Patricia Yates of Milton, W.Va., laughs in telling the multi-generational circumstance of her family's Sturgis rally tour.

"You know you've reached a certain point in life when you get a Harley, and your kids think you're crazy, and your grandkids think you're cool," she said.

She and her retired trucker husband, Dewey, are on their second Black Hills rally trip. Compared with 2002, they are seeing more non-Harley bikes, more women riding their own bikes rather being passengers and seeing a generally older crowd.

"So many of these people are middle-aged people," she said.

Except for her grandson, Brian, and his wife, Mandy, both 31, of Medina, Ohio, where he is an electrical engineer and she's a pharmacist. He swapped a Corvette for a Harley Screaming Eagle Deuce for their first Sturgis rally run.

"He told people that they were going to Sturgis with his grandparents, and they couldn't believe it," she said. Her son and two daughters didn't get the biking bug, and Brian so far is the only rider among the six grandkids.

Since arriving Sunday, the Yates group has been to Deadwood, Mount Rushmore, Devils Tower, Custer State Park, Hill City, where they are staying, and Sturgis.

"That's amazing," she said. "We went riding through town and stopped to see the vendors and buy a T-shirt. … I think with so many bikes, it's really organized pretty good."

They've also "left some money" at the Harley shop on Main Street, at the Black Hills Harley dealership in Rapid City, and are heading back to Deadwood today.

"It's just got a feel to it. We just really like it. And we're going to pull a few handles" at the downtown casinos.

Tom Nelson, general manager of the Gold Dust/Four Aces hopes there are more bikers like the Yates. He said revenue from open weekend was exactly half what it was in 2008.

Deadwood Chamber of Commerce director George Milos said while there are more bikers, most apparently are being more careful with their money in a down economy.

Spearfish area restaurants, retail businesses, campgrounds and motels report business was slow to start, but is increasing daily as traffic increases. For example, the parking areas are full at the Stadium, the Horses To Harleys has been packing in the customers, who report the shirts they sell are popular, and the Scoreboard is packed with "the happy hour crowd."

Deadwood police chief Kelly Fuller said the rally gathering has seen relatively few crimes and accidents. Deadwood trolley director Bob Nelson said the rider count for the past seven days is up more than 900 riders from the same period in 2008.

There may be more bikers riding in Butte County than last year, but the patterns of tourist behavior seem to have changed, according to Butte County Sheriff Fred Lamphere.

"I see a lot more activity in the eastern part of the county," he said, including S.D. Highway 79 north to Newell. "Belle Fourche doesn't look as busy as it has been, but there's a lot of traffic between here and Newell on U.S. Highway 212."

Lamphere said the changing patterns may reflect the expansion of campgrounds on the east side of Sturgis. That gives bikers looking to tour the Northern Hills and Devils Tower area an easy route that avoids slow traffic in Sturgis itself.

Butte County Commissioner Stan Harms added, "They're definitely getting older, and you see a lot more three-wheelers."

Belle Fourche Chamber of Commerce executive Teresa Schanzenbach said it seems obvious that the bike crowd this year is looking for something more to see and do.

The Center of the Nation Visitor Center in Belle Fourche has been setting attendance records with the information desks, CON monument, Johnny Spaulding 1876 cabin and Tri-State Museum.

Kasie Engel of Spearfish is on the front line of bikini bike wash and says business is steady at the Golden Hills Resort in Lead. A graphic designer, she's working for tips to finance a move to Kansas after the rally.

Lead's chamber director, Melissa Johnson, is pleased with the motorcycle traffic so far. Johnson said Lead has a new configuration of vendors and promotions this year. The chamber has set up an afternoon beer tent in the Homestake Visitor's Center parking lot, along with other vendors selling souvenirs, biking equipment T-shirts.

"We're definitely seeing more bikes," she said.