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This was the first year for the “Cycle World International Motorcycle Show” to come to Phoenix (technically it's Glendale, AZ which is just west of Phoenix). It was held Nov 3-5, 2006 in the brand new Cardinal Stadium, home to the NFL's Arizona Cardinals: I found myself wearing an "Exhibitor Pass" for the weekend and helping to staff a booth and answer questions.  I arrived the stadium on Friday about an hour or so before the show opened to the public so I could get my pass and walk around the various displays in relative peace & quiet.  Outside people were already arriving for the show: I snagged my pass and went inside. As I was taking the escalator to the ground floor I saw this sign... ...which read: Seemed kinda odd to me not only to have this lone sign that everyone would be looking at while they rode the escalator down but that it was actually a question. (The graphic behind the words is the logo for the stadium). I noticed vendors were frantically setting up and the Fire Marshall was going around making sure batteries were disconnected from bikes on display: When I first saw the “floor” I assumed the large space in this picture was going to be used for demo rides or stunt shows or the like: Well, the big open space was a big project that I watched being built over the course of the weekend. It just so happened that what I saw being assembled in stages was the stage for the Rolling Stones concert which is scheduled for this coming Wednesday (bike show ends Sun night). From the Ton Up booth I watched as dozens and dozens of the Rolling Stones road crew members worked in what can best be described as organized chaos. I was told that there are over 100 big rig trucks to take transport everything that is needed to put on the concert. My only response to that was “when and what direction will they be coming into Phoenix so I can avoid that highway traffic jam?!” Nevertheless, here's the progression of the stage being built from Friday until Sunday afternoon: Friday Evening Saturday Morning Saturday Evening Sunday Sunday Sunday Since the Rolling Stones stage was taking up half the floor the motorcycle show was forced to be split in three levels and outside which made it kinda odd to say the least. Next year when the show returns to Phoenix and it's on all one level I bet it will make for a different atmosphere. I mean, c'mon, 3 cranes working and a plethora of power equipment got really old. Despite being 6 levels the stadium itself seemed rather small to me. Perhaps that's because I was raised in a state where a college football stadium holds over 103,000 people (Go Vols!). Cardinal Stadium holds around 70k max (I think that's what I heard). The football field rolls out in a tray which weighs 18.9 million pounds. No mention of where this little tray might be stored when not in use though. I did notice that the stadium seating is very, very strange in regards to handicap seating. Take look at these photos: See anything odd? The blue handicap sticker means the entire row is designated handicap. However, since there are rails at the end of rows and only stairs above and below the designated rows, it begs the question of how do handicap persons actually access the designated rows? Lowered from the ceiling was the only viable answer my friend Glenn (who is a long time architect and also co-owner of Ton Up) and I could come up with. The retractable roof was the most impressive part of the stadium to me aside from the fact that field rolls out in a tray: On to the show.... Every motorcycle manufacturer was in attendance with the exception of Honda and Triumph. Seemed odd not to see the big red wing at a moto event and I never heard any official reason for their absence. The big attention getters in the sport-touring world were Moto Guzzi's 2007 Norge (I'm told it's pronounced “NOR-JAY”) and the 2008 Kawasaki Concourse. (I have pics of both below). The updated “Connie” had no specs available. The show featured the “World's Fastest Motorcycle” that attracted a lot of attention from those who are mechanically inclined: In the Kawasaki outside tent the crowds swarmed 3 things: The 2008 Concourse: A tricked out ZX-14: The Supercharged 250hp jet ski which I prefer to call “Shamu” (hey, all it needs is to be painted black and white!): The Buell tent featured the new Ulysses with it's see thru tank... My friend Glenn on the XB12: The Buell $32k race bike: The BMW bike that seemed to get a lot of attention was the K1200GT: The Ducati booth's main attractions were Troy Bayliss' Ducati 999F06 & Ben Bostrom's restored 996 RS: Behind the flashy Ducati booth was Ural: Royal Enfield: Lots of custom bikes and choppers... Jesse Rooke Custom bikes here: Paul Yafee's “Sliver” for a show special of $55,000: Custom Ducati MH900e “Painted Lady” Mike Hailwood Replica: Custom 1987 Moto-Guzzi SPII 1000 “Altered State” (great name since that's what the rider will be in once the officer hands the ticket over for improper display of license plate!) A local custom painter was at the show displaying his skills on the Busa: For all you people old enough to recall any of these (I don't have a clue): Yamaha didn't have anything exciting except someone I was walking around with said “this looks like your V-Strom from the back” so I took a pic of it (FZ-6): The Victory booth was on the ground floor and was, as expected, full of lights and “hey look at me” dazzle. Here's my friend Glenn on the “Hammer”, which he says is a “very nice stock bike” (high praise coming from someone who has ridden for 40 yrs and always has at least 3 bikes in his stable and had never owned a cruiser): Victory's “Jackpot”... Have you seen a cruiser with a Givi-like top case? Moto Guzzi, Vespa, Aprilia & Piaggio all one big happy family: The sport-touring Norge: The Griso: The old but new California Vintage: Piaggio's 3 wheeler: Here is my friend “RTJohn” sitting on, aghast, a non-BMW bike!!! (the Norge) Since this was across from the Ton Up booth several of us grabbed our cameras and dashed over to take his pic since no one has any memories of RT ever sitting on a bike that didn't have the big rondel on it! This is one of RT's favorite shirts.... ...while his most favorite shirt says: “IF ONLY THE PASSING LANE HAD A PASSING LANE” - he is one cool 73 year old I tell ya! Ok, so the large ball you've been seeing on the floor is called the “Ball of Steel” and it's where 3 guys with balls of steel run these 3 bikes around at the same time in the ball. There really is no way to describe this and pics don't do it justice. I just stood there repeating “holy crap” over and over. I turned to a friend of mine and said it reminded me of seeing the Blue Angels last week where I got dizzy just watching them perform. For more info and to see a plethora of pics of there stunts (in and out of the ball) visit their web site: http://ballofsteel.com/. I was told they performed outside the stadium on Sunday doing various flips and tricks but I missed the event. The debut of the Play Station 3 was at the show: Maybe my quest for finding a new summer home is over! Geez, check out this rig: I was told the MSRP was $232k but the “Show Special” price was $192k. My favorite sign in the stadium and my closing remarks: Actually, for further remarks you'll need to check my Blog Posting Copyright © 2006-2008, All Rights Reserved.