STURGIS, S.D. (CelebrityAccess) — While most major public events planned for this summer have been shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic, the city of Sturgis, South Dakota has decided to allow the 80th annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally to proceed.
The rally, which this year is set to take place from August 7 to 16, regularly attracts hundreds of thousands of motorcycle fans to downtown Sturgis.
Concerts planned for Sturgis this year include Puddle of Mudd, Shinedown, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Colt Ford, Willie Nelson & Family, The Devil Wears Prada, and ZZ Top, among others.
However, the famed motorcycle event will be subjected to some changes, including the cancellation of the Rally’s parade and opening-day event.
Vendors working at the event will all be required to wear personal protective equipment and the city of Sturgis will provide said equipment if it is not available.
Other changes include barring open container drinks from public spaces, and dispensing with plaza seating in Sturgis downtown area to prevent congregations of people.
Additionally, sanitation stations will be located throughout the downtown area as well.
Other measures, including mass testing of attendees and residents is being considered but as of yet, that aspect of the plan has not been implemented.
Furthermore, the Mayor of Sturgis can cancel the event at any time before or during the rally if there is a sharp rise in COVID-19 infections in the area.
“If mass testing happens, anyone who was interacting with the tens of thousands of people that come into our community are able to be tested so that they know they would need to self quarantine or also seek treatment,” Daniel Ainslie, City of Sturgis city manager, said.
“We are continuing to work with the Department of Homeland Security and state emergency office to try to get that done,” he added.
The Sturgis City Council also weighed canceling the event, or postponing it until 2021.
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