2009 Rallies & Events
More from Arizona Bike Week
Story and Photos by J. Joshua Placa
ABW welcomes all makes and models of motorcycles, which was widely evident all around the Valley of the Sun, which encompasses Phoenix and its adjoining cities of Scottsdale, Tempe, Glendale, Mesa and others. Demo rides were offered by Star Motorcycles, Indian, Kawasaki, Boss Hoss, Triumph, Kymco, and Harley-Davidson.
The area offers a broad variety of attractions and activities, countless bars, nightclubs and restaurants, spas (a massage feels pretty good on the old bones after a long day’s ride), resorts, shopping, and some of the finest dining you can find anywhere.
The valley also boasts a wide range of accommodations and dining, from basic to sublime. Motorcyclists enjoy their creature comforts, and few places can provide more comfort than the Phoenician resort in Scottsdale, which we highly recommend.
The plush, 250-acre, property earned a AAA Five-Diamond rating for its Canyon Suites, described as a “boutique resort with a resort.” The resort offers luxury accommodations, award-winning cuisine, spa treatments, a USGA championship golf course, and an oasis of pools, Jacuzzis, fountains and waterfalls.
One of the property’s highlights, in addition to its outstanding amenities and impeccably professional staff, is its AAA Four-Diamond restaurant, Il Terrazzo. The beautifully presented cuisine tastes like it was prepared in Italy and teleported to your table. It is simply a delectable feast.
Nearby, the InterContinental Montelucia Resort & Spa offers a long list of restaurants, bars and a 31,000 sq.-ft. spa. At the Prado, hungry bikers can enjoy a hearty, wood-fired Spanish grill.
The Grand Canyon State possesses amazing natural wonders, which can be found in every direction. If you missed them this year, make a point of putting them on your itinerary in 2010. Ride north to the Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest and Painted Desert; ride east to Canyon Lake, Tortilla Flats and the Superstition Mountains, south to Tucson, the Saguaro National Forest, and Tombstone, and west to Lake Havasu City and the Colorado River, the Riviera of Arizona.
Arizona is one of the few places in the world where you could have summer and winter homes a mere two- or three-hour ride apart, with daytime temperatures sometimes varying up to 40 or more degrees as you roll around the state, depending on elevation. If you joined one of the sponsored rides north toward the old mining town of Jerome, the red rock wonderlands of Sedona and the great canyonlands beyond, you would have seen and felt dramatic shifts in scenery and climate.
Arizona Bike Week will reconvene next year April 2 through April 11, including the traditional five Pre-Rally days. For more information, call 480-644-8191; visit www.azbikeweek.com.
For More Information:
Scottsdale Visitor Information: Call 800-782-1117; Email: visitorinformation@scottsdalecvb.com; visit http://www.scottsdalecvb.com
Phoenix Visitor Information: Call 877-Call-PHX; email visitors@visitphoenix.com; visit www.visitphoenix.com, or contact
Dorothy Webb, Visitor Services Specialist, dwebb@visitphoenix.com
602-452-6282.