Tag Archives: Ingo Schweder

Massage Treatments for Bikers at 2007 Sturgis Biker Rally in South Dakota

Bikers Really Like Their Massages as Witnessed at the 2007 Sturgis Biker Rally
by Susie Ellis

susiecycle 722388 Massage Treatments for Bikers at 2007 Sturgis Biker Rally in South DakotaMy last day in Sturgis for the big motorcycle rally I thought I would check in with hubby and our travel companions Cassandra and Kevin (who are also our partners in SpaFinder Europe) regarding observations about our experiences and in particular what has changed in the past 8 years:

        • More women riding their own bikes (mostly Harley’s )
        • Still plenty of leather but aging bodies wearing them
        • Camouflage pants and shirts are in style
        • More gray-haired bikers
        • Trikes – the three wheeled bikes are getting hot (one advantage is they have trunks!)
        • Boss Hoss bikes are trumping Harley’s as far as the “photo op” is concerned and the Boss Hoss trikes are trumping those
        • Major paintwork on the bikes – a lot more artistry now telling stories – the Native American theme, toy story theme, etc.
        • More massage stands
        • iPods ©, cell phones, and BlackBerries ©
        • Custom molded earphones
        • Bandannas with Velcro (what a great idea!)
        • Talking with “Big Mike” a burly guy who has worked on bikes for decades and comes to Sturgis every year. I asked him if he’s ever been to a spa. His answer? “Oh yeah, I like them massages.”

        And things that haven’t changed:

        • Bikini bike washes
        • Hot women “flashing”
        • I’m really ready to get home….

        Tap, Tap, Tapping Our Way to Health

        Sallie and I are at Chiva-Som to conduct the first Spa Specialist Training Course for Virtuoso travel agents. We are joined by six top-notch travel agents for the few days we are here. (We decided to teach our first course at a spa, since there is no better way to learn about spas than being at one – and in this case, one of the best in the world!) Every day was filled with spa experiences as well as a few hours of training guided by the extensive course we developed in the past six months. If I do say so myself, it was a grand success.

        Chiva-Som staff planned some unique experiences for us, as I felt there was no sense in coming all the way to Thailand for a Swedish massage. Our little group was scheduled for one of their most distinctive Thai offerings, Meridian Tapping. Editor-in Chief Gary Walther had written about this in the Jan/Feb issue of Luxury SpaFinder Magazine, although admittedly I didn’t “get it” from reading about it. After experiencing it, I realize how hard it is to describe to someone else.

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        The basics: Decide on an area of discomfort in your life (physical or mental). You are asked to think about this area of personal challenge while a therapist taps your meridian points. This is supposed to repattern your body, resulting in an actual noticeable change.

        We were given an examphotel500 F02 738250 Tap, Tap, Tapping Our Way to Healthle of how Meridian Tapping has been used with some miraculous results: A woman who for many years had a water phobia where the sight of water brought on extreme anxiety. After going from doctor to doctor for years, she ended up being relieved of the phobia after a ten-minute meridian tapping session. OK, that got my attention.

        Our group’s collection of “issues” included a sore knee, a bad back, insomnia, fear of public speaking, jet lag, e-mail addiction, and a few other maladies I can no longer remember. Tap, tap, tap! Each of us had a two-minute session, and then we learned to do “self-tapping” for follow-up. Hard to gauge the results at the moment, but I want to be open-minded.

        Should my list of 700+ emails that I need to answer suddenly be of no concern to me, I’ll make sure to keep tap dancing.

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        If you wish to be put on a list that automatically sends my blog posts to your email, just let dulcy.gregory@spafinder.com know and she will add you to that list. Thanks so much!