Made it back from Sturgis

Ship's Log Year 3--August 15, 2005

A good friend scolded me last night for not being more communicative this year.....and suggested I better send a log entry to quash the rumor that I perished in Sturgis....so here goes. First of all Sturgis was unbelievable! We rode 1300 miles there, 1500 miles through the Black Hills of South Dakota while we were there, and 1300 miles back, in 10 days....my ass is still sore. It really is indescribable....my lasting memories will be of the spectacular beauty of the Black Hills and the bikes (750,000 of them) and their colorful owners and all the chrome, leather and ink (I think I surprised Beth when I DIDN'T come home with a tattoo).....one vignette that I can't get out of my mind is "No Panty Thursday" in Hewlett, Wyoming...Hewlett is a picturesque little town with a population of 176, except for one day each year when 250,000 Harleys roar into town....the biker women are encouraged to wear their chaps with nothing else....hmmmm. Seems the small Methodist church in the heart of town views "No Panty Thursday" as a huge missionary opportunity each year. As my buddy, Steve Clark, and I walked by the lovely white, clapboard church, smiling church ladies in long dresses handed us each an oil rag imprinted with "Jesus Saves" and some obscure bible passage. We noticed a small stage set up on the church lawn with several bluegrass instruments on it.....being bluegrass fans, Steve and I decided to come back for the performance after we checked out the town and had several beers (well, it WAS already 10 am). We got back to the church just as a family gospel group was taking the stage...the group was comprised of mom and dad and 8 or 9 kids, ranging in age from 18 all the way down to 2 or 3. We grabbed 2 of the 20 or so folding chairs set up on the lawn and enjoyed the concert....unfortunately, a motorcycle gang took most of the other chairs and turned them around with their backs to the stage so they could watch the parade of bikers and chaps making their way down Main Street.....I must admit the parade was just a bit more entertaining.