Pudge, Duval and I attended Bikefest as a part of a long weekend getaway to try and relax a few days in the middle of summer. The 4th Annual Philly Bikefest Weekend Jam was presented July 31st by the Philadelphia Sportbikers Inc. Mentoring Program. The one-day show, with a pre-evening Coming Out party on the 30th, has a motto of “It’s All About the Children”, with all proceeds from the event benefiting the wraparound mentoring program.

Steve from TOCC had invited us to Bikefest, and it was certainly worth it to make it part of our working vacation! This show had some really great wheelie riders that got the crowd pumped up to have a great day. Both patrons of the show and pedestrians walking along the street were able to line up along the fences and see all of the tricks that could be performed on four, two, and one wheel.

Another opportunity that we had at this show was to be able to see some more of the great mods and paint jobs that are invested in sportbikes. When we talk about custom bikes, many people, even those within our own staff, think of custom choppers or a really sweet cruiser. My own true love is the sportbikes that have been stretched, dropped, chromed, and painted so that anyone walking down the street will just have to stop and stare.

Throughout the day, live entertainment performed on stage. There were many different versions of the next up and coming Ludacris, just trying to break their way into the business, such as Queena Marle, Hassan, Nuance, and Superweb and the East Coast Badboys.

Attendees didn’t just get to enjoy all of this and not get anything - there was a cash prize and trophy awarded to the first, second and third place bikes that entered the show, as well as awards presented for Best Custom Bike and Helmet, Most Represented Cub, Most Represented Female Club, Longest Distance, and Horsepower Dyno Shootout. But, by far, the best part of the day had to be the lemonade! They combined all of the good stuff in a giant bowl, that probably served as a washtub 100 years ago, and stirred it all up with a wooden paddle the size of a boat oar.

The festivities continued late into the night, but since we were the fairest skinned people at the show, we were advised that it probably wouldn’t be a great idea to stay past sundown. Make sure that you check the show out next year, too!