A longtime Sturgis motorcycle rally visitor and his business partners will be the new owners of The Knuckle Saloon and The Knuckle Brewing Company.
Curtis Venable of Goldsboro, North Carolina — who also owns a home in Deadwood — and four business partners have purchased The Knuckle. Venable said Friday he hopes to close the sale on the property by Thanksgiving or early December.
“I’ve been going to Sturgis for 21 years and always loved the rally,” Venable said. “I’ve been riding motorcycles my entire life, and all the partners have ridden. We’re pretty well versed in the biker industry. I’ve been riding since I was a kid, and I have a lot of friends in the industry. I collect old motorcycles. I feel we’ll fit in pretty good.”
Venable visits the Black Hills several times a year, especially for events such as the Sturgis motorcycle rally and Kool Deadwood Nites. His business partners in The Knuckle purchase are Kristie Pease, William Couch, Brandon Graham and Fitz Gaines, all of whom are in South Carolina.
Venable and his partners collectively have backgrounds in bar and restaurant ownership, commercial real estate and commercial development, the trucking industry, and construction. Venable’s business expertise includes owning a restaurant, biker bars and construction, he said.
“I’ve owned big biker bars before. (Buying The Knuckle) was a business decision. I think we can take what’s here and grow on it and improve it and hopefully make it super cool with a lot of activity,” Venable said. “(We) plan on building on the success of The Knuckle and continuing (for it) to be a great place for years to come.”
“I’m looking forward to working with the staff and management to make this a smooth transition… We’re not trying to reinvent the wheel. We’re going to take what they have here and finesse it,” he said. “We’re going to try to retain as many or all employees as possible. We don’t want to come in and ruffle feathers.”
Venable said plans are to keep The Knuckle Saloon’s hours of operation the same, though the hours and days The Knuckle Brewing Company is open are likely to change, especially during the off-season months.
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“We want to keep the brewing company open as much as the local economy will allow,” he said.
Customers might notice small changes, such as where bands set up and some modifications to the menu.
“There could be a little bit of cosmetic changes but nothing stupid,” Venable said. “We’re not going to go out and change the building or the name. The Knuckle will be The Knuckle.”
While the Sturgis motorcycle rally is a big part of the business, Venable wants to find more ways to keep The Knuckle thriving year-round, such as hosting other events there.
“We’re going to really try to do some cool things and add to it,” he said.
Purchasing The Knuckle was an appealing opportunity for Venable, who is now trying to purchase more property in the Black Hills.
“The location is prime for business. You have the majority of business from out-of-towners and vacationers. You have people coming to Deadwood and the bike rally, and (myself and my business partners) being bikers and having bars and grills, it struck my eye as something we could build on,” he said.
Meanwhile, The Knuckle’s longtime owner Ken McNenny announced the sale Sept. 5 on The Knuckle Saloon’s Facebook page.
“After 23 years we are ready to move on to our new chapter,” McNenny said on Facebook. “We want to thank our community, our customers and our dedicated staff for allowing us to be a part of your lives, as you have been such a big part of ours!”
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McNenny, a lifelong resident of Sturgis, is the original owner of The Knuckle, along with a team of local business partners. They started The Knuckle to be a part of the community and have a place for all of their friends and family to go to and have fun, McNenny said.
The timing seemed right for the business partners to sell The Knuckle, he said. McNenny and his business partners are helping Venable transition over the coming weeks as Venable and his business team take ownership.
McNenny will continue running Sturgis Brewing Company, which he owns.
Owning The Knuckle “has been the best experience of my whole life,” McNenny said. “It’s been a fantastic journey. I wouldn’t have done it any other way.”
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