Sturgis South Dakota - Pictures from the 2005 custom motorcycle rally

Sturgis Motorcycle Rally pictures

Sturgis motorcycle rally is the largest and most awesome motorcycle convention in the world. I have written a few pages and have taken a bunch of pictures for those that are interested in this portion of our trip here at Sturgis.

Each year around the second week of August the city of Sturgis in South Dakota goes from a population of over 6,000 to over half a million people. That's right, you read correctly, 500,000+ people from all over the U.S. and even the world. Campgrounds host thousands of campers each August all around the town and in the rolling foothills. A few of them are complete with temporary showers, food booths, outhouses, and water stations. Many Sturgis residents rent out their houses during bike week. As you ride down any neighborhood street there will be hoards of people lounging outside drinking, laughing, hootin and hollerin. As crazy as it may sound, some Sturgis homeowners even rent their front and back yards to tent campers. Basically, you have no excuse not to go and have a good time at the largest motorcycle rally in the United States.

Throughout the Black Hills around Sturgis there are a multitude of day trips to Mount Rushmore or riding through the winding roads to Deadwood, and even Devil's Tower in Wyoming is beautiful ride. Fort Meade Recreation Area is located between Bear Butte and the Black Hills driving on a national Backcountry Byway. The Black Hills National Cemetery is only three miles east of Sturgis and is a popular place to visit. Bear Butte State Park is near the Glencoe Campground with camping, hiking, and fishing. This is where we were chased by the buffalo while biking. Check us out mountain biking while in Sturgis.

While there aren't too many opportunities to find relief from the heat of the day while looking at all of the one of a kind bikes and trikes, there is, however comfort in knowing that the nights are pleasantly cool.

The craziest event we came across was the coleslaw wrestling. There is also ultimate fighting championships, tire burning, bikini contests, rock and roll concerts featuring Rob Zombie, carnival tents with nail driving contests and smash the put and hit the bell, mechanical bull riding, pudding fights, buffalo chasing, and arm wrestling. There is more too. There is the nightly parade of a select few bikers that ride by showing all onlookers everything God gave them. Other people are riding everything from riding lawnmowers, motorized barstools, three-wheelers and four-wheelers, couches with people sitting on them pulled by large SUV's, hot tubs in beds of trucks, dogs wearing sunglasses and helmets riding on the gas tanks of motorcycles, 6-seater limo motorcycles, go-carts, mini-bikes, scooters and homemade motorcycles with pipes everywhere. There are also the circus freaks that most people haven't even seen in the movies.

Visit Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for more information.

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