have a bit of a yen to do it again. That’s how addiction begins.