My trip to Sturgis was a success! 2,877 miles round trip. We dodged rain all week in the area, got caught a couple of times. I had a great visit with friend and fellow CVO member msemersky, and spent a couple of hours with kiro, 2k and cambo. I'm sure they will chime in here with the adventure they had!
Some observations this year:
The massive Harley complex did not mention the new engines that are apparently coming. Historically Sturgis was the place to show off the latest and greatest, but not this year.
Indian, Victory, and even Ducati had some very nice set ups to check out their products. Also, there were A LOT of Indians on the roads. Harley should definitely be feeling the pressure.
Attendance was WAY down, many vendors said business was down 50% or more, and souvenirs were half price by Wednesday, even at Harley dealers!!!
The police was EVERYWHERE!!! I saw cops all over the Black Hills and Park Rangers in Custer, on the Needles and Iron Mountain roads, and police in every little town. Deadwood had as heavy of a police presence as in town Sturgis. Not that it's a bad thing, but definitely a lot more than previous years.
The new Full Throttle Saloon will be one heck of a place in a couple of years. Ballard really doubled down on BIG!!!! He's going after the Buffalo Chip business with both barrels loaded!
The drink and food prices have really got out of hand in town Sturgis. $6 bottle beers, $12 mixed drinks is really ridiculous.
With all that said, Sturgis is always a great time. I met many very nice people from around the US and some from Australia. The road surfaces are the best in the country, and the scenery in the black hills fantastic!
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Topic: STURGIS 2016 (Read 4041 times)