Ride Report: Sturgis Rally mini-blog 2009

[ukrmh]

This is a “mini-blog” I came up with detailing my trip from the Kansas City area to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in western South Dakota.

I left Raymore, MO Thursday, July 30 and rode to Omaha, where I spent the night with friends. The following day I rode to Rapid City and arrived around 4 pm, just 20 minutes later than when my friends arrived that I shared a room with at the Dakota Pines Motel. We spent 5 nights there. The room was ok, but pricy. $174.95/ night when booked in advance, but split 5 ways( 2 couple plus me), it wasn’t too bad. They were kind enough to bring an air mattress with them inside their trailer from Chicago, so I had a nice bed while there! We could have rolled the dice and not made a reservation, and the rooms would have been cheaper, because crowds were down again this year, and they were quoting rates in the $90-100 range. Oh well! We heard from the manager of the motel that Bruce Rossmeyer, and icon in the Harley family, had been killed the day before while riding in Wyoming with friends. He was 66, and owned 8 dealerships, including his flagship store in Daytona Beach. It was very sad to hear that….

Friday was our first day there, and we rode to Mt Rushmore for breakfast. That is by far my favorite stop. After that, we rode Iron Mountain Road into Custer Park. We rode the wildlife route, and did see buffalo, but they were off in the distance. After lunch in the area, we rode Needles highway back north. Both Iron Mountain Road and Needles highway are the most challenging rides; i.e. lots of sharp curves, hills and drop-offs. 2nd gear was appropriate for me and the Harley most of these routes.

Saturday was mostly a day to shop. We went to Black Hills HD in Rapid City and spent the entire morning there. It was full of “guy” vendors selling lots of motorcycle accessories. The ladies were patient, and shopped by themselves, looking mostly at apparel inside the building, or outside in the tents. That afternoon, we did the obligatory shopping in downtown Sturgis, looking at more vendor stuff. There were a lot more apparel vendors in Sturgis, so the ladies did just fine!

Sunday called for another short stop at Black Hills HD, where I picked up a pair of heated gloves on sale, then off to Keystone/ Hill City area south of Rapid City. Both of these towns have their own events, and lots of vendors were there. We spent the afternoon in Deadwood, and the writer won $9 on a nickel slot machine. Low stakes gambling is legal in Deadwood, and there were lots of $2 blackjack tables available on which to play. We had dinner at the Desert Star Restaurant in Deadwood, owned by Kevin Costner. The food was great, and it is full of his memorabilia from his movies. Towards the end of the day, we visited Wild Bill Hickock’s grave sit there. He was shot there, holding the “dead man’s hand” of 2 pair: aces and eights.

On Monday, we rode north to Spearfish, and rode the beautiful Spearfish Canyon road. It rained a little, and we stopped along the way for an hour or so to let the rain pass. We stopped at Cheyenne Crossing at the north end of Spearfish Canyon, and checked out all the sights. My younger buddy asked a lady present if she would pose for a picture with me. He said I was his dad! She had very little on at the time, and I endured the photo op with grace and dignity! We rode a 10-mile route later that afternoon between Hill City and Keystone that paralleled the scenic railroad that operates in the summer between those 2 points. It had lots of hills and curves, and crossed the right-of-way 13 times on the route.

Tuesday was my last full day in the area. We rode down to Hill City again, and on down to Custer. Once again, the town had its own rally, with lots of vendors and activities. We ate lunch there, and my buddy beat me at a game of pool while waiting for our food! After that, we went further south to Hot Springs. They supposedly have the largest natural hot springs in the US. A recreation center was built adjacent to the water, and the hot water feeds the inside pool and water activities.

I departed Rapid City early am on Wednesday, August 5th, with the thought of riding about 500 miles and stopping for the night. However, I got on a roll, and with the aid of some back roads and good weather, I was able to make better time than I did riding out to Rapid City. On the way out I took I 29 to Sioux Falls, SD, and I 90 into Rapid City. There was a lot of construction going out via that route. My return route brought me back through the Badlands, and south into Nebraska. I stayed off interstates until I got into Rockport, MO, at which time I got on I 29 again and on to KC. I encountered little construction, and little traffic on the side roads. I did have to slow down going through small towns, but that was okay... The worst part of the trip was on I 29 between KCI and downtown KC. There was a lot of road construction in that area, it was dark, I had more bugs on my windshield than Don ever had, and the lanes were uneven due to paving in process.
I rode 14 hours and covered almost 800 miles that day and almost 2300 for the entire trip. I probably could have gone more and achieved my “Iron Butt” certification, but with no documentation, I did not do so. Maybe later!

The weather was great out there, and we only had a little rain a few times. Tuesday evening at the motel, it really opened up, but we were already back safely, so we just watched from the lobby of the motel. I met some great new friends, and overall had a wonderful time! This was my 9th time at the rally, and the 2nd time I rode out and back. I only bought a couple of items, due primarily to limited space on the Harley for storage while riding back. How many tee shirts do I need, anyway?
I look forward to future Sturgis rallies!

Bob Hagen

[Danny D]

Bob,
Sounds like a great time and I'll try and make it in 2010. Last Sunday my wife and I rode down to Cassoday, KS where the crowd was estimated at 5,000 bikers. Lots of people there and one rider went down permanently, sorry to say. It was the second time I went there this year and was the second time that there was a bad biker accident. I guess when there are that many riders on Hwy 177 with the views it can be distracting.
Ride SAFE!

Danny Drungilas