Photographed by Brenton Salo
Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays Chrome Industries from partying at The One Motorcycle Show in Portland, OR. This was The One Show’s fifth year and while motorcycles were making their way into PDX from all over the world, the skies opened up and dumped a blanket of snow on the city the likes of which it hasn’t seen in years. But as they say, ‘the show must go on,’ so we strapped ourselves into our 415s, parked the Chrome Van out front, and partied warmth back into our bodies. This year was pretty special for us. Thor Drake of See See Motorcycles and founder of The One Show, built Chrome a custom 2014 Triumph Scrambler that was featured in the show. He nailed it. Just looking at that bike gave you that ‘fuck yeah, hell yeah’ feeling and it wasn’t just us, it was a crowd favorite. It’s rumored that when the bike makes it’s way back to SF from Portland, it will be wheelied the entire way. 
For year five of The One Show, we invited our friend Cody McElroy, from Dirty Needle Embroidery to create a series of One Show inspired patches. Each patch was made freehand with a single needle machine. Cody was pumping them out one by one, and it was awesome to see what goes into making each patch. Because he’s not a robot, no two patches were exactly the same — just like the snowflakes that were piling up outside. All the proceeds from Cody’s patches went to fund his wife’s kidney transplant; a cause many people lined up to get behind. 
Also at the patching station was Chrome PDX’s sewer, Lara Kessler, and store manager, Lilly Hager. After Cody made a patch, he passed it off to Lara and she sewed it onto people’s vests and jackets. Lilly made sure the whole operation worked seamlessly. Get it? Sewing? Seamless? Ahhh … nevermind. 
While the crew inside was creating memorable works of patch art, the crew outside was creating a mess in the Chrome Van’s Whiskey Den. Never heard of it? That’s because we built it specifically for this year’s show. Think: 1970’s snuggery complete with wood paneling, pea green carpet, and stocked with all the Evan Williams you, or anyone, could ever want. 
As the whiskey bottles were drained, the cold didn’t seem that cold anymore. The high-fives got harder and the guys in ski masks showed up. Who they were remains a mystery, but the hole they put in the wall will stay with us forever … or until we build out the van again. 
We enjoyed a weekend of pure motorcycle delight filled with old friends and new ones. The One Show never disappoints and if you decided to stay home because of the snow, you’re probably kicking yourself right about now. With each year getting bigger and better then the last, we can’t wait to see what’s in store for year six. 
