Stardust Casino Sign at the Neon Museum in Las Vegas. Photo: Burnley Knives.

We got back from G8 last Monday, but it always takes a few days to emerge from the haze of a weekend spent in Sin City…We drove into town this year—audio books bumpin’ and the Subaru stuffed to the gills with beef jerky, ‘cause that’s how we roll.

Road dogs selfie. Photo: Burnley Knives. 

First stop on our road trip from Albuquerque was our usual visit to Knife City to get us pumped for a weekend of knives (as if we really needed a reason). If you haven’t been to Knife City before, it’s a must. The store’s owner, Ofelia has been in the business for over 20 years, and knows the industry in and out. With seemingly nothing else around Knife City, customers and knife devotees materialize as if from thin air—likely following the same siren song all knife collectors follow.

Selfie with Ofelia at Knife City. Photo: Burnley Knives.

Tapping our toes to that tune all the way into Vegas, we got to Planet Hollywood a day early and for the first time, managed to take in a few sights (to Luc’s disappointment, this did not include Britney). The highlight of the day was a visit to the Neon Museum recommended by our friend and show guru Joe Wu of Scout Leather. He knows about all the best things…After sufficiently baking in the heat of the Las Vegas sun for our 10:30 am tour, we headed back to the room to price Cypops for G8’s Friday morning mayhem.

1: Scout x Burnley collab with parasols because it was 1,000 degrees in Las Vegas. Photo: Burnley Knives. 2: Luc x Maddie collab in front of the original Moulin Rouge sign turned “in love” sign. (Our wedding is right around the corner, after all.) Photo: Joe Wu. 

This year, we brought 30-something Cypops and swag for sale on Friday, and lines were…well…they were long. It’s always humbling to see customers who are willing to sacrifice their comfy Vegas beds and get in line the night before to be first through the show doors. No matter how tired we are that first day of the show, it’s impossible not to feed off the energy of the crowd.

Luc lays the Cypops out on the bed and checks them all over one last time. Photo: Burnley Knives. 

Saturday was knives, knives, knives. 3 Kwaikens (1 for closed bid, 2 for lottery) and 4 M69s (1 for open bid, 2 for lottery, and 1 for the Burnley Brawler Club lottery) to be exact. This was the first time that Luc brought inlaid M69s to a show, and he also worked up a new blade shape as well. We’re planning on bringing another run of these to NYCKS in November.   

Inlaid M69s with new blade shape. 1: Open bid lottery knife. 2 and 3: Lottery knives.  Photos: Burnley Knives. 

We did the Burnley Brawler Club lottery with speed and efficiency on Saturday afternoon to keep the aisle from getting too congested. The group just keeps getting bigger and better. #WHDG

1: The anticipation is killing me as Luc pulls names in the Burnley Brawler Club lottery. Photo: Ryan Schwartz. 2: The gang gathers for a photo after the drawing. All smiles. Photo: Burnley Knives. 

The end of shows are always a little bitter sweet. You want the fun to keep going, but at the same time, your feet and lower back are screaming, you suck at craps, you’ve eaten too much, and you’ve lost your voice (and maybe even your dignity…) There’s a reason makers and collectors consider The Gathering one of the best shows of the year.

Shaka brah. We saw friends in person (not on FB)! 1: Luc and Scot. 2: Dean made it all the way from Hawai’i and Joe photo bombed. Photos: Burnley Knives.  

Luc and I had a chance to prolong our trip just a bit and stay over for a night in Sedona on the drive back to New Mexico. Something about waking up near those red rocks and spending a few hours in the hot tub (while enjoying a little apple brandy, if we’re being honest), helped us bring the weekend into focus and remember how lucky we are to be working in this industry.

Beauty vistas in Sedona. We’re going home the long way every year from now on. Photo: Burnley Knives.

See you at G9—we’re already looking forward!