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Joined: Jan 2002
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Age: 21
Posts: 5764
Reviews: 205
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RE: Broken Spoke Saloon
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Review
| Date at Club: No Comment |
Customers per Dancer: No Comment |
Management: No Comment |
Overall Rating:  |
Mileage Expected: No Comment |
Booking Delay: No Comment |
| Dancer Quality: No Comment |
Customers: No Comment |
| Fees: No Comment |
Dances per Customer: No Comment |
Selling dances: No Comment |
| Hiring Tips: None |
Additional Information
Originally reviewed by Trixie_Racer
I flew into South Dakota to work at the Sturgis Rally. The original job offer said that I could get a discounted hotel room at $50/night and that the dancers averaged $1000-$1500 a day last year -- and this year they were expected to make more because one of the dance stages would be at the Hustler booth. This sounded like a fun and profitable job so I agreed to go if they paid my hotel and covered all dancing expenses (stage, etc.).
My motel room was paid for and so was my business license, so my only expenses were food and airfare. It was not what I expected and nothing at all like I was told. This trip ended up costing me over $1500 and I didn't even end up dancing. Unlike a few of the other dancers, I was not in such financial desperation to stay.
I expected to work at Rapid City Gentlemen's Club at night and Sturgis Rally during the day. After arriving I was told that the Rapid City club was no longer open. Not enough of the dancers had shown up yet so I was going to have to wait until the following evening to work. I asked if I could at least see the set-up and was told I would have to wait. I was instructed to be completely ready to go, dressed and in full make-up by 8am the following morning. That night I went out, had a fun time, and got back to my motel at 1:30am. I woke up at 6am and was ready at 8am -- just to be told that the meeting was postponed until 12:30pm.
At the meeting (which started at 2pm) we were told that we would be dancing with pasties on and the city of Sturgis requires us to get a business license to dance. This license fee is $90 but would be paid for us. We were also told that until we got our license we could legally dance in a bikini without risking citation. This didn't sound right, so I called the city myself and was told that any dancers caught dancing without a license (even if fully clothed) would be issued an indecent exposure ticket. We were supposed to get licensed immediately after the meeting but the person who was going to pay for the licenses didn't even show up to the meeting. At 6pm I was ordered to go to the rally to dance. I refused to since I didn't have a license. He was really upset. Me too--this was now 2 nights of no money! I said that I wanted to go to see the other dancers and the set-up and he told me it was now "too late". He told me to be ready at 8am and we would get my license.
That night I ended up going to a different city and danced at a local club. I got back to the motel at 3:30am. Still, I woke up early and was fully dressed and ready at 8am. Just like the day before I was told "Oh, it's been postponed." This time I was told someone would come up to my room at 12:00 noon to get me. To pass time I walked around Rapid City for a couple hours before going back to my room. Finally at 1pm someone picked me up along with two other dancers.
When we got to the Sturgis police department they expected me to pay for my own license. I said "I was told this would be covered. That's the only reason I'm here." He looked upset and then paid for the license, keeping the receipt. Then he left me and the other two dancers alone and told us that when our license was ready we should walk to the Broken Spoke Saloon where we would be dancing. At this point I still had never been to the bar. I told him I didn't have pasties and he told me to just dance topless (which is illegal).
With all the inconsistencies and lies I had been told so far, I was very nervous. While waiting for the license I called my agent (this gig was NOT booked through her) and asked for her advice. She said that if it were her, she would leave. Apparently, if other dancers are dancing illegally they can arrest all the dancers instead of just the ones caught in the act. She said it wasn't worth taking the chance. At this point I hadn't given up yet and was giving this gig the benefit of the doubt.
We got our license after only 1 1/2 hours of waiting and all three of us walked the 15 minutes to the bar. When I got there my jaw dropped! The bar wasn't really enclosed, the "stage" could be seen my anyone (not just adults), it was outside, and there was no cooling system. That's not even all! The "stage" was on the back of a flat-bed truck: it was a wooden cage with metal bars and the floor had gaps between the boards!!
This was too much. I turned around and walked away. It cost $90 to take a taxi to the motel to get my stuff and then to the airport; $100 at the airport to exchange my tickets and leave early; $100 for a hotel in the overnight layover city. On the bright side, I learned a valuable (and expensive) lesson. All traveling gigs from now on will be booked through an agent--NO EXCEPTIONS!
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