I spent the night in Sturgis once and found it surprisingly quiet and quite nice. Go figure. In fact, I don't know what all the ruckus is about- there were only about 20 people in town altogether and I was the ONLY one staying at the hotel. ??
Unless the date has something to do with it- I was there the first week of June. ?
I only stopped there 'cause I aborted a CC 50 due to the golf ball sized hail. Like Mary Jane Tinklepants, I opted to forgo the rally and not keep riding like a real man would have done. And then got to spend the night in Sturgis.... the punishment truly did fit the crime. :-)
Brian
Been to Laconia a few times and Sturgis once. But never during bike week. Too many people for my taste.