The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
The Good:
Dude, it's great to be alive & well, & back in Sturgis for another year of biker debauchary!
The Bad:
It's August, & S.D. hasen't finished up the last 50 miles of I-90 before Sturgis? Yes, race fans, it's true. Dozens of miles of I-90 leading into Sturgis have been cut down to two lanes of traffic. ABM can'teven imagine the traffic jam leading into this place when the weekend arrives.
The Ugly:
America's Economy, period. We're not economists, but if you look back thru last year's blog, there's a prediction by ABM that the worst of the housing crisis was not over. We would have greatly preferred to be wrong. The silver lining? Canadians are comming... their strong "Loonie" buys a lot more camping, bikes, beer,& food than our trashy dollar... it's like Steve Miller's song..."Your Cash.. Ain't Nothin' but Trash". There are, however, those of us that will always show upanyway.. sitting at home sucks.
The first big prediction:
Mr. Rod Woodruff, Buffalo Chip, despite dire predictions of... "what if they threw a party & nobody came.." says his reservations are way ahead of last year at this time.. including a mass reservation from 160 rabid Canadians, all at once!! Refer to the last paragraph on rich Canadians.. maybe i shoulda gone up there to live...nah..TOO COLD.
The first big fall:
Glencoe Campground, adjacent to, and motral enemy of... The Buffalo Chip. During nighttime ride to the Full Throttle Saloon, the huge backlit electric sign at the Glencoe entrance advertised "BUY ONE, GET ONE FREE" tickets to various concerts, including KISS, & John Fogarty. That can't be good. Meanwhile, the Chip is charging more for shows not booked in advance of last Sunday. A personal ABM observation is.. Woody's been doing this for a long long time. He was the first, & we believe he is... the best. Where else can you drink dollar beers for hours, see Kid Rock, roll up in your sleeping bag, then go out to the range & rock & roll with a real live machine gun? Nah, haven't donethat one out here... 3 yrs in the Army gave me plenty of opportunity with auto weapons.. still think it's cool, but have had my fill for now,but enjoy "plinking" with my 44 mag Ruger Blackhawk.
So... What Have We Learned?
1). General Rally attendance expected to be down by around 20 percent.
2). Most vendors returning, but not buying up as many spots...96 so far, compared to almost 120 last year.
3). Like Brother Joe Walsh's Solo Album .... "So What?" The less people in this little town, the better. It's easier to get around, the prices are comming down. All the majors are off 20-30%...Laconia, Myrtle, Daytona. Places like Laughlin were half deserted. What's the lesson?
Dude, it's great to be alive & well, & back in Sturgis for another year of biker debauchary!
The Bad:
It's August, & S.D. hasen't finished up the last 50 miles of I-90 before Sturgis? Yes, race fans, it's true. Dozens of miles of I-90 leading into Sturgis have been cut down to two lanes of traffic. ABM can'teven imagine the traffic jam leading into this place when the weekend arrives.
The Ugly:
America's Economy, period. We're not economists, but if you look back thru last year's blog, there's a prediction by ABM that the worst of the housing crisis was not over. We would have greatly preferred to be wrong. The silver lining? Canadians are comming... their strong "Loonie" buys a lot more camping, bikes, beer,& food than our trashy dollar... it's like Steve Miller's song..."Your Cash.. Ain't Nothin' but Trash". There are, however, those of us that will always show upanyway.. sitting at home sucks.
The first big prediction:
Mr. Rod Woodruff, Buffalo Chip, despite dire predictions of... "what if they threw a party & nobody came.." says his reservations are way ahead of last year at this time.. including a mass reservation from 160 rabid Canadians, all at once!! Refer to the last paragraph on rich Canadians.. maybe i shoulda gone up there to live...nah..TOO COLD.
The first big fall:
Glencoe Campground, adjacent to, and motral enemy of... The Buffalo Chip. During nighttime ride to the Full Throttle Saloon, the huge backlit electric sign at the Glencoe entrance advertised "BUY ONE, GET ONE FREE" tickets to various concerts, including KISS, & John Fogarty. That can't be good. Meanwhile, the Chip is charging more for shows not booked in advance of last Sunday. A personal ABM observation is.. Woody's been doing this for a long long time. He was the first, & we believe he is... the best. Where else can you drink dollar beers for hours, see Kid Rock, roll up in your sleeping bag, then go out to the range & rock & roll with a real live machine gun? Nah, haven't donethat one out here... 3 yrs in the Army gave me plenty of opportunity with auto weapons.. still think it's cool, but have had my fill for now,but enjoy "plinking" with my 44 mag Ruger Blackhawk.
So... What Have We Learned?
1). General Rally attendance expected to be down by around 20 percent.
2). Most vendors returning, but not buying up as many spots...96 so far, compared to almost 120 last year.
3). Like Brother Joe Walsh's Solo Album .... "So What?" The less people in this little town, the better. It's easier to get around, the prices are comming down. All the majors are off 20-30%...Laconia, Myrtle, Daytona. Places like Laughlin were half deserted. What's the lesson?
Who Cares?? Let's Party!
check back often.. if it's news to you, it's news to us!
-and-
The ten days of Sturgis, 10 straight days of Sturgis Biker Interviews begins August 1st on a radio station near you.
-or-
call (360) 282-5400, hear it all on your phone!
posted by americanbikerminute at 8:54 AM
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