The Donuts

After a great night in Minni and an elementary school style sleep over at Eric’s, we made our way towards Mt Rushmore. The drive was going great for the first 45 minutes until we realized we were about 30 minutes past the stop we planned to meet with the guys at Focus Sales who hooked us up with all our GoPro and Sandisk gear for the trip. (At the time of this writing we now know that this was a sign of things to come. Sleep deprived, frustrated by a lack of internet access in this part of the country, annoyed with each other’s noises, smells and mere presence, please excuse the expected reduced frequency and wit in the forthcoming updates.)

We turned around and it was well worth it because there were donuts waiting for us. We spent some time chatting and taking pictures with the team and then got back on the road.

The Googleing

After passing what seemed to be a strangely large number of motor cycle trailers, Matt took to his phone and realized that it just so happened that we would be driving within 30 minutes of Sturgis South Dakota during bike week. Matt was very excited and very confused by the fact that Rob (the only other person awake at the time) did not share his enthusiasm. After about four seconds of Google image searching, Rob learned enough about Sturgis to decide that he was excited as well. So excited that he got pulled over. When the backseat passengers awoke they were glad to know that Rob got off with a warning and were told about the new planned detour, and once again, confusion set in due to their lack of response. More Googleing, more excitement and Matt got another speeding ticket.

The Fight

On the way to Sturgis Matt and Gary got into a fight.

The Greatest Detour of All Times

About five minutes after arriving in Sturgis, Matt and Gary made up. Sturgis truly is a magical place. We discretely opened our bottle of wine and watched the sunset of the Sturgis version of the Hollywood sign. Rob almost got us all killed when he started asking bikers to take him for a ride. Eventually a very nice biker lady actually contemplated it for a moment before her better judgment prevailed. Rob’s poor little heart was broken.

We wandered around taking in all the excitement while Rob sulked and at a custom shirt shop we lost Rob forever. A denim vest, emblazoned with an American flag and a bald eagle turned Rob into VIC.

Rob was never seen again.

The Presidential Pardon

If you are going to see Mt. Rushmore, we suggest you do it in the five minutes before the park closes and the fifteen minutes after it’s closed. You get really great parking, the restrooms are empty and the incredibly stoned Park Ranger is very friendly. Mt Rushmore was actually very impressive. You should go.

The most terrifying part of the trip came next. Driving down the winding mountain road towards Casper Wyoming in the most fearsome rainstorm we’ve ever experienced. When Gary got pulled over (yes the third time we’d been pulled over today) he was actually relieved that he got to stop the car and catch his breath. That was until the State Trooper told him that we were on a road with an immense, and mostly suicidal, deer population. The trooper let Gary off with a warning and at the same time we got another warning as we looked to the side of the road and saw two large deer no more than 50 ft from us. The rest of the drive off the mountain, the front seat saw the most intense concentration of the trip. And as front seat passenger and official animal spotter, it was the most intense concentration of Matt’s life.

We finally pulled into Casper and Rob . . . I mean Vic used his charm and his vest to get free breakfast coupons from the large and lovely night manager.