Emily, thanks so much for the photos!
Julia, thanks so much for kickin' ass with us!
I'm pretty sure these two photos sum it up rather well but to be sure you should totally click on Emily's facebook photo page to get the complete Cuttin' Crew experience...
You must adhere to all of these guidelines:
1) Know how to ride a bike.
2) Basically live on your bike.
3) Go really fast on your bike.
4) Be in Chicago.
5) Have nothing better to do.
6) Be willing to take this shit wa-a-ay too seriously.
7) Be Brynn Schwaba or Bradley Gates.
Fresh fish! Fresh fish!
This is our (un)official development program. Talent and commitment have combined to create two cats rising up from within the street scene that were so kickass we just had to ask if we could take them in before the rest of the world wisened up. Hazing will most definitely ensue but remember, no one punches my little brother/sister but me. Thanks for coming along for the ride guys! We know you'll make us proud! (...awwww)
So, last week was a good week for the Cuttin' Crew. Here's a quick synopsis.
March 15, Milwaukee Messenger Invitational
Max, Ben, Jeff, Molly, Al, Andrew and Stan all went up to party.
Stan got 2nd overall and 1st out of town. Bradley Gates (The new guy) got 3rd and first fixed!
Molly got 3rd in her category (AKA "cat"), 5th in the overall field (her first criterium, AKA "crit").
Jeff got 2nd, 3rd in the cat 4/5's (his first crit finish), Andrew got 10th, 11th in the cat 4/5's, Al got a DNF because the officials didn't catch his number. He was definitely holding it down in the top 20 in a 52 man field. Andrew lined it up immediately after this race for another shot at it in the cat 3's.
Stan found himself a bike box before going to visit his brother in the Lone Star State. He jumped in the Thursday Night Criteriums series down there and ol' boy had the nerve to get 3rd place riding all alone in his first crit!
MMI and Kenosha Spring Training Race #3
3/15/08-3/16/08
by Molly
Photos were either stolen or taken without asking. Thanks Ronsta36
Friday was going to be a long and arduous event. The board was particularly busy while other companies seemed to be slow. It was a welcome change from the in-house position I had to fill Thursday, which left me sitting around reading most of the day. Eighty miles or so later I finished the work day adrenaline rushed and excited about the road trip I was asked to partake in earlier that morning. We were taking the team van on her first long trip to
Departure time was set Saturday morning at
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| All of us piled into the van |
The MMI is a long-time running alleycat located annually in
We rode down to Breakaway Courier for registration and in the process dropped Bradley on a wicked descent/right turn. I would of missed the turn too had I been riding a brakeless fixed gear like he was. After some tracking, we end our trip by going through an icy alley where I fall and end up bruising my knee/ego and throwing my chain.
Walking inside, I see the usual looking suspects. Smoking messengers, track bikes (one with a fake ball sac hanging from the saddle), Brooks saddles, Candy Colored Deep V’s as far as the eye can see (OK, not that far). I also find there is a Kegerator - for those unfamiliar with this contraption, it’s beautiful in its simplicity. Keg + Refrigerator = Kegerator. Ah, more novelty.
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| The MMI hardware... |
My love of racing alleycats has been tainted a bit in the last months – not to say I’ll never race one again, but I didn’t want to ride hard in a city I didn’t know with the Kenosha Criterium the next morning at
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| Riverwest Co-op |
Pedals changed we had to race back to the van as there may have been a wallet MIA. With a head wind and a mighty steep hill (us Chicagoans are not used to that hill stuff), we finally made it back to the van, found the wallet and an appetite. Al and I are vegan and well, Jeff was out numbered for once (insert evil laughter here). We picked a Co-op spot on Clarke where we subjected him to vegan and vegetarian fare. The Seitan Philly was deviously delicious; hitting the spot while still reasonable in price, I totally recommend it.
Turned out the end check point of the race happened to be across the street from the Co-op which was a block away from where we were staying. I’d noticed and appreciated the closeness of everywhere we had been so far. Even “across town” didn’t seem far at all. When walking to the finish, we found out that Stan got 2nd overall and won first place out of town for the second year in a row! Bradley got 3rd right there with him and first fixed. The minutes passed and more people began filtering in and handing in manifests. Chairs and tables filled up with racers enjoying the free Chili and open bar. I held off a bit thinking about my race in the morning, but eventually thought it okay to partake in a beer or two which, in the end, turned in to one too many. I played pool and at the end of the night sang karaoke with Megan at another bar named Frank ’N Steins – why, oh why did I agree to do that? Damn you beer!
I woke up Sunday morning spooning Augie (sorry Augie). It was probably a self defense mechanism to stay on the bed as there were four of us crammed on it together. Hazy and feeling like 10 bucks I scrambled to get my stuff together for my second Crit race ever. Jeff was on top of everything - he had my bike and lock in the van and was ready to go while Bradley, Andrew and I were still inside looking for odds and ends. We made a quick stop for espresso, water, bananas and an ATM for $$$. At first I didn’t think we were going to make it in time for my race, but the guys got me there with just enough time to change, register, pin my number on and get to the starting line. I didn’t get to ride the course or warm up, but Andrew and Bradley were (I think) trying to make up for that by rubbing my legs and giving me pep talks while I stood over the bike. I couldn’t stop laughing and the girl next to me said “Wow, you’re famous!”
“Nah”, I grinned ear to ear “that’s just good team work.”
