The Rushmore German Club presents the very popular Sommerfest for 9 days every August at the Central States Fair in Rapid City. Locally, our Sommerfest is known simply as ‘The German Tent’ or “The Beer Tent”.

Sommerfest 2023 Calendar Coming Soon

The German Tent is organized, built, run, staffed, and hosted by volunteer members of our club. We’re always looking for individuals to join our organization and volunteer their time to help us be successful.  Its a lot of work, but also a lot of fun.  And, its all for a good cause as a portion of our proceeds are donated to charities and community organizations throughout the Black Hills.

Our first Sommerfest at the Fair was held in 1982 and attendance has grown year after year. Our 60′ x 150′ foot festival tent is filled to overflow capacity most nights, especially on weekends, and is a great way to end a day’s fairgoing. We feature quality polka bands brought here from Colorado, and have developed a strong fan base.

Rick Borger and the Average German Band from the Denver area, are featured each year at Sommerfest. Lively dance music, including several novelty numbers like the Alligator, Train Dance, March Dance, Austrian Wedding Dance, and the always popular Chicken Dance can be heard throughout the evenings.