The Sturgis Rally is just about here, which is usually accompanied by an increase in accidents on the roads. This comes at a transition point for the boots on the ground, as the Sturgis Ambulance Service introduces a new director.
Aden Schillig brings decades of experience to the Sturgis service just before the rally comes and turns the town of under 10,000 into a biker metropolis of hundreds of thousands.
He said the community typically experiences a handful of calls a day, but that goes out the window once bike week starts.
“That’s a big load on the trauma system as a whole, but Sturgis specifically," Schillig said. "The crews have adapt for that and have to be ready for that. We provide training year-round to get them ready.”
While newly named to the role of director, this isn’t Schillig’s first rodeo leading trauma response at Sturgis.
“Having worked with Black Hills LifeFlight, I’ve worked with the Sturgis Ambulance for 10 rallies," Schillig said. "While it’s not my first rally, it is my first leading this ship. If you land on-scene, you have about 30 seconds to convince the crew that responded, the fire department, the police, the patient’s family members, that you know what you’re doing and that you have the ability to manage and lead that scene.”
Now, he said the onus falls on himself and his crew to keep the rally as safe as can be.
“We’ll just take every call as they come in and get people the care they need and transported to where they need – whether that’s one at a time or a mass casualty,” Schillig said.
Department of Public Safety data shows dozens of injury accidents and multiple fatal crashes are reported each year. The 2024 Rally saw three deaths – though that number is higher when factoring in the days before and after the Rally, as well as Rally-related crashes outside the Black Hills.
The 2025 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally begins Aug. 1.