Last summer we decided to hit up the 2019 Sturgis Rally. It has been on my bucket list for a very long time. We are taking two weeks, the week before the rally and the the week of the rally.
Some people say you are a sissy or a fair weather rider or other colorful expletives if you trailer your bike to Sturgis. I’m actually okay with people thinking whatever they want.
For me, it isn’t my comfort level during riding, it’s my comfort level at the end of each day. I’m a bit of a germ-a-phob and I like my own bed with my own cooties. So we are hauling our bikes in the toy hauler, affectionately named “The Beast”. Don’t get me wrong, if I have to hotel it, I can manage but when you have a home on wheels, why? I honestly would prefer tent camping or to sleep on the ground over a hotel.
The planning began in November 2018 with reservations at Spearfish KOA for the week of the rally.
Originally, my sister and brother in law were coming with us in their rv, but they only had ten days of vacation.
I had planned on taking the week off before the rally as well but just to get everything ready for the trip. Then when we found out Sheryl and Ken weren’t able to make it we decided to leave for Sturgis a week early to explore on the way there.
As of today, we have five weeks to go before we hit the road.
Each weekend we are doing projects on the bikes, The Beast and the tow rig in preparation for the trip. Some are big projects and some are minor projects.
Two weekends ago we removed the bench seats in the garage just to lighten the load a little. Last weekend we did a three hole service on my bike and a oil change for Andy’s.
In the up coming weeks the projects range from installing a USB charging outlet in our bedroom to putting new tires on the tow rig.
As much as I love our rig, there are something’s needing to be updated.
You would think adding a USB charging outlet would be one of the minor projects. However, running electrical wires in a trailer can be tricky and you have to choose your location carefully. We also want to add a hard wired switch to operate the bedroom slide. Currently, the only way to operate the bedroom slide is on a electronic pad and if it malfunctions we don’t have any other way to operate the slide other than manually. This is a significant project with running electrical wiring and adding relays. Although, the tires on the tow rig is expensive, it’s a minor project and is part of maintenance, plus someone else does the work.
Plotting the route:
We will be doing a combination of camping along the way. Some boondocking and some RV parks.
We sat down with my big laminated OTR map book, keeping in mind a couple destinations.
Along with The Sturgis Rally and visiting Mt. Rushmore being on my bucket list, so is riding through The Yellow Stone National Park and Grand Tetons National Park. In preparation for this I bought a National Parks Pass for $80.00.
The annual Park Pass I Got is good for up to four adults in a single vehicle or as in our case two motorcycles riding separately but together. In 2012 when we went to The Grand Canyon we had to pay for each motorcycle at $35.00 each.
On this trip alone the park pass will save us:
Yellow Stone- 35.00 x 2= 70.00
Grand Teton- 30.00 x 2= 60.00
Mt. Rushmore- 11.00 x 2= 22.00
Total 152.00
Park Pass -80.00
Saved 72.00
Plus the savings will continue throughout the year on future trips we have planned to Yosemite National Park. The savings is huge so thank you to the YT channel “Less Junk More Journey”
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2IENUorXc6kRtIiAGPRKZA
The planning of a big trip is fun to me, but I’m a dork. I enjoy the whole process, From mapping out the route, locating fuel stops and boondocking spots. Researching the RV parks, which in itself is a must just based on our size. The Beast is 43.6 feet long with three slides just by itself, with the tow rig we are about 57 feet long.
My process for planning trips includes writing lists. I have todo list for projects, grocery list, packing list, site seeing list. You name it, I have a list.
With all my lists and planning you would think I’m not a very spontaneous person but that’s the beauty of taking your home on wheels, if you decide to take a right turn along the way you can (as long as you fit).
The exciting part about this trip, is experiencing it for the first time with my husband.
To be Continued…
Enjoy the Ride
Bell
BellsRidesMoto
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