First trip there and have no clue what to expect. Staying in Custer and know it's a 75 minute ride to sturgis. What time in the mornings do the stores/vendors open and what is a good time to get there in in the morning, to get easy parking?

 

6 a. m.

 

earlier the better for parking but you may have a wait for the vendors-

 

Why would you want to stay in Custer, when there are a **** load of campgrounds very close to Sturgis where you can ride their shuttle's into town at night?

I think you're making a big mistake and will see that once you get in the area.. JMO.

 

No mistake here. I thought everything out to the nines before i booked a room. Since i love riding, the daily ride to sturgis for the 3 days i'll be there is no problem at all. Thought about camping for a short time once i found out motel rates in and near sturgis. Canned that idea rather quick, since i dont owe any camping gear and buying it all would have set me back several hundred bucks. My motel is 115/night with a real bed/AC/shower.
You're right...it's not as convenient, but I'm ok with it. If i need to be there at 6 am and have to leave at 5am, i see it as a nice morning ride before it gets to hot. Cant wait.
So, when do they all open up in the morning?

 

I prefer to stay in the area near Custer also, spend your mornings riding in Custer SP, Needles Hwy and Iron Mt Rd before the masses show up from the Sturgis Area. Sent you a PM with directions to my favorite free parking area close to all the action. If you're more into riding and seeing the sights than hanging out in the traffic and madness of Sturgis you made the right choice. Hill City is a nice town to have a meal or drinks on your way back from Sturgis without the mass of humanity. Vendors are normally up and running by 10am, if you get to Sturgis before then you can usually find a spot to park on Main St.

 

probably depends on the vendor but probably 9 or 10 AM?
most of the crowds get into town about noon or later.
you can normally find a parking spot, any time of day, but may have to look harder later in the day there is a lot of free parking some $5 a day?

A lot of nice riding to be had in the hills!

 

Never had a problem parking anytime on Main but if you get there after 10AM and you have a few riders you likely won't park together. It's pretty easy to find spots fairly close to each other though. If you get there at six AM, you will have the whole area to yourself. I rode in there at three or four every day last year and found easy parking on main.

 

Oh yeah, word of caution here, coming back in the evening or after dark on 385 there's lots of wildlife crossing the road from deer/elk to big horn sheep. I like to get back to the Hill City area by dark to avoid this issue whenever I can. Also the cops are usually out in force in the evening/ nite between Deadwood and Sturgis looking for speeders and drunks.

 

x2 on this, last year I spent more time in the custer area in the mornings, than I did in Sturgis. From noon to whenever you wanna sleep Sturgis is fun but I really enjoyed cruising the custer area in the mornings and one nice night.

Edit: Just read the posts above me, sorry for reposting already said material.