The last time I went to Sturgis was 1975 on a brand new Norton 850 Commando MKIII. As I contemplate going again I see pictures and hear stories from friends that go there and I just have no desire to subject myself to that craziness. I guess somewhere along the line I got old and lost a lot of my patience for stupid people and stupid tricks. I am thinking of doing the Beartooth Rally next year, not only is it smaller, but the Beartooth Highway is a must for anyone with a motorcycle. So far the Beartooth rally hasn't been "discovered" nor is it something one has to do these days like Sturgis.

All of you guys headed to Sturgis, have fun, stay safe and come back with your tales of wonderment. ;)

bob
 
I've been there many times and it certainly is a paradigm shift to see the magnitude of the rally experience.

Never stay in Sturgis nor camp out there if you want to remain sane and not shoot someone for tuning their open piped Harley in the middle of the camp ground at 3 AM after the bars close. We always stayed in Rapid City in a fine motel, with a nice pool because Sturgis is Soooo hot and one needs a break from the heat.

Why the founding father's of the event decided to have it in early August, the absolute hottest time, I'll never know. I vote for early June:)

I don't think I'll go again unless it's in the fall or spring, when the weather for the most part is more moderate.

Be prepared as there are extremes of weather there---hot enough to kill ya one minute and then the streets will be covered in inches of hail with a side order of massive amounts of rain and wind. A couple of hours later it is beautiful once more.

Take a good digital camera and lots of money--have fun and enjoy.

Sam
Hello Sam, I went last year with my three youngest sons and we froze. It was warm here and there but not what I would call hot. Go figure.
Work, money, time off all conspired to keep me away this year; besides, 750K people last year made itreally tough to ride. 1.2M estimated this year seems a tad tougher. Two trailers of my Harley riding buddies left last Thursday en route to the worlds largest trailer convention and the last group of them leave on Tuesday. Have fun to all and be safe!
 
I would love to ride that part of the country but have no desire to go during the rally...hopefully I'll get up that way someday
 
Free words of wisdom...dont cross west texas in july...it sux. Buzzards grinning at you from the side of the road checking to see if your cooked all the way yet. Most miserable ride of my life. In Dillon, CO tonite...beautiful weather
 
That's the trouble with a rally in August as it's hot as hades everywhere!

Right now, as I type this, any riders coming in from due east, have a terrible and vast storm to ride through. I rode 250 miles one year in very hard rain to get to Rapid City airport to grab my friends girl that flew in from California and we couldn't be late.

One year, we rode through a wall cloud and Tornado, dropping down from Yellowstone, going east, just a few miles south of Gillette, Wyoming! There was nowhere to even pull over to stop, no overpasses or exits for 20 + miles so we rode into and trough the wall cloud--lightning everywhere and the sound was louder than Pink Floyd at full volume! 500 riders wee stranded in Yellowstone with roads closed due to snow---first week in August!

Be prepared.

Sam:)
 
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