More vehicles with fewer arrests so far for Rally 2021

STURGIS, S.D. — Friday was the official start of the 2021 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, and while there are more vehicles this year by Day 3 than last year, crime has actually slowed down in comparison.

As of Monday, 188,579 vehicles were counted according to the South Dakota Department of Transportation. That is up 15.9% compared to 2020’s numbers of 160,806 vehicles by day 3.

While total citations are up by 2 and total warnings are up 15.5%, arrests are down from last year for DUIs (19.5%), misdemeanor drug possessions (60.8%), and felony drug possessions (51.3%).

So far, only one fatal accident happened since the Rally started with nine non-injury accidents and 16 accidents that caused non-fatal injuries.

A total of 729 temporary vending licenses have been issued by the City of Sturgis, and 10,800 Official Rally cups have been delivered to outlets. So far, only 22 COVID-19 tests have been requested since the Rally began.

Events for local charities over the weekend were a success:

• Fridays Ride with a Local raised $990 for local charities.
• Saturdays the Mayor’s Ride had 133 participants and raised $18,300 for local first responders.
• Sundays the 5K Run had 49 participants and raised $2,780 for local youth groups.

This Tuesday, the City of Sturgis declared it Military Appreciation Day to pay tribute to military veterans, past and present. The official ceremony will be at 2:00 p.m. at Harley-Davidson Rally Point with a B-1 Flyover at 3:00 p.m. sharp. The Annual Tattoo Contest will follow at 5:00 p.m. at the Harley-Davidson Rally Point.

Don’t forget to submit your photo to NewsCenter1’s photo gallery to show us what your 2021 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally looks like!