It's hard for me to believe, but this year will be my 22nd in a row attending Sturgis Bike Week. I first went in 1987 and I haven't missed a year since.

For many people, Sturgis is a state of mind. When you're at Sturgis, you just leave the real world behind. There are no problems, no headaches, no IRS audits, and no screamin' bosses (except for me and Paul Teutul). Sturgis is a place to get away from all that real-world junk and escape to a happy place. Each year when I first pull down Main Street, I always get goosebumps.

Sturgis is kinda like my home away from home. I have some friends that I only see once a year — and it's every year at Sturgis. I have ridden thousands of miles in those Black Hills with hundreds of friends, and I keep coming back for more.

The first year in Sturgis I didn't know anyone in town and none of my pals (I only have two) was going. Back then I was a sales rep for the Glidden Paint Co. and I actually got paid vacations. I had never been to that part of the country and had no clue what to expect or had any idea how beautiful it was. I rode my 1965 Pan and I was more excited than a puppy dog with two peters (that's a Texas saying). My Pan ran great, and I was on a motorcycle-induced high.

Since then, I've seen it all — anything you can imagine on two wheels or more. A speed boat with wheels and a Harley motor. Caskets doubling as trailers. A John Deere tractor with a V-twin engine. Plus, I couldn't believe that you could get hundreds of thousands of bikers together and not have any problems. In my 22 years of going, I've never seen so much as a fistfight.

A World Run by Bikers

The first time I ever brushed up against motorcycle royalty was in Sturgis. I was leaning up against the wall of Arlin Fatland's 2-Wheelers shop on Main Street and some guy comes up and says "Nice shirt." I looked down at my shirt and saw that I was wearing an Arlen Ness shirt. I looked up and it was actually Ness who was talking to me! I was dumbfounded! Arlen Ness actually talked to me, Rick Fairless, a lucky chump from Texas! Man oh man, was I living large or what?

Sturgis was also the first time I met Donnie Smith, Cory Ness, Dave Perewitz, Ron Simms, Pat and Brook Kennedy, Don Hotop and many other industry legends. I always thought it was cool to see these famous people who share the same passion for motorcycles that we all do. I once saw Malcolm Forbes talking to a hard-core biker on Main Street. I doubt this cat knew he was even talking to Malcolm Forbes!

The thing that keeps me coming back every year is the camaraderie among bikers, between the legends and the everyday guys on vacation. Sturgis Bike Week is a glimpse into what the world would be like if it were run by bikers.

Of the many memorable moments, there was 50th anniversary of Sturgis in 1990 when more than 500,000 people showed up in the Black Hills. The T-shirts all said "Sturgis 50th UN F'n BELIEVABLE." It truly was unbelievable. Lots of people came up for their first time that year. I was in a group of about 20 from Dallas, many of whom had never made the trip before or since.

And then there was the 1999 rally, the year I was inducted into the Hamsters USA. That remains one of the highlights of my life. We were at the Spearfish Convention Center and I was as nervous as a fixin'-to-be-branded steer. Will I get in? Is this my year? Please God let this be the year Rick Fairless gets into the Hamsters. I've dreamed of it so many times. I made room in my closet next to my tie-dye shirts for all those new yellow Hamster shirts, I thought to myself.

Perewitz was calling out the names of the new inductees for the Hamster class of 1999: Brian Klock, Bruce Siegal, Phil Day, Bruce Rossmeyer, and then I thought I heard Dave say, Rick Fairless. Wait a minute. I'm not positive. Did Dave call my name? If I stand up and he didn't call my name I'll look like a bigger fool than I already am.

Well, Perewitz has a heavy Boston accent and it's hard for a goofball Texan to understand his words. Then, he looked at me and said, "Come up here Rick, you're a Hamster now!" Oh my God, he did call my name! Twice! I'm a Hamster, I'm a Hamster! I'll never forget it. I never hugged so many fat guys in all my life and I was damn proud to do it!

Nothing compares to Sturgis. It's as close as I've ever come to having a mistress (at least as far as anyone knows). Nowadays I set up my store, Strokers Sturgis, inside the Thunderdome at Thunder Road, just trying to bring a little piece of Strokers Dallas to Sturgis. Bikes, babes and beer. Ain't that what it's all about? Can I get a "Hell Yeah" from Paul Yaffe? Testify, Paul! Paul says "Hell Yeah!"

Rick Fairless hosts his own radio show, Texas Hardtails Scooter Show, and is the owner of Rick Fairless' Strokers Dallas.