TRANS SOUTH DAKOTA: THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE WONDERFUL
The start line on Wyoming border.
BY MELISSA HAMERSMA SIEVERS
Seven hundred and fourteen miles across the state of South Dakota on a bicycle. Riding on single track trails in the Black Hills, a paved descent past Mount Rushmore, the Mickelson Trail, hundreds of miles of gravel, a bit more paved and numerous b-roads. Piece of cake, right? Oh, the trek is selfsupported. You are responsible for hauling your own water, clothing, sleeping gear of choice, repair kit and food. This year, the race started in Beulah, WY on July 18. Joe and Tina Stiller are the race organizers for the Trans South Dakota Bike Race. They are available to answer phone calls day or night if you hit a rough spot or can’t find a turn. They have scouted available water spigots along the route and help clue participants in on friendly places to camp for the night. I’ve read rider accounts that indicate that the Trans South Dakota Bike Race is the best supported unsupported bike event to participate in. Beautiful and sweeping vistas are present along every mile of the route. The rocky mountain bike trails, rolling gravel, and flat river bottom offer something for everyone. In Pierre, a five-mile river crossing offers an up-close-and-personal view of the Missouri. Riders break down their bike, lash it to a raft and paddle from Oahe Dam to the town center. Trans South Dakota is a bike race. Technically. Some riders set forth from the Wyoming border competing to cross the state first. Others just hope
to finish. But race rules still must be followed. For example, each rider has checkpoints to visit at Mount Rushmore, Badlands National Park, and the Corn Palace in Mitchell. They must also post a photo to the Facebook group to document their arrival. The race is tightened with deadlines to reach each point along the way. Each rider has 11 days to North Sioux City, South Dakota. A satellite spot tracker on each bike reports locations to race coordinators and interested fans. If a rider exits the course, they must return to where they left off and start over from that point. James Meyer, an avid Spearfish biker, is intimately familiar with the trails in the Black Hills. Meyer thought he knew the Trans SD course, but misinterpreted a portion of the route. “In the first hundred and some miles I knew every inch of it. I had ridden it many times before, so I knew exactly what to expect. I looked at the course, I thought I knew exactly where it was going. But I didn’t look real carefully. I actually went off-course for a total of 10 miles before I realized what I had done wrong and then had to turn around to backtrack climbing Continued on the next page.
VIDEO: Riders take off on bike race July 18, 2020
Some paved roads are used in the cross state route. Primarily they connect large sections of single track, gravel and minimum maintenance roads. Return to Menu
