BOZEMAN — You've probably seen a lot of motorcycles out on the road recently, and that's because it's time for the 84th annual Sturgis Rally in South Dakota. So I went to Yellowstone Harley Davidson to chat with some of those riders about their travels.
“I started in Lakefield, Ontario, actually, and traveled 1,800 miles to Sturgis for the ADV fest. I was late for the event and riding for 36 hours, I had to stop in Iowa to take a nap,” says Bill Leong.
Bill has been riding motorcycles for over 30 years. He bought his adventure bike 10 months ago with 2,000 miles on it. Today he hit 42,000. This is Bill's third ride to Sturgis, but this year he’s taking the scenic route.
“Right now, I'm going up to Corvallis for another event and I'll stay there until Sunday morning. Where again I will ride back to Sturgis,” he says.
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I asked Bill, “How many days total is that going to be you out on the road on your bike?”
He told me, “About four weeks now”. And Bill doesn't plan on heading home to Canada until mid-August. But Bill isn't the only one putting miles on their new bike.
I asked Josh Fry, the owner of Yellowstone Harley Davidon, “Have you had anyone come in here to buy a bike specifically to go to Sturgis?”
Josh told me, “We typically do, it’s pretty funny. And they’ll stop for an oil change or tires, and they’ll decide to take a new one with them to go to Sturgis."
Josh has ridden motorcycles his entire life and even rode Sturgis 23 years in a row. He tells me now that he’s the owner of Yellowstone Harley, he gets to meet tons of other Sturgis riders who pass through Bozeman.
“We’ve had really strong traffic for a week now. There's a lot of bikes in town as they overnight in the Bozeman/Belgrade area. But especially on the interstate, you’ll watch the large groups go by,” says Josh.
But unfortunately, with an influx of bikers also comes an influx of accidents.
The Montana Highway Patrol reports since the start of 2024, there have already been 18 suspected fatal crashes involving motorcycles. Since 2022 that's over a 63% increase. (Click here for the MHP report.)
In fact, Wednesday afternoon, a motorcyclist from Oregon died in a crash on I- 90 near Livingston. According to the Montana Highway Patrol's fatality crash report, the 73-year-old man was riding his Harley Davidson eastbound on the interstate when a gust of wind pushed the motorcycle into grass in the median. The man lost control and was thrown from the motorcycle and pronounced dead at the scene.
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Harley Davidson reports over half a million bikers attend Sturgis every year. And with so many motorcycles on the road right now, Captain Kelly Sprinkle of the Gallatin County Sheriff's office wants to remind people to be extra cautious: check your blind spots, be mindful when you’re driving around, and remember that motorcycles are smaller and harder to see.
And as a biker, Bill tells me how he stays safe on his 36 hour drives:
“A lot of stopping, drinking a lot of coffee. Always staying aware of the cars around me. Stay focused on the road. Don’t dawdle too much staring at the scenery. It's nice to look at the scenery but every now and then you gotta keep concentrating on the road."
