Road Trip: The 2011 Arizona Cardinals Cheerleaders

I like going on road trips, particularly when I can drive to the destination.  I live in Los Angeles and believe me, there ain’t no such thing as a open road when you have the absolutely worst traffic in the world.  So whenever I get a chance to visit Phoenix, it’s special…not because I get to let ‘er rip on the highway (sssh!)…not because I can catch up on my audio books (this time it was, “The Rule of Four”)…no, its special because Arizona has some of the hottest cheerleaders in pro sports.

And this week, I was in Phoenix to catch the Cardinals game against the Cowboys…so it was doubly special in that I got see the majority of my fantasy football team play in addition to photographing the Arizona Cardinals Cheerleaders.  And for those people who like going to different NFL stadiums, University of Phoenix Stadium is a great place to catch a game.  I know I’ve said this in the past, but I enjoy watching a game here.  It’s a newer stadium with a nice clean, fan friendly environment.  And it’s cool looking.  The only thing that is bad about UOP stadium is that the acoustics are terrible…they might as well not have a PA system because it’s just white noise.   But I digress.

I was looking forward to this trip from the moment the NFL schedules were announced.  It was a glamor game featuring one of the most popular teams, the Dallas Cowboys.  It was a chance to catch up with Mad Max, our former Arizona Correspondent, in his seats as opposed to mine in San Diego.  And it was a chance to photograph the Arizona Cardinals Cheerleaders in a game setting.

So how did my road trip turn out?  My Dallas players underperformed badly (though my fantasy football team still won thanks to Ray Rice, Rob Gronkowski and Arian Foster! ).  The game, other than it went into overtime, was a rather lackluster affair with several offensive miscues by both teams.  And Mad Max was out of town on business, so no chance to chit chat.

Well at least I got some good photos of the ACC.  See for yourself.

Readers of my Charger Girl articles know that I recognize the cheerleader who left the most lasting impression photographically and I do so as well in these road trip articles.  This week’s Cheerleader of the Day is Brianna, a third year cheerleader from Orange County, California.

One of the great things about UOP stadium is that when the roof is closed, you get nice consistent ambient lighting.  The translucent roof diffuses the light, much like a huge soft box.  More consistent ambient lighting means more consistent photographs when using a flash, as you have to do to get good shots indoors.  But on this day, the roof was open which complicated the lighting a little, with some reflections off the fixtures, but it was fairly good to shoot with a flash.

So here are a few shots from the first half.

This next photo is of Allie, who if my memory serves correctly, was named the 2011 Pro Bowl cheerleader for the ACC.  I think that means she’s automatically guaranteed a spot on next year’s team in addition to the all expenses paid trip to Hawaii.

I must say the ACC’s white uniforms are classy, elegant and sexy…one of the nicer outfits in the NFL, in my opinion.  We continue with the some of girls that were in my section in the second quarter.

Those are some high heeled boots to dance in.  Love ’em!

At half time, the Arizona Cardinals Cheerleaders changed into a red two piece outfit.

And we conclude our coverage with those girls that were in my section for the exciting fourth quarter and over time.

So as I mentioned earlier, the game went into over time.  After Dallas was called for pass interference penalty that seemed to take all the wind out of the Cowboys defense, LaRod Stephens-Howling turned a short pass into a game winning 52 yard TD reception.  If you want to see the reaction of an Arizona Cardinals Cheerleader as Stephens-Howling slices his way through the beleaguered Cowboy defense for victory, here it is.

It was an appropriate ending to a wonderful day photographing the Arizona Cardinals Cheerleaders.  I would retire to my hotel room a few blocks away to begin the laborious process of editing my photos and then a long drive home back to Los Angeles the following day.

It was another great road trip to Phoenix.  I got to ride the open road in my beloved 1999 RX300.  I got to listen to a much anticipated audio book.  And I got to photograph some of the most beautiful and sexy cheerleaders in the NFL.

I am already looking forward to next year.

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For more cheerleader photos, please visit my blog, thehottestdanceteam,wordpress.com.