On the Road: Sturgis, SD

We were here the week of the famous motorcycle rally. Everything you’ve seen on TV is true. People here definitely march to the beat of their own drums. Sturgis is a small town of approximately 6,660 souls who host the biggest motorcycle rally in North America once a year. Motorcycle enthusiasts come from all around (we saw Canadians, Texans, New Yorkers, Floridians, Californians and people from just about every state in between) to spend some quality time with one another cruising on their bikes through the hills of western South Dakota, party, drink, check out what’s new and exciting in the bike world, drink (did I mention that already?) enjoy concerts and basically have one heck of a good time. There are literally thousands upon thousands motorcycles of every make, model and color. From the extravagant to the ordinary, you’ll see them all here in Sturgis and the people that ride them are as individual as their bikes. While never a fan of motorcycles, I admit after seeing all the bikes in Sturgis I am now wondering what it would be like to own a purple trike. Hmmm.

We stayed at Shade Valley Camp Resort about 10 miles east of downtown Sturgis. The campground was nice and would be a good place to stay if you want to distance yourself a little from the non-stop action going on in town, but still be close to the action. The Eye Candy Saloon is located on site with free concerts every night and there is a restaurant offering outside dining for breakfast, lunch and dinner with a BBQ special offered every night.

The popular destination saloons in Sturgis include The Full Throttle Saloon which is billed as the largest biker saloon in the world, the Buffalo Chip, known for its nightly big name entertainment during the rally. In town proper, you'll find the Easy Rider and Loud American Saloons among many others.

We were pleasantly surprised at the attitude of the crowd. Everyone here is laid back, courteous and law-abiding from what we could tell. I was a little worried about the chaos of driving to town with so many motorcycles on the road, but everyone takes it slow and is very respectful of one another. The Sturgis police department does an excellent job and the locals are terrific. A great time!

Rather than try to describe the rally to you further, I think I’ll let the pictures below tell the story…