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TPW Sep07 180 PG 8/22/07 12:35 PM Page 48 Spearfish. Favorite rally Monday night, but things had been rather slow bands like Foghat, since then. The BoneYard Saloon really is quite an Canned Heat, Jimmy impressive place, complete with food and mer- Van Zant, Pat Travers, chandise vendors and even restrooms with flush Quiet Riot, The Georgia toilets—a rarity at most bike rallies. The venue Satellites, Blue Oyster was off to a slow start this year but has great Cult, Blackfoot, The potential. Marshall Tucker Band, and Steppenwolf were Breakfast of champions scheduled to play every One event that continues to gain in popularity evening during (and a is the Sturgis Builders Breakfast. This notable few days before) the function was the second to be sponsored by rally. I stopped in early Choppers Inc. and was held at the Broken Spoke Wednesday afternoon on Tuesday morning. And this year, the sold-out and, in front of the big, affair didn’t run out of food as it had during their impressive stage I saw a initial offering. More than 30 bike builders and huge, paved expanse artists joined Billy Lane to donate one-of-a-kind with a quad burnout pit and a mechanical bull Sturgis but not much else. The few peo- Continued from page 47 ple present took shelter under the covered outdoor bar. Two inside builders were to construct a bike on bars (one for the general public stage to be given away on Thursday. and one for VIP ticket holders) Although the Black List Tour got were fully air-conditioned and off to a rather shaky start this year, had small stages for more live it’s scheduled to appear in Daytona music. According to the staff, during Bike Week next spring, with quite a crowd turned up for promises of better coordination and Vince Neil’s performance on more exciting events. (I wish them luck, but if I was into skateboarding and need- ed a cross-generational infusion, I’d tune into the X-Games.) The biggest drama at Greg Carter of Vicious Cycles, Best of Show winner the Full Throttle happened a few days of the Metzeler Custom Bike Contest after the rally’s close when the FBI raided the items for an auction that brought in over business and, in conjunction with the IRS, confis- $14,500 for Make-A-Wish of South Dakota. cated or froze its assets. According to local news The event was so popular last year that it’s sources, the raid was criminal in nature. However, been expanded to Daytona Bike Week and as of press time, no further information was scheduled for Destination Daytona on available. Tuesday, March 4. The most ambitious new venue had to be the BoneYard Saloon in Whitewood, an entertainment complex about midway between Sturgis and Continued on next page THE BUFFALO CHIP CAMPGROUND a full complement of weeklong campers—the trend from tents to RVs contin- ues to grow—and again, unlike the sparsely attended concerts at Glencoe and CHIP HAPPENS! other venues, the Chip’s amphitheater was brimming most evenings. Rally returns to its roots Most telling, though, was the nature of the crowd, and in this the Buffalo Chip “read” the changing temperature of the overall rally. by eddieboy Crushed straw cowboy hats vs. do-rags STURGIS, AUGUST 4–11—Like a thermometer stuck in a roasting Fat Boys and cowboys mingled easily alongside motorcycle mamas and Thanksgiving turkey, so the Buffalo Chip Campground reflects the tempera- rodeo queens respectively. Free-ranging single older gents roamed with ever- ture of the surrounding Sturgis Bike Week. present cameras in hand, as bands as diverse as Poison, Rat, Foreigner, Grand The “Chip” was founded better than a quarter century ago for party- Funk Railroad, and ZZ Top took the main stage. On Monday, it was Toby seeking dyed-in-the-leather bikers seeking refuge from authoritative tradition- Keith who took the stage—and the cake—and stormed Sturgis, drawing well al redneck Western values that had defined the Black Hills Rally and Races over 35,000 fans from as far afield as Buffalo, Wyoming, to Mitchell, South since their inception in 1938. Ironically, the chopper-riding biker reinvigorat- Dakota, as well as the leather-garbed biker rally attendee. ed the rally with his bad-boy Sturgis appears to be slowly returning to the roots from image and loose morals (never whence it came: good, solid Midwest stock coupled with mind Harley-Davidson motor- first-time rallygoers on first-time motorcycles hauled in at cycle popularity itself), causing least in some cases by a sea of Ford and Ram pickups. ever-larger crowds to come The week was dominated by a tide of fashionable