After Sturgis 2009 Day 3

Wednesday we decided to take it a little easy and wait until Thursday to do Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road depending upon how Andrew felt. Wednesday was reserved for the Canyons and Devil's Tower.

As we left Rapid City we headed West on I-90 just enough to allow a ride through Boulder Canyon, then onto Ice Box Canyon (we now know why they call it Ice Box.........it was sure cold!) and finally to Spearfish Canyon.
What I have never seen previously on the many trips to South Dakota was Roughlock Falls. The Falls are located between Lead and Spearfish within Spearfish Canyon. The drive from Spearfish Canyon to Roughlock Falls was on gravel and then afterwards about 50-60 miles on gravel as we rode CR-222 to CR-134. You need to be careful on these gravel roads for obvious reasons, the cattle! We had to stop and wait for them to move out of our way. Again, we weren't in any hurry, especially since any one of them could have taken both of us out including the bikes.

When we completed Spearfish Canyon I thought about the training Andrew had received again from Riders Edge. He handled the Canyons like he's done it before. We next drove into Spearfish and Black Hills University at Spearfish. This is where I have stayed on two previous trips to the Rally.

From here, we were only a few miles from the South Dakota/Wyoming State Line. Within an hour of Spearfish we found ourselves facing the 1st National Monument, Devils Tower. The legend states bears chased six Indian Maidens onto a small rock. Here the six prayed to the Gods to protect them from the bears. The rock started to grow towards the sky. After awhile the rock had grown so tall that the bears couldn't reach the Maidens. The bears didn't give up as they continued to claw at the sides of the rock. To this day you can still see the claw marks on the sides of Devil's Tower!

Prior to heading back to Rapid City we decided to go to Sturgis Harley-Davidson and then onto Bear Butte which is just a short drive northeast of Sturgis.

After Sturgis 2009 Day 2

Day 2 started out westbound on I-90 towards the Missouri River. As a note to SK, Budweiser has a new plant (distribution center?) east of Chamberlain, SD. At Chamberlain we headed north along the River. This route was approximately 100 mile detour from I-90, but if you find yourself on a motorcycle, then time shouldn't matter. This route is extremely scenic! We continued west into Pierre (Capital of SD) and Petersen's Harley-Davidson. As we left the dealership we were told to head north to the Oahe Dam, the world's 2nd largest plowed earth dam (used to be #1 until China built their's last year). We were forced to dirt roads on Hwy 34 west all the way to Pierre, some 40+ miles. Andrew got a taste of riding on gravel, grated roads, dirt and pee gravel during this jaunt. It really sucked! But an adventure none-the-less.

We talked to two different people today telling us about the hail storm that hit Sturgis Bike Week. One described the hail to be grapefruit sized the other baseball! A third party informed us that some of the bars in Sturgis kicked the customers out so that bikes could be brought in for protection. Gas tanks, speedometers and fenders sustained lots of damages. Good thing we decided to make the trek a week after the rally!

Once back on I-90 we continued to the Badlands. Before entering the Park, we stopped at the Conoco Service Station for some buffalo. We each had a buffalo hotdog for lunch! As always, it was very warm, no it was hot! A shout-out goes to John and Randy once again for wisdom of safe motorcycling taught to Andrew. If one has the will to ride safely and continues to practice by riding their "A" Game, then they should be able to handle whatever comes their way. I was concerned with Andrew's limited riding skills, however as the week went on, my concern was not warranted. His handling of the Badlands and later in Day 4 was much better than I anticipated!

South Dakota would not be complete without a stop in Wall and the famous Wall Drug. Again we found ourselves riding out of the Badlands towards Wall in freshly laid pee gravel! We arrived in Wall on the main drag again on freshly laid pee gravel! They informed us that the Highway Department waited until Sturgis Bike Week was over to start their maintenance work. Thanks guys! The water is always free at Wall Drug, too bad the ice cream isn't!

After Wall Drug we decided it was time to check into the Days Inn in Rapid City for the next four nights. This would be our home base where all our rides from here on out would originate from.

After Sturgis Ride 2009

Finally after months of planning, the day arrived in which Andrew and I would venture to South Dakota on our motorcycles. Monday morning couldn't arrive soon enough! By 4:45 AM we were leaving the driveway in 70 degree weather with humidity to match. The air was thick and the morning still dark. Our first stop was in Mauston at the Kwik Trip off of I-90 for gas (Andrew) and then breakfast at the McDonald's across from the gas station. G-nome got his first photo opp here to a confused employee! The next stop was in Winona where we both needed fuel. Andrew's tank is just a 3.7 including the reserve where mine is the new 6 gallon tank that Harley-Davidson introduced in 2007. The range of the larger tank is great for the Touring Rider. As we left the Kwik Trip in Winona we headed for Winona HD which was about double the size of my garage and they were closed. As we got back on I-90 heading west we passed The Spam Museum in Austin, MN (which we plan to visit on our way home if time permits). Just west of Austin is Albert Lea and home to Bergdale Harley-Davidson. We will be spending next Saturday night next door at Holiday Inn Express.

One last gas stop for the day in my Road Glide was just east of Sioux Falls. Andrew asked for some Bug Slide to clean his Nolan Modular Helmet. As we left the gas station I forgot to secure the right saddlebag and shortly after getting on I-90 Andrew rode up alone side me to point my mistake out. I pulled over immediately and secured the bag. G-none was still resting as were the soft lowers! A few miles later Andrew told me that my HD flat fitted cap blew out though! This forced us to make a stop at J&L Harley-Davidson in Sioux Falls, SD. After purchasing a new cap (same style) and have some gourmet coffee we headed for one last gas stop for Andrew. We later arrived at Days Inn in Mitchell after traveling 574.8 miles and came to rest at 4:39 PM. After the hot tub and waterslide, dinner was served to us by Rudy Tuesday as they advertised "free" delivery!

Tuesday the plan is to hit The Corn Palace, then the ride north and west alone the Missouri River, onto the Badlands and Wall Drug. Photos of our ride will be posted some time next week.