2006 — OFMC Does Sturgis

Map of Trip 2006 It had to happen. We had been to Sturgis several times but never for the rally. In 2006 the OFMC went to Sturgis for the rally. It was like living in a world where the motorcycle, rather than the car, was the everyday mode of transportation. In such a world, do drivers of cars wave at each other?

We gathered Johnathon's house up north, eight of us: Ken, John, Bill, Jason, Johnathon, Dennis, Friggs, and the newcomer of the year, Brett. Ken handed out St. Urgis shirts to everyone and we took off, taking US 85 north to Cheyenne. Stopping at the state line, however, so Ken could get shots for the website, we noticed The Den, a "gentleman's club" on the Wyoming side and concluded it was time for a few beers and some feminine viewing pleasure. Then we blasted on to Guernsey for a night at the Bunkhouse Motel.

Heading out Saturday morning we saw more and more bikes going our direction and started to realize it was going to become progressively more difficult to keep track of each other, and that traffic was going to get thick. Plans for the scenic ride to Rapid City were amended and we took the more direct, less scenic route just to get there. Meeting up with Scott, Bill's friend who had gotten us our accommodations in Rapid, we went out for a night on the town and partied hearty. The next day Scott and his buddy Jason led us on a terrific tour of the Black Hills on some roads less traveled as well as some of the area's spectacular routes.

Here are a couple shots from Keystone.

John, Dennis, and Friggs in Keystone

Keystone

On Monday we went to Sturgis. Many thousands of bikes, wall-to-wall people, and numerous women in thongs and chaps — including several who had no business dressing that way — were the order of the day.

From Sturgis itself we moved to the Full Throttle, which bills itself as the biggest biker bar in the world. In fact, it is a biker Disneyland complete with shops, bars, a mechanical bull, a stage, and burn-out pits.

In the burn-out pit at Full Throttle Here's the story with the burn-out pits: You roll your bike in, brace the front wheel so you can't move, then spin the back tire till it spews smoke and eventually pops. The accommodating folks at the Full Throttle then wheel your bike over for a new tire, which, if their service prices are anything close to their food and drink prices, will be about double what you would pay anywhere else. But hey, you gave the crowd a show!

Skimpy attire for bartenders From Rapid we headed out to Gillette, John and Dennis blasting on over on the interstate after hanging out at the local Harley dealer, and the rest taking Nemo Road and Spearfish Canyon to Spearfish, Belle Fourche, and Devil's Tower.

Sturgis The next day was the Day of Dead Rabbits. We crossed central Wyoming through Casper and Medicine Bow, on to Saratoga, and there must have been at least 50 dead rabbits along every mile of road north of Casper. South of Casper was the scene of the Bad Practical Joke Ken and Bill played on the others. One section of road split off and then rejoined the main road and the two of them took that alternate route, planning to be sitting waiting for the others at the rejoinder. It was iffy from the start because it was unlikely the others would go 23 miles without noticing Bill and Ken missing but a stop at a rest area just half a mile past the fork made their absence known immediately. Bill bought beer in Medicine Bow to make amends.

Relaxing in Medicine Bow Wednesday night in Saratoga we hit the hot springs and the next morning Johnathon, Jason, and Brett headed home. The others rode up on the Snowy Range and when John and Friggs returned to Saratoga Ken, Bill, and Dennis made a loop ride of it, including 11 miles of gravel down to Woods Landing. We spent a second night in Saratoga.

Friday it was on to Craig where we had a tee-time at 2 pm. We changed into shorts and headed off to the golf course, getting caught in rain on the way, and then took turns dodging a swinging gate on the golf course road. Dennis got hit but there was no damage or injury. The weather turned beautiful and we had a great round of golf, then ate prime rib while it rained some more. Then a quick run back to the hotel when the rain abated.

Next morning it was time to head home. John turned to the west for Montrose while Ken, Bill, Dennis, and Friggs headed east. At Steamboat Ken peeled off to the north to Columbine where his wife, Judy, and other family members were spending a few days. Bill, Dennis, and Friggs continued their rainy ride back to Denver.

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