crushed sample Sturgis and its party straw cowboy hats; greasy do-rags were at times very atmosphere in the bargain— much in the minority—and God bless ’em all, and God that is, until recently. This year bless the U.S.A. the Buffalo Chip reflected the changing mood in Sturgis. Robbie Knievel Unlike the relatively thin Chip does happen, as Robbie Knievel’s big Sturgis- crowds on Main and Lazelle promoted motorcycle jump over tank and cannon, and streets in downtown Sturgis, about 150 feet of open air space (and five flame-throwers) the Chip saw big attendance in See “The Buffalo Chip,” page 52, column 1 48 September 2007 4/C TPW Sep07 180 PG 8/22/07 2:31 PM Page 52 THE BUFFALO CHIP careened through the air and nearly Harley and implemented the tuition overshot the landing ramp, making Induction Breakfast reimbursement program for women Continued from page 48 his jump closer to 200 unplanned- Continued from page 50 riders (then, eventually all H.O.G. feet as I measured it. If you members) who completed an MSF was delayed Tuesday at midnight at blinked, you missed it. And he Some Hall of Fame inductees are rider training course. Linda also served the last possible moment, due to a stuck it perfectly, avoiding all real motorcycling pioneers, having as editor for HOG Tales from 1990 to “brewing storm” of one kind or hay bales, and aside from a sore retired long ago from their motorcy- 1995, southeast regional H.O.G. another, it was announced. The dis- ankle came out in better shape cling activities. A case in point was manager, and H.O.G. events manager. appointed crowd almost seemed to than the paved road he nearly the first honoree, Al Nelson, who Linda showed her delight at her induc- understand. This unfortunately cut landed on. received the prestigious J. C. “Pappy” tion by leaving wooden “nickels” Hoel outstanding achievement award. the main compound at the camp- You see, finally and to their with her photo and an inscription on ground in half for a good portion of credit, the Woodruff family, who The 90-year-old’s racing career began every one of the 425 place settings at the week, as barricades, ramps and run the Buffalo Chip and have in 1935 when, as a teenaged member the banquet tables. Later that day, props cut a wide swath down the made steady improvements to of the Rapid City Pioneers I caught up with her inside the Sturgis Motorcycle Club, middle. amenities of all kinds through the years, responded to suggestions to he raced in non- At 12:25 a.m. Thursday morn- AMA-sanctioned ing the high-revving sound of a pave the main thoroughfare for the benefit of their guests, who other- “outlaw” events. Honda dirt bike announced the Nelson went on presence of white-suited Captain wise must deal with slick-as-shit clay gumbo when it rains. And it to compete in the Robbie Knievel in the main arena, first Black Hills and not a moment too soon for the looked beautiful this year, the road, all new with shiny black Motorcycle impatient crowds that found them- Classic in 1938, selves stuck behind metal cattle asphalt; that is, until the old Soviet-era army tank procured and eventually won fences that not only protected them the championship from an errant jump, but prevented as a prop for Robbie’s jump man- aged to chew it up under tread in 1940, setting a half the crowd that attended the track record for the earlier Velvet Revolver concert while it maneuvered about. The multi-ton contraption broke down 10-mile race that from being able to depart the remains unbroken. grounds. Scattered boos could be finally and found itself unable to Linda Peavy (center) made up her own T-shirts honoring her discerned above the general din. muster past the wrought-iron front Another pio- induction gate in time for the delayed event, neer was inductee A couple of practice runs darn it. Linda Peavy, who worked for Harley- Motorcycle Museum where she was back and forth alongside the ramps accompanied by two women wearing The bottom line in all this— Davidson from 1975 to 1996. Linda sent spotlighted dust up on the red, Linda Peavy T-shirts, also with a photo similar to talking about the weath- was given the assignment to develop a white and blue bunting decorating on the front and induction inscription er—is that all things are bound to program within the Harley Owners the sides, before Robbie turned on the back. Linda expressed her grati- change… like it or not. And like Group to attract more female riders. In and in a flash of flame and smoke, tude at having a job where she could I said earlier, chip happens.

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