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Buffalo Chip Campground
The Largest Music Festival in Motorcycling
	Buffalo Chip Campground Logo
Address	20622 Fort Meade Way
Location	Sturgis, South Dakota, United States
Coordinates	44°24′50″N 103°24′49″W / 44.4139°N 103.413749°W
Owner	Rod Woodruff
Type	Campground, Concert Event
Genre(s)	Rock, Country, Classic rock
Website
	buffalochip.com

The Buffalo Chip Campground is an event venue in Meade County, South Dakota, United States. The campground is a place for motorcycle enthusiasts and music festival visitors each year, and has been since its founding in 1981. Host to a 10-day Concert Series and thousands of motorcyclists each August during the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, the Buffalo Chip provides a music festival, various other forms of entertainment, and full service tent, RV and cabin camping on almost 600 acres in rural Meade County. The motorcycle and music festival also features entertainment including multiple disciplines of racing,^[1] exhibits,^[2] beauty pageants, dance performances, bike shows, world-record-breaking stunts,^[3] midget bowling, and military tributes.

As of the 2020 U.S. Census, Buffalo Chip is listed as a town.^[4]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
2020	7		—
U.S. Decennial Census^[5]

History

The Sturgis Buffalo Chip Campground, located outside of Sturgis, SD, began in 1981^[6]^[7] as a campground for bikers attending the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. In the early years motorcyclists roughed it in tents in little more than a pasture, however over the years the Buffalo Chip Campground improved infrastructure by installing electricity, drilling wells, laying asphalt, and erecting flush toilet facilities, shower houses, and RV sites.^[8] Additional attractions and amenities sprung up around the property including cabins,^[9] a swimming hole called the "Bikini Beach", an award-winning PowerSports Complex,^[10] racetracks, multiple stages, numerous bars, a variety of food services, a convenience store, a gas station,^[11] and a motorcycle product retail and installation facility.^[12] Throughout the years, several landmarks have also been erected on the property, including the iron "Welcome Home Biker" entrance gates, the World's Largest V-Twin Engine sculpture,^[13] Freedom Field,^[14] and an 8-ton buffalo sculpture with the letters "CHIP" cut out of its center 30' above Hwy 34 at the northwest corner of the Sturgis Buffalo Chip's property.

The Sturgis Buffalo Chip featured Susan Nelson as the first artist to perform at its inaugural event, followed by Johnny Paycheck.^[15]

The Buffalo Chip made notable national television news coverage in 2008 when John McCain visited the Buffalo Chip Campground on his 2008 campaign trail.^[16] McCain joked that he wanted his wife to enter the Miss Buffalo Chip beauty contest ^[17] held at the Buffalo Chip campground. In 2009 the Buffalo Chip made additional notable national news coverage when Aerosmith lead singer, Steven Tyler, fell off the stage.^[18]^[19]

The Sturgis Buffalo Chip built a 7,000 sq. ft. exhibition hall in 2009 to house its annual Motorcycles as Art Exhibit.^[20] This annual revolving exhibit has been curated by Michael Lichter.^[21] Exhibits have featured the works of multiple builders of custom motorcycles, the works of photographer Michael Lichter, himself, and sculptor Jeff Decker.^[22]

in 2012, the Sturgis Buffalo Chip built CrossRoads, an outdoor free-access venue at the western edge of the property, featuring the Big Engine Bar and stage, Field of Flags military tribute, and open space for vendors, bike washes, motorcycle shows, and numerous other motorcycle rally-related activities.

South Dakota Governor, Dennis Daugaard proclaimed Thursday, Aug. 11, 2011, as the official Buffalo Chip Campground Day in South Dakota.^[23] The proclamation was read from the Wolfman Jack Stage by ABC TV news anchorman, Bob Woodruff, present to participate in the Buffalo Chip's Military Tribute Day and raise awareness for the Bob Woodruff Foundation's mission to put action into the saying "Support Our Troops."^[24]

Robbie Knievel made motorcycle jumps at the Buffalo Chip.^[25]

The Buffalo Chip hosted TORC: The Off-Road Championship at its PowerSports Complex in 2014 and 2015.^[26]^[27]

The Buffalo Chip TT held in the venue's amphitheater was part of the American Flat Track Circuit in 2017,^[28] 2018,^[29] and 2019.^[30]

Other entertainment and activities that have occurred at the Buffalo Chip includes racing,^[31] fire dancers, ziplines,^[32] roller derby, machine gun shooting,^[33] midget bowling,^[34] comedians, and more.

The Sturgis Buffalo Chip has been featured in multiple television specials on the Discovery, Travel Channel,^[35] Fox Sports Network,^[36] CMT,^[37] HISTORY,^[38] and NBC Sports.^[39] The venue has also been featured in Rolling Stone,^[40] The New York Times,^[41] Forbes,^[42] Billboard,^[43] Pollstar,^[44] CNN,^[45] and Time.

Ownership and operation

The Buffalo Chip Campground was founded by Rod Woodruff. He remains the President and CEO. He and his family run and prepare for each August music festival ^[46] with the help of a small staff employed full-time year round and few hundred temporary help staff the grounds for the event.^[47]

Carol, Rod's wife, manages the box office. His daughter, Toni Woodruff, manages vending and, jointly with his son, Daymon Woodruff, merchandising.^[7] Daymon also directs the bar operations as well as the showcase entertainment and marketing department. Toni and Daymon's mother, Meri Remick, manages personnel and bar accounting.

Charity support

The Buffalo Chip has and continues to support many charities.^[48] To date it has raised over $1 million for charity through its various endeavors.^[49]

Its most notable charitable efforts are The Legends Ride,^[50]^[51] The Biker Belles Ride, and the Rusty Wallace Ride.^[52] All three charity rides were founded and are promoted by the Buffalo Chip.

The annual Legends Ride features some of the celebrities ^[53] that attend the Sturgis Buffalo Chip's events. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been passed to local Black Hills charities. Current beneficiaries are the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame and the Black Hills Special Olympics ^[54] and Sturgis Brown High School students.^[55]

The annual Biker Belles ride features and emphasizes women in motorcycling, though men are included in the ride. One hundred percent of riders' contributions are passed to two charities, the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame and Helping With Horsepower.^[56]

The Rusty Wallace Ride allows attendees to meet and ride alongside NASCAR racers including ride namesake Rusty Wallace.^[52] Funds raised by the event have benefitted charities including the NASCAR Foundation, All Kids Bike, and Special Olympics South Dakota – Rapid City Flame.

Attempt at incorporation

In 2016, the geographic area on which the Buffalo Chip Campground resides attempted to incorporate as the Town of Buffalo Chip. The legality of the incorporation was challenged in court, an appeal was made to the South Dakota Supreme Court^[57] which, on January 25, 2018, ruled that only the state—and not another municipality—can challenge incorporation. The State of South Dakota brought that challenge to Meade County Court in summer 2018^[58] and on Nov. 12, 2020, the South Dakota Supreme Court ruled that Buffalo Chip's incorporation was unlawful and void, because the area does not contain the required 100 legal residents.^[59]