Sturgis Bike Week

The next day, we decided to go back into town. We had not really spent much time in town so far during Sturgis Bike Week, so wanted to catch some of the things we had missed. Of course, there are so many things going on at Sturgis Bike Week, that it is nearly impossible to see and do everything that there is.

We rode the motorcycles into town this time, because we didn't know exactly where we might wind up. We wandered around town for awhile, then ended up at one of our favorite eateries. Yep, the place with the Wet T-shirt contests at lunch. What a combination.

We then stumbled upon one of the bars in town that was having a free boxing match. Well, it wasn't exactly boxing. It was more like a fist fight. There were ring girls and a padded floor for the fighters. We just had to stop and check it out. In one of the matches, we were sure that the 'Little guy' was going down fast, but he ended up beating the bigger guy. What a great way to spend the afternoon.

We had a great day at Sturgis Bike Week this day.

We decided to go back to camp a little early today. We were going to have to pack up all of our camping gear and hit the road the next day, so decided we should get some rest.

We had spent almost a week at Sturgis Bike Week, but like all good things, they must come to an end. Tomorrow, we were heading back out on the open road with the motorcycles. Our first stop was to the Badlands in South Dakota. We wanted to ride through the Badlands, and then stop at Wall drug in Wall, SD.

Packing up and moving out - next

Sturgis Bike Week

We rode our motorcycles this time, because we knew we weren't going to be drinking alcohol. We were getting our stuff ready for a huge concert tonight. I definitely was going to make sure I had my camera for this one!!.

We had found out that Godsmack and Ted Nugent were playing tonight at the Buffalo Chip campground. It was not a long ride from our campsite to there, but it took a little while due to the huge number of motorcycles EVERYWHERE!!

We finally pulled up to the Campground and stopped at the ticket booth to get our tickets. Most people are not allowed in unless you have a ticket for the concert, or you are staying at that campground. We had opted to stay elsewhere for Sturgis Bike Week, mainly due to the cost of the larger ones. Being able to get in to see the concert was great!.

The crowd was already becoming pretty big. We worked our way down toward the stage. The concert started and the crowd became loud and excited. People were rocking and having a great time all around us. We were loving it too!. We had a very friendly neighbor (though I can't show that picture here)

Godsmack put on one heck of a show. They did the famous dueling drums. I had seen that one before live, but it was great to see it again. These guys really rock! My bother in law had not seen them live before, so this was a real treat. One of had to go to the bathroom, so we decided to try to meet back at a certain spot.

Somehow, the dynamics of the crowd changed while we were separated, so when Uncle Ted (Nugent, that is) came on the stage, we were separated and couldn't find each other. It was still a great show, though. I always love the Arrow in the Guitar gig that Ted does at the end of the performance.

We did finally find one another later, and found our way back to the motorcycles. It was very lat by now, but neither one of cared. It was well worth staying up!!.

Back to the town of Sturgis - next time

Sturgis Bike Week

There was a huge four by four parked out in front of the Full Throttle Saloon. We stopped to check it out - this thing was a monster! We were sure to have a good time here while at Sturgis Bike Week.

We entered the establishment, and grabbed a little something to drink. This place was HUGE! There were several bars as we entered, then it opened up to an 'outdoor' area where there was no roof, but it was still a part of the bar. People could ride motorcycles to this part, and there was even a burnout pit!! Wow - what a place.

As it turned out, there was a show going on not far inside of the bar. It was something called the 'Wall of death'. My brother in law was familiar with it, but this was the first I had heard of anything quite like this.

We went over to get tickets, because I just had to check this out. Basically, it was a 'barrel' set up where the rider rode motorcycles around and around the inside of this thing and up onto the wall itself. Not only did he ride on the wall, but he rode no handed and even put his legs on top of the handlebars!! At the end of the show, he asked people to wave money over the edge of the 'barrel'. He rode up the wall again - around and around he rode. This time, though, as he rode around the 'rim', he grabbed bills from the outstretched hands of the audience. How cool is that?

We spent a good part of the evening at the full throttle. We watched burnout contests, the bands on the stage, and of course all of the great scenery inside of the bar.

It was getting late, so we decided to grab a ride on 'da bus' and head back to camp. We had decided to do a little riding the next day.

Riding the Black Hills - next time

Sturgis Bike Week

We had planned to go to the Full Throttle saloon today. We got our breakfast, showered and were ready to go. We figured we might want an adult beverage of two, so decided not to take the motorcycles today.

It turns out that there was a bus we could catch while at Sturgis Bike Week. It was called 'da bus' and most folks knew it as the 'drunk bus'. It was not very expensive to get a pass that allowed you to ride the bus just about anywhere all day long. No need to worry about drinking and driving! What a great idea!.

We caught 'da bus' near the pavilion area of our campground. Off we were on our next day of sightseeing at Sturgis Bike Week.

We stopped in town for a bit and meandered around, checking out some of the things that we had missed yesterday. It was pretty easy to catch another bus. There were several designated spots that you could board, and they ran about every 10 to 15 minutes. We headed to the bus stop and hung out for a few minutes and sure enough, a bus soon arrived. Boarding, we rode out toward the Full Throttle Saloon.

The bus stop was a little bit of a walk from the bar, but not too far. We did have to cross the street, though which a little bit of a challenge with all of the motorcycles roaring through. We finally caught a break, and ran across the highway.

Through the lot we strolled, again - checking out all of the awesome motorcycles. We finally made it to the main parking lot. There were actually a few carnival type rides there, so we hung out for a bit to watch the 'bouncing ball ride' I have actually ridden one of these things, and they are alot of fun!!

Our way in to the Full Throttle - Next

Sturgis Bike Week

Motorcycle, Motorcycles - everywhere!!. I could see a really long ways from the top of the podium in center square. I stood there for awhile, taking pictures, and just taking in the view of all of the awesome motorcycles. One of my favorites that I saw while standing up there was one that looked like a buffalo. It was covered completely with fur and had the head of a buffalo. What a great idea!. There were a couple of small fans on the left side of this motorcycle pointed at the engine to help keep it cool with all of that fur covering most of the engine - it is bound to get a little warm.

We perused some of the shops along the main drag, but were just in awe of all of the creativity we saw in the motorcycles crowded into this once small town.

We stopped at the Knuckle saloon for a bite to eat and were surprised by the show that ensued. Next thing we know, girls were being called up on to the stage for a wet T-Shirt contest. What a great lunch!

We stopped at a couple of other off the beaten path places to check out - you guessed it - even more custom motorcycles..

At this point, we were getting pretty tired, so decided we were going to head back to the campground. Off we went, riding back around through town and onto the main highway - home at last!

What a first day we had at Sturgis Bike Week! We chatted for a bit and reviewed our materials to see what we wanted to do tomorrow. The Full Throttle Saloon wound up being very high on our list, so we decided to make that our next destination.

Day two in Sturgis - next