Concept & Execution - Vegas Cup

The following posts are the previously unpublished biographies and story line behind our 2009 Vegas photoshoot.  Vegas was our first go at a scripted photoshoot following a singular theme. We wrote these back stories as a method of generating the final still photo to be used for the ad. It's a design methodology that is creatively intensive and time consuming - but we believe the end product is worth the effort.  We thought you, the Icon faithful, might enjoy reading the full story behind the Vegas Outlaw Cup. 

VEGAS OUTLAW CUP

Clearly it would be Vegas. Set in the City of Sin, the Outlaw Cup could be run unhindered by the strict societal rules that had plagued previous Cups. The recent disasters in Miami and Atlanta had eliminated half of the potential field and nearly netted the organizational committee federal stints. But Vegas, awash in it’s superficial decadence and drenched in crushed dreams would make the perfect backdrop. The contestants, most from the wrong side of the law, would feel comfortable here. During daylight the event location could be kept anonymous. Desolate enough to avoid detection by the fed’s cliche’ fleet of unmarked black helicopters, yet dangerous enough to test the determination of rider and worthiness of bike. Clearly the daylight sections would be challenging, but in no way complete. For after all, the Outlaw Cup was meant to be run on an urban circuit. For ‘The Cup’, as it was affectionately known by most riders, was as much about the race as it was about the venue. To take the victory checkers on a stretch of long deserted back roads, no cheering - no fans - no adulation, was akin to a third date handshake goodnight. All the work, none of the payoff. No - A proper victory only comes when their are spectators to witness it. When the story can be told and a legend born. Hence the need for a ‘city’ portion of the course. This would be the Outlaw Cup at it’s finest. Traffic, stop lights, blind intersections, random course hazards that would challenge the most honed of skills. The entrants knew the risks, most had been playing this game for a long time. Long enough to know that the house always wins.