The main race of Monster Track 2008 has been canceled. “Our reasons are many but the overall factor was that the race has become unmanageable due to the large participation and our concern for the participant’s safety.” Though disappointing, we’re confident the organizers have the best intentions with this difficult decision. Full press release from Squid:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The organizers of Monster Track 2008 have decided, after careful consideration, to cancel this year’s main race.
This afternoon the 3rd annual Alleykitten race took place in Manhattan. It’s the last race of the year and meant to be extra welcoming to folks who have never raced, usually don’t race, or race and don’t place. As in past years, there was a good turnout and it was great seeing plenty of new and old faces. The race finished up at Continuum Cycles, then Lakeside Lounge for champagne prizes and sparkling cider for the 16 year old who kicked ass. Thanks to Dan C for keeping the race going this year.
Click here for more photos of the Alleykitten race.
More photos and recap:
Recap from Prolly
Photos from Team Six
Charity was the name of the game as the Toys for Tots Alleycat went down on Saturday. As per usual, J. Martinez was on hand snapping some nice flicks. Check them out here. Six Racing has the results and write up.
Photo by J. Martinez.
Tonight, on the evening of the Vernal Equinox and the first full day of spring, is the Global Warming Alleycat. Remember what Al Gore discovered 30 years ago: global warming is happening and without change, we’ll be living our golden years in water world. The start of the race at 8pm sharp coincides with other races in San Francisco, Toronto, Mexico City, and Berlin, so bring your 10 bucks and a bike to Kenmare and Lafayette Street and have fun.
152 cyclists took to the streets this past Saturday for Monster Track 8, New York City’s premier track bike only alleycat race. Racers from as far as Tokyo started off in Sara D. Roosevelt Park with a 65 block sprint up 1st Avenue to the first checkpoint on 61st Street.
With three manifests in play, racers hit four checkpoints at a time before returning to the start for a new set. After covering Midtown and Downtown, racers stopped in at Trackstar’s party checkpoint to get their manifests stamped and asses tagged with the mark of the beast. Then it was a mad dash across the Williamsburg Bridge into Brooklyn.
When your legs are burning and vomit is creeping up your throat, riding across the Williamsburg Bridge with a big white van creeping on your tail might be the last place you want to be. Fortunately, the van was filming the race and graciously offered our crew a skitch over the bridge towards King Kog and the finish at East River Bar.
In the end, Alfred took first place for the third time, with Felipe and Austin finishing second and third. Heidi, Dagga, and Heather, the top 3 women, killed it with 26th, 30th, and 34th place finishes. And Shino from Tokyo, Luke and Eric from Boston were the top 3 out of towners with 5th, 10th and 15th place finishes. With every bike and body covered in dirty snow and salt, Monster Track 8 was quick and dirty but not easy — nearly a third of the racers didn’t finish. The full results have been posted online.
Thanks to the work of Victor and countless others, this was a really great race. A lot of people were filming and shooting photos throughout the day and we can’t wait to see the final products. Until that glorious day, enjoy some 1st Avenue mayhem from Nick James.
Check out more coverage over at BikeBlog.
Illustration by Greg Ugalde.
Monster Track weekend is here and you had better be ready. Whether or not temperatures peek above freezing, the streets will be a beautiful mess for the 8th annual race. This schedule may change, so go with the flow, keep your eyes open and your legs moving. And watch the highlight reel from Monster Track 7 while you have the chance.
Mike Green, of BikeBlog and Play in Traffic Productions, did an amazing job editing footage from Rumble Through The Bronx 3. Check out his smooth production and figure out why your planned route didn’t land you in the top three.
While police chased and ticketed Critical Mass riders in Manhattan this past Friday night, bicyclists convened in Brooklyn to act out the war on drugs and answer one question: How good is your crack game? King Kog and MessNYC hosted the New Jack City alleycat, a benefit for next week’s North American Cycle Courier Championships in Philadelphia.
The rules were simple: slang as much crack as you can in 90 minutes and don’t get caught. About 40 racers picked up a bag of crack and a manifest at the Carter Building before fanning out towards the five checkpoints in North Brooklyn. Points were earned for each vial sold. Once your supply ran out, it was back to the Carter Building to replenish your stock and sell some more.
But, it wouldn’t be New Jack City without Scotty Appleton and Nick Peretti keeping dealers down. Two racers were secretly issued police manifests and earned points going undercover and taking over checkpoints to covertly bust dealers and take their crack. Depending on their loyalty to the Cash Money Brothers, a busted dealer might alert other racers, or let them enter a trap.
Like an unscientific update to the Stanford Prison Experiment, dealers and cops fell into their respective roles. “Dealers” acted like dealers and formed alliances to stay ahead of the law (and traffic). “Cops” acted like cops, chasing dealers into the street, roughing them up, letting air out of their tires, and even changing clothing to avoid detection.
After 90 minutes, Sean had sold the most crack, Tom had busted the most dealers, and a bunch of money was raised for the NACCC.
