# Aftermath of the Sturgis SD Motorcycle Rally **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [September 2, 2020, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616 "2020-09-02T17:06:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![urbanredneck2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/5f8ce5/32.png) [@urbanredneck2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/urbanredneck2)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/21 "2020-09-04T03:09:45Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > Total WAG, but with hundreds of thousands of people coming in, it’s possible, if not likely, that some local people went down to Sturgis for the near certainty of spectacle and employment that comes when a lot of new people suddenly need food, housing, booze, and entertainment. > > Not sure why the assumption is that people from Sturgis had to go to Perkins County. The fine citizens of Perkins County should be quite capable of leaving the county of their own accord and returning in the same manner. But that should be easy to track. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/22 "2020-09-04T03:11:57Z")
“If” they track. And even if they did, we know Americans generally [aren’t cooperating](https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/615637/) with tracing efforts. Maybe it’s a bit of stereotyping, but the sort of person who hops on their Harley and goes to a massive rally and brings disease back home is probably more resistant than average to masking and contact tracing. ---
**Author:** ![SayTwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e56c9b/32.png) [@SayTwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SayTwo)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/23 "2020-09-04T03:37:53Z")
Hell, with that many viral particles around, maybe enough of them flew by air to Perkins. ---
**Author:** ![Tfletch1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tfletch1/32/5340_2.png) [@Tfletch1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tfletch1)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/24 "2020-09-04T03:56:54Z")
> [@urbanredneck2](#): > > Well my point is the cases would have risen even if Sturgis had not occurred. Ok, maybe just 150 vs 250 cases (I’m making up numbers here) but it would have still happened. > > For example Perkins county in northern SD up until last month had zero cases and is far away from Sturgis and sees little traffic, now has had a few cases. Look at all the states that had summer surges in cases. SD is the only state (and maybe ND) that has a surge between one and two weeks after the Sturgis rally started. .SD stands out because there were very little cases before. All other states either had very few cases in the summer or had an increase starting in June and peaking around the middle of July. This was also seen in some European countries. Then you have other states that are seeing an increase about a week ago due to kids going back to school. None of these match SD. Now zero in on the counties. The ones that have been hot for a little over two weeks now have been those where the rally took place in the west part of the state (Meade Co and nearby Pennington and Lawrence). Only one other country seems to be rising and that one has SD State U. > **[South Dakota Coronavirus Map and Case Count](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/us/south-dakota-covid-cases.html)** > > See the latest charts and maps of coronavirus cases, deaths, hospitalizations and vaccinations in South Dakota. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/25 "2020-09-04T15:05:58Z")
According to the NY Times listing of cases in the last seven days, South Dakota has rocketed to the top, in terms of new cases per 100k. Right behind them is North Dakota. I’d say this is not proof-positive, but definitely suggestive of a link to Sturgis. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/26 "2020-09-04T15:51:02Z")
Not completely. The person who went may have gotten an asymptomatic case and given it to others. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/27 "2020-09-04T17:33:21Z")
I just phoned my buddy Bill over in Ockham, who is often right about such things. He said it’s probably due to Sturgis as well. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/28 "2020-09-04T17:50:12Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > I just phoned my buddy Bill over in Ockham, who is often right about such things. Fake news from lamestream philosophy. I maintain incredulity toward metanarratives that contradict Fox News. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/29 "2020-09-04T20:49:22Z")
"The South Dakota State Fair opens Thursday and will [run through Sept. 7](https://www.sdstatefair.com/). While it’s not clear how many people plan to attend this year’s event, more than 200,000 people visited the fair last year, [according to the state’s department of agriculture](https://news.sd.gov/newsitem.aspx?id=26032). Fair organizers have implemented health and safety measures, such as hand washing stations and social distancing requirements, at the five-day event, but assume no responsibility should guests become infected with [COVID-19](https://abcnews.go.com/health/coronavirus). “Exposure to COVID-19 is an inherent risk in any public location where people are present,” [according to the fair website](https://www.sdstatefair.com/general-information/about-us/history/). “By visiting the South Dakota State Fairgrounds, you voluntarily assume all risks related to exposure to COVID-19.” The state fair comes on the heels of last month’s Sturgis motorcycle rally, which was attended by hundreds of thousands of people. At least 290 people in 12 states who attended the rally have tested positive for COVID-19, [according to The Associated Press](https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/covid-19-death-tied-sturgis-rally-reported-minnesota-72777302). A man from Minnesota who [attended the rally has died](https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/covid-19-death-tied-sturgis-rally-reported-minnesota-72777302). Republican Gov. Kristi Noem supported holding the rally in her state. “We are not – and WILL not – be the subjects of an elite class of so-called experts,” [she tweeted in August](https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/south-dakotas-noem-rnc-virus-cases-rise-72615426). “We the People are the government.” > **[Another big event starts up in South Dakota as infections from Sturgis rally...](https://abc7chicago.com/another-big-event-starts-up-in-south-dakota-as-infections-from-sturgis-rally-rise/6405981/)** > > The South Dakota State Fair opens Sept. 3 and will run through Sept. 7. “We are not – and WILL not – be the subjects of an elite class of so-called experts,” All Righty Then. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/30 "2020-09-04T20:57:56Z")
