"Hey, why don't you guys have your own bagger show in Sturgis?" seemed to be the question we'd receive from readers year after year. Well, we decided to dig our melons out of the melon patch and get with the program. This past August, Sturgis has never seen so many radical baggers in one place and time as it did during the inaugural 2012 Big Bagger Show, put on by John Shope's Sinister Industries and Eddie Trotta's Thunder Cycle Design in conjunction with yours truly, Baggers, and HOT BIKE magazines. The Big Bagger Show took place August 9, and participants started showing up to the Lazelle and 4th Street location as early as 8 a.m. Because of the show's centralized location, rallygoers were able to meander the Big Bagger Show gratis.
As for the judging aspect, there was an overall award for Best in Show given to Azzkikr Custom Cycles from Surrey, British Columbia. Baggers magazine awarded its own trophy for Best Bagger to Speed By Design for its wildly creative custom. HOT BIKE awarded its own prize to Covington's Cycle City for its camouflaged Road King equipped with a ginormous 30-inch front wheel. Custom trophies were also handed out to Second and Third prizewinners, as well as an intricately designed trophy for Best Paint, won by Sinthium Customs. And lastly, Honorable Mention awards were handed out to 10 different bike builders and they each received a pair of concert tickets to see Lynyrd Skynrd at the Buffalo Chip courtesy of the Legendary Buffalo Chip. Other sponsors for the Big Bagger Show include Wizards Products, Azzkikr Customs, Glenndyne Design, Covington's Cycle City, Hawg Wired, Legend Air Ride, and Trask Turbo Systems.
All in all, with just a few months to plan a motorcycle show, it turned out to be quite the success. Almost all participants took home some kind of prize, whether it was a one-off custom trophy or chance to see Skynyrd doing their thing on the Chip's main stage. Stay tuned for the next Big Bagger Show at the 2013 Sturgis Rally. Just think what we can do with a whole year of planning! B
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ABOVE: This beautiful and intricate machine built by AzzKikr Customs from Canada took Best
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John Shope, (left) owner of Sinister Industries, and Eddie Trotta, owner of Thunder Cycle
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ABOVE: Jordan presents the Baggers magazine special award off to Coby Klein from Speed By
ABOVE: Jordan presents the Baggers magazine special award off to Coby Klein from Speed By Design. BELOW: This beauty will also be featured in an upcoming issue.