Gremlin's Tall Stories

The alarm rings at 7am, and this time, I’m actually up in a short space of time. I shower and get ready, grab a few things together and out the door at 8.15am. I’m a little behind time, but it should be OK.

Today is service time for Jessica. A set of Continental Trail Attacks and a basic service. While they are tending to her needs I’ll go browse the madhouse they call Sturgis. 8.45am and it’s quiet outside Sturgis BMW. The shop has just started opening and I drop off the keys to the service manager. I change out of jeans and shoes into jandals and shorts. I couldn’t bring myself to ride like that to Sturgis, so took a change of clothes.

I ended up buying a Sturgis BMW shirt as the bike was serviced there anyway. Leaving it with the bike, I took my life into my hands and crossed the road to look at some Sturgis souvenirs. I bought a suitable patch and T-shirt. Just behind the gas station was someone offering all you can eat pancakes for $5. Of course, this excluded tax, but I had some plates anyway.

Exiting through the gas station, the traffic had increased, the footpaths weren’t too well organised under the interstate, so I had to dodge traffic a bit again. The core of the event was about a mile down the road so I walked down one side, looking through most things.

Over the course of the next 6 hours I saw a lot of stuff, but some highlights:
- Boss Hoss Trike
- A retro-fit kit that you can put on your bike to turn it into a trike whenever you want
- Trick trailer for loading a bike yourself
- Several trailers, but one in particular expanded into a large camper trailer
- An Indian carved from wood
- Trike where the rear wheel didn’t have an axle (belt went around the middle of the wheel)
- K1600GT side car
- A 3 trailer display by Reinhart, a Harley performance specialist (yep, I see the irony in that)
- All the bikes in the bike building show, some amazing stuff
- The Harley display was huge and in several places
- A couple of bikini bike washes and other scantily clad ladies
- Visited the Broken Spoke Saloon, some wacky bikes there
- Countless souvenir shops
- Several ladies well past the hill that shouldn’t be dressing like the promo girls *shudder*

It was pretty crazy, but apparently quiet compared to previous years. Bikes park down both sides of Main Street in Sturgis and down the middle. The major street, Lazelle, is bumper to bumper traffic throughout the day. I walked down Lazelle, to the east, then main to the west, main to the east and finally Lazelle to the west, back to Sturgis BMW around 2.30pm.

After collecting the bike and paying the bill, I returned to central Sturgis, but avoiding Lazelle as much as possible, to go back to the Impact Gel stand (http://www.impactgel.com/) and see if the seat pads fitted my bike. Ok, I’ll admit, I only walked to the stand in the first place because of the lovely blonde in the green bikini top, but she had my attention when she put her hand in between sheets of impact gel, and hit it with a hammer in her other hand.

No damage, she repeated with M&Ms, no broken ones. She took them out, tapped them with a hammer and they shattered. The material is brilliant at absorbing energy. Seat pads are available, and I bought 2, one of each seat. It’s made in different thickness rolls for different applications, including in-soles for shoes. Once you think about it, it has potential on so many levels, you actually can’t do it all. The one downside currently is the density makes it heavy, and it can’t stop bullets.

If it could (or future developments allow) imagine it lining your bike gear. Not just impact points, this could line the entire garment. More bullet proof gear for cops and army, instead of just vests and it’s already in American football helmets and armour. Anyway, I was really taken with it and even had a piece cut for padding my radar detector box. It can be cut with scissors, it’s just very sticky along the cut line. The seat pads will need attachments added to make it attach to my seat. The other alternative is putting it into the seat, but since I have damaged ones at home, I’d rather do it to them.

The temperature was well above 30 and I couldn’t face wearing all the gear again, so I was very naughty. Putting on my sunnies I rode back to Rapid City in sunnies, shirt, jeans and shoes. It was very different, skin felt weird exposed to the wind, but it felt very free. I won’t be doing it again, but the polish of the experience was scrubbed off good when a bug hit my forehead. Thankfully, there was no rain either otherwise it would have hurt like hell (I would have probably stopped like all the Harley riders do).

On the way back to the motel I stopped at the leather store I had seen on previous walks with Murray, to see if they could do anything about the seat pads, and what leather they had. Nothing suited, but I was recommended to see the shoe repair guy down the road, which I did. His seamstress had already left for the day, and of course, I needed it done that day, so too short notice. Back to the Hotel shortly after 5pm, the others were already there having a few drinks.

Anjum and Murray had taken advantage of the art skills available at Sturgis. Murray had airbrushing done, with a wolf motif, on his front mud guard, Anjum also had airbrushing, and also ostrich skin inserted into his seat, after having it re-upholstered.

In due course we headed off for dinner, the others wanting to try a flash Italian Restaurant around the corner, so I tagged along. I had prime rib, which wasn’t much more than meat on a plate. It was delicious, but a bit flash and expensive for me.

Most had an early night, as we’ll be on the move tomorrow, to Fort Collins.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/1kSpdniBV8CSbMAV9