They’re probably due for another outbreak in a few weeks, so they might as well have a party, right? ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/31 "2020-09-04T20:58:34Z")
This, honestly, seems a lot less worrisome that Sturgis. Not a great idea, mind you, but less bad. I would assume that the vast majority of those 200,000 people are from South Dakota. Sturgis drew people from all over the country, mixed them up for a week or more, and then sent them back. Without Sturgis in the first place, it might even have been reasonable for SD to have a state fair this week. It’s a lot less safe now. ---
**Author:** ![urbanredneck2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/5f8ce5/32.png) [@urbanredneck2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/urbanredneck2)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/32 "2020-09-04T23:44:29Z")
I can agree that Sturgis was part of the surge. But as I said South Dakota was due for one. Plus people were going to come to Sturgis, and the entire state, no matter what.SD is a major tourist state. I have friends right now who were just at Mt. Rushmore. Now hopefully they have had enough time to prepare. ---
**Author:** ![urbanredneck2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/5f8ce5/32.png) [@urbanredneck2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/urbanredneck2)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/33 "2020-09-04T23:47:11Z")
> [@MandaJo](#): > > This, honestly, seems a lot less worrisome that Sturgis. Not a great idea, mind you, but less bad. I would assume that the vast majority of those 200,000 people are from South Dakota. Sturgis drew people from all over the country, mixed them up for a week or more, and then sent them back. Without Sturgis in the first place, it might even have been reasonable for SD to have a state fair this week. It’s a lot less safe now. I’ve been to Sturgis and actually most are not from South Dakota. From my experience actual Dakota bike riders avoid the event because of the crowd but still ride in the Black Hills when its less crowded. As for the state fair Disney and other amusement parks are open so I dont see why not. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/34 "2020-09-04T23:54:27Z")
I said the opposite. Stupid is people all over. How many people come from put of state for the state fair? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/35 "2020-09-04T23:57:11Z")
> [@urbanredneck2](#): > > But as I said South Dakota was due for one. That was irrelevant before and it’s still irrelevant. Just because a state is ‘due’ for an outbreak is no reason to host a bike rally. Do you think having a 200,000 person party in a state with 800,000 people is a good idea for a place that’s ‘due’ for an outbreak? Wouldn’t it make more sense to look at it not in terms of being ‘due’ for an outbreak, but rather that you’ve done a really good job keeping the curve as flat as possible? > [@urbanredneck2](#): > > I have friends right now who were just at Mt. Rushmore. A)So what. Maybe they should have skipped their vacation like the rest of the world. B)Unless they brought a quarter million of their closest friends, I’m not sure that’s a very good comparison. C)If they come back with covid are you going to say ‘oh well, they went this long without getting it, they were due to get sick’. Actually, come to think of it, that’s a good comparison. You, I assume, wouldn’t say ‘they haven’t caught it yet, they were due to get sick’, just like most people wouldn’t say, in response to Sturgis ‘they were due for an outbreak’. ---
**Author:** ![urbanredneck2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/5f8ce5/32.png) [@urbanredneck2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/urbanredneck2)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/36 "2020-09-04T23:57:23Z")
Sorry I didnt catch that. Yes, other than vendors most are from in state at the fair. But the state fair can be managed safely. The 4H kids need a way to show off their livestock and such. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2020, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/37 "2020-09-04T23:58:29Z")
> [@urbanredneck2](#): > > The 4H kids need a way to show off their livestock and such. The 4H kids would _like_ to show off their livestock and such. That doesn’t make the State Fair an essential business. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2020, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/38 "2020-09-05T00:07:10Z")
> [@urbanredneck2](#): > > As for the state fair Disney and other amusement parks are open so I dont see why not. Disneyland has only opened the Downtown area with restriction. Disneyworld requires reservations and is open on a limited basis, no guarantees on what is or is not open. Not the same as 250,000 crowding together. Just because amusement parks are open doesn’t mean it’s the smart thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2020, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/39 "2020-09-05T00:29:17Z")
Hey as long as a place is due for a surge, then all is as it should be. Urbanredneck, quick, name the next place due for a surge before it happens. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2020, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616/40 "2020-09-05T00:34:52Z")
Yeah, Olympians are getting a raincheck. Some aggies can cry me a river about losing the opportunity to show off their prize-piglet. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aftermath-of-the-sturgis-sd-motorcycle-rally/919616.md?page=3)