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Dirico Motorcycles donates bike for Sturgis charities
March 29, 2010

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STURGIS -- Giving back to the motorcycle community and the city that hosts one of the largest bike rallies in the world, Dirico Motorcycles has decided to sweeten this year's Sturgis Motorcycle Rally by donating the 2010 bike that will be raffled off to benefit local charities.  


The bike, a Dirico Motorcycles Prostreet model, will commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. This year, 100 percent of the proceeds will benefit local charities.

Based in Manchester, N.H., Dirico Motorcycles, which also built last year's Official Sturgis Motorcycle, decided to donate this year's bike even before the raffle was completed last year.

“When Dirico was here for the last Rally I think it made a huge impression on them of what this motorcycle signifies for our community,” said Marcia Johnston, of the Sturgis Area Chamber of Commerce Charitable Foundation, which organizes the raffle to raise money for local non-profit organizations. “It's not just another raffle for one particular charity. It benefits the whole community of Sturgis. So that really said a lot to them. Based on that, before they even left, before we even gave last year's bike away, they said 'we'd like to do this again, only we will give you the bike.' That kind of does it for us.”

Stephen Talarico, president of Dirico Motorcycles USA, said the gift was somewhat spiritual for him. The Black Hills of South Dakota, with its rich Native American history, have always held a special place in Talarico's heart, as he has specifically revered Crazy Horse and the Lakota Sioux as his personal heroes.

“I have been part of the motorcycle industry for a lot of years and Sturgis is such a huge event,” he said. “My philosophy has always been to give back to the community in any way I can with my businesses and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to do that. The foundations that the Chamber is involved with in the community are fantastic. They do a great thing for kids and South Dakota and to be part of it is somewhat of an honor.

“It's a little spiritual for me also because one of my childhood right through adulthood heroes has been Crazy Horse,” Talarico continued. “I have studied on the Lakota Sioux and I just think that whole area is an interesting, fascinating part of our country.”

Johnston said this will be the sixth year her group has raffled off a motorcycle to benefit the Sturgis community. In the past the committee has spent between $27,000 and $35,000 on bikes for the raffle. This donation, she said, will not only allow 100 percent of the raffle funds to go back into the community, but she is also hoping future bike builders will follow Dirico's lead, recognizing the impact the raffle has on Sturgis' citizenry. In the past, Johnston said this fundraiser yields between $7,000 to $12,000 for the community. With the bike donation this year, she said she hopes those dollar amounts are bigger.

Because of the bike donation, Johnston said the foundation decided to structure this year's raffle differently. In the past, she said tickets have been $100, with a promise that only 999 tickets would be sold. But many bikers in previous years have reported that the economic downturn prevented them from purchasing tickets at that price, Johnston said. Therefore, this year's tickets will be sold for $25, with sales capped at 5,000 tickets.

The Official Sturgis Motorcycle raffle is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Sturgis Area Chamber of Commerce Charitable Foundation. The foundation turns over the proceeds from the event to the Sturgis Rally Charities Foundation, which then distributes it to local non-profit organizations that benefit a variety of sectors in the community. Some organizations that have benefited from the proceeds include Post 33 baseball, Sturgis soccer, girl's softball, the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall of Fame, the Fort Meade Museum, the Sturgis Library and its many different reading programs, and many other programs. The only criteria, Johnston said, is that the non-profit group have a 501c3 status, and that it be within the boundaries of the Meade School District.

The drawing for the bike will be held Aug. 14. Raffle tickets for the Official Sturgis Motorcycle are available at www.sturgisrallyraffle.com.

By Wendy Pitlick
Black Hills Pioneer

Last Modified: 03-29-2010-09:46:33
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