Pre Reg and Friday Night Events

Pre Registration and the Friday night events will meet at 9pm on Friday night at One on One (117 N Washington) in the back alley.

Bring a bag full of beer. We will be hanging out there until everyone who has showed up registers for the race. You have to sign up for the race to take part in the Friday night events. We shall then depart for the Stone Arch Bridge.

In case of a cop bust at any point in the evening. The rendezvous point will be the One on One alley. Everyone split up, take off and meet up there. We will regroup and head out to finish the events.

The sprints will be longer this year, gear appropriately. Single Elimination Men's and Ladies tournament. Lose and you're done.

The Skids and Best trick will be judged by Myself, Andy (Summerinside) and Kevin from Justice Media. Our decisions are final. don't bitch.

The Distance skids will be a one shot affair. Every rider will get one chance and that's it. If there is lady interest we will have a women's category for both style and distance.

The Style Skids will be a ten minute free session. There will be a short warmup, then the clock starts and you have ten minutes to do as many runs as you like to impress the judges. only your best run will count.

Best Trick will be a fifteen minute free session and obviously the best trick as judged by the esteemed panel of judges will win the wheelset.

The Friday night events are being sponsored by Twin Six so expect lots of nice jerseys and such.

Manifest Destiny

I am up late tonight putting the finishing touches on this year's manifest. here's what I can tell you. I have heard your cries and relented. It will be a gentler, kinder course than last year, however if you want to call yourself the All City Champ you are definitely going to have to earn it. I'm really stoked on the layout, it will force you into some of my favorite streets and traffic patterns in the city and is fast and flows well. If you attended the Spring Classics then some of this will seem familiar. (it pays to practice)

There are ten manned stops, which I will be posting up here on the blog at noon on raceday.
One of those stops is the time trial around Lake Harriet
There are unmanned stops as well, but you will have to wait for the manifest.

Please try to either pre register on Friday night or get there early on Saturday. It makes my job a lot easier if everyone gets through registration early so I can begin focusing on getting the race started on time. The sign up table will be in full swing by 4.

There will be a waiver to sign. Don't get cute with me or the volunteers and write in a nickname or "Haywood Jablomi" or anything else besides your legal name. This is not a joke to me or the sponsors, it is very important that the waivers are signed and valid. Unfortunately we live in a litigious society and I need to take these steps to protect my company and that of my sponsors who make this possible. Sign the waiver correctly. Don't be a douche.


Some things about the afterparty:

Bedlam will be serving food, so you'll be able to recuperate from the race and gather your metal for the night ahead.

I negotiated the best price I could for the drink specials and this is what we've got: $1 PBR twelve ouncers and $3 pints of Surly. Sorry it's not free but this is the best I could do for you.

If you couldn't make the race but come to the party you will have access to the beer specials.

And remember that the afterparty will be 18+ so that the young ones can join in the fun too.

Also last year's rain taught me a few things and I have contingency plans in place in case of terrible weather. So even if it's shitty out get your ass to the race.

I'll post some more info tomorrow. I can't believe the race is this week, I am preparing for what may likely be one of the greatest nights of my life. I suggest you do the same.

More Prize Wheels

The green set are Velocity Hubs - Deep V's, black spokes and nipples. It was donated by V.S.'s and is the top prize for best trick fixed gear.  And yes Vince is eligible to ride and I know he's been working on some new tricks.  You kids better watch out.  If he wins the event the wheels will become the Sprint prize.  

The red hubs are Dimension's (absolutely the best value in track hubs going, they're awesome) laced to non machined fusions, with black spokes and red alloy nips.  They look way nice and spin super smooth.  Not sure yet who will win these beauties.

The silver hubs are Profile racing hubs.  They come with standard (non-metric) hardware, which at first I thought was weird and really inconvenient, but in discussing it a friend pointed out that organized bike thieves (they do exist) know enough to carry metric hardware.  They aren't expecting American hardware and thus these wheels might be harder to steal.  It's a theory anyway.

The rims are the new ELVS reflective rims from Velocity, in a cars beams they light up like a Christmas tree and are both very cool and very expensive. 

Those rims on those hubs=pimp as shit.  The men's champ is taking those home.

My roomate and professional wheelbuilder (open for business) Matt built the green set and the others where handbuilt by Handspun wheels. Handspun also donated the spokes and nips for the wheelsets.

Behind Bars donates something special

Chuck, the proprietor of Behind Bars, has a good sense of humor. To drive the point home he has donated this beauty the race. I couldn't be more thrilled to have the honor of bestowing this beast upon someone. I've been running hot laps around the house all afternoon, so believe me when I tell you that this thing packs more braap than you can believe.

Octopus Caps has joined in

Octopus Caps has just decided to join in sponsoring the race this year, their caps are wool, made of recycled fabric and are neat as shit. check them out at octopusincorporated.com

Sweet Sweet Bitches

Oh yeah,

the afterparty will be 18+ for all you youngsters.

And Sweet Sweet Bitches have announced plans to "melt your fucking face"

and they mean it.

you have been warned.

Schedule of events

The event is open to all types of bicycles and all types of riders. Some will be racing for glory, while others cruise around and bar hop. This is one of the largest alleycats in the country and is always a real showcase of the Twin Cities cycling community. If you've ever wanted to experience urban bicycle culture, this is your chance. It is going to be ridiculous amounts of fun, and I'd love to see you all there.

The schedule of events looks like this:

Friday:

Meet up at One on One at 9pm
Pre-Reg
Style skids
Distance skids
Best trick fixed gear
Best trick BMX (yep that's right we're having a BMX street comp as well)
Match Sprints (a head to head tournament, lose and you're out. fastest man and women shall be cloaked in glory, I hear the robeast Trevor Crayton is planning on destroying all comers)

Saturday:

4-5 Sign up at One on One
5 Race
9 Race Cutoff, Finish at Bedlam Theatre
9:30 Bootleg Sessions Vol 2 premiere (freestyle fixed gear movie)
10:00 Awards ceremony
11:00 Trackstand
11:30 Sweet Sweet Bitches (fuck yeah)
2:00 Cold Hard Dash For Cash From Mike Brauer's @$$ (we're attaching a bag of money to a scantily clad Mike Brauer's backside and sending him off downtown, first one to take the money gets paid. That ought to empty out the bar in a hurry)

the entrance fee of $10 gets you into the events on Friday and Saturday, as well as (cheap or free PBR and Surly at the afterparty, we're not quite sure how the bar is going to run it yet, but you'll get your money's worth I can promise you that).

If you can't make the race but still want to come and hang out on Saturday, there will be a cover of $5 to get into the festivities and show (that $5 however does not get you any deals on beer)

saw this on the Bootlegsessions blog and stole it.



You'll notice a certain Robeast by the name of Crayton, sporting his custom Bike Jerks hat!

Lake Harriet Time Trial

Included in this years race will be a time trial around Lake Harriet.

Starting at Roseway Road and Lake Harriet Parkway East, riders will check in, do one lap around the lake and check back in for the finishing time.

Minneapolis' own Sven will be running the show at the time trial.  All racers who hope to compete for an overall placing must complete the time trial to receive their stamp for the stop, and the top time trial times for men and women will receive prizes and recognition at the awards.

Also I have decided to post the manned stops at 12:00 on this blog.

  

In the interest of growing the race and making it more friendly to out of towners, I feel that this is a necessary step. As it is just too much to ask someone who doesn't live here to come up with a competitive route in only 30 minutes.  

But don't worry I will not give all the stops, just the manned ones (which is most) and I will certainly have a few tricks up my sleeve.  This aint' gonna be no gimme.

And to all the whiners out there, quit asking me if it's really gonna be 40 miles.  I already said it'll be shorter and more fun than last year. so stop being scared and start getting ready.

Best Trick to include a BMX category

yep that's right, 

I have decided in the interest of making sure the best trick session is as entertaining and groundbreaking as possible, there will be a BMX category.

I'm not sure yet what the prize will be but rest assured it will be something good.

So all you guys on your kids bikes better show the fuck up!

Location of Best Trick

the address is north 4th st/north sixth av

it is by far the best spot i've found for fixie tricks, banks, curbs, launches.

i rode there tonight and it was spectacular, little traffic, no cops, plenty of light

Sprints will be held in the same vicinity under the highway.

First Set of Prize Wheels

here is the first of three sets of prize wheels that we're having built for the race by our good friends at Handspun wheels. These babies are Surly flip flop hubs, built to pink Deep V's via double butted DT Swiss spokes and brass DT nipples. Radial front, three cross rear.
Handbuilt in Minnesota

Location of skids, best trick, match sprints

I've been out scouting locations recently and here's the plan:

Freestyle skids: Under Stone arch

Distance skids: Under Stone arch--alternate locations will be available in case of bust

Best Trick: under 94 in the warehouse district

Match Sprints: under 94 in same area

The best trick spot has banks a nice little gap, i'll post the actual address soon so you can get practicing

Crumpler Bags has arrived!

The good folks of Crumpler sent me a huge box and inside was way more schwag than I could have ever imagined or hoped for.  Backpacks, messenger bags and forty accessory pouches.

The pouches will be doled out as primes at one of the race stops.  woot woot. 

I encourage all of you to take the time and realize that the people who sponsor these types of events do so because they actually care.  These are the companies who care about what is happening here in Minneapolis, these are the people who understand what's going on in cities all over the country.