“IT'S NOT ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE! IT'S ABOUT WINNING!” Were Bradley’s last words of wisdom. My spirits were light and I felt better already.
We were off and I got near the front feeling the course out and taking the turns more towards the outside. After a couple of laps it seemed like I was pulling the pack up the slight grade and into the wind more so than everyone else. I tried to slow down and get some one else to pull, but they just stayed behind me. Three girls broke off the front and I tried to bridge it only to find that it was a solo journey. I backed off thinking I wouldn’t be strong enough to catch them without another girl's help. I led up the windy upgrade and the girl Sue who spoke with me at the start said “good pull” as she passed to relieve me of my position. We started talking and taking turns working. She said I seemed strong and asked me my category, she was a Cat 3. I said it was my second sanctioned race. She began to laugh and expressed her amusement about using “sanctioned” in front of race like there was any other kind. It wasn’t a malicious or teasing laugh but friendly.
“How many unsanctioned races have you been in?” was her next query.
“A few” I replied.
She then told me if we were in any other races together we could team up and work with each other. I was flattered and speechless. She seemed to be looking out for me. Telling me to let some of the other girls do some work! Eventually I was able to express gratitude in a proper fashion. Sue and I were in the front and she jumped, I jumped after her and together we put some distance between us and the other riders. She told me that she was helping me get a better placement since she wasn’t in my category but knew she couldn’t catch up to the other Cat 3 girl ahead of her. Her second place was a guarantee if we just maintained the gap.
We had a lap to go…or so I thought. I was on Sue’s wheel as we approached the start/finish and then she dropped back. I kept going thinking I had another lap. I heard the guys yelling at me but that was nothing new considering they were yelling and banging that huge cowbell the whole time. I came ripping around the final corner on my extra lap and was riding right at them thinking I was still racing. Silly me, the race was over. Oops. Oh well, I laughed it off; ended up taking 3rd place in the Cat 4 and 5th place overall while making an ally in the process. I couldn’t have been more delighted or surprised even if I won first place. The guys and I walked back to the van where I changed under a blanket in the front seat, drank some much needed water and ate the blueberry cliff bar I bought the night before at the Co-op.
Pride swelled up in my chest. Not about my placement, but from the support of my team. Getting me up there hours before their race began, standing out in the cold shouting for me, giving me encouragement, making me laugh my hangover away, I feel like the luckiest novice around. I’ll keep these memories forever. Even though it’s still cold out and general morale always seems low this time of year I’m more confidant than ever that this will be a great and eventful season with Chicago Cuttin‘ Crew. Thanks y’all. Thanks Soosie!
Chrome has created something spectacular. Thanks to their guidance and generosity, a project was assembled and executed to support the Bicycle Messenger Emergency Fund (BMEF). The BMEF is a fund that exists within our community to assist those legitimately injured on the job as they cope with their necessary financial burdens. Most companies do not offer worker's compensation or any assistance to those injured on the job so they have to turn to the community for help to pay the bills. We are all anxious to help and we do so with the best resources we can.
Thanks to the help of Chris Diltz of Killing Machine Apparel and Augie Montes of the 4 Star Courier Collective, Chicago was named the Diamond City.
It is an incredible effort and with your support we can all get some amusement and a little enjoyment out of helping the fund grow. Each deck is a non-negotiable $10 and all proceeds will be used to meet a goal for the National Relief fund and then turned to go into a Local Relief Fund.
If you're interested in getting a deck, you can order it from the Chrome site, you could contact the team in person, leave your information with a comment or send us an email to chicagocuttincrew@gmail.com. If you order through us, we will gladly hand you a deck without any shipping cost and, most importantly, we could give you a personal "thank you" when we put a face to generosity at the next race, meeting, ride, party, wherever.
Matt's spirit and life is certainly not embodied by just a bicycle. It was only one facet to a very layered and rich personality. This day, however, we made the most symbolic offer we could. People called people and places and those people called other places and people and everyone got together and/or contributed whatever they could to honor Matt in the best way we all knew how.
Everyone gathered at Hamlin park, a short distance away from the accident site. I was given the honor of guiding the trailer that carried Matt's memorial bike. All day was that familiar gray of winter until the sun finally shown itself as it set. It might have been the sun, the company, or both that but it actually felt warmer out there when we began the ride.
There were plenty of potholes and cracks and crevices in the concrete. We steered apprehensively to avoid each new hazard in the road. The trailer bike took lead and the whole group followed as we rode up Damen. It was strange noticing that no cars passed us as we went until I looked back to see the whole group just took the whole lane. No cars honked, no one raised a fuss, it seemed as if the world understood.
Many incredible things happened that day but there was one in particular that I must share.
Imagine that time you look down between your arms and look just beyond your handlebars to see your tire rolling smoothly as it swallows the road right in front of your path. You see no one ahead of you, nor in your peripheral, it's just you and the front of your bicycle in your field of vision. The scene tricks you into believing it's just you and the bicycle while the world is off somewhere else. It's a site we have seen and a place we have been thousands of times when each of us are out there alone on the bike. This time there was an incredible feeling I noticed as I rode and glanced down, retreating to that familiar place. I knew that even though there wasn't anyone in sight, I was not alone. This time I knew that everyone was right there with me. This time I knew Matt was right there with me.
It's a humbling experience meeting Matt's family and friends. They are incredible people that had a sense of understanding, a calm and collective wisdom. It all started with us hoping we could comfort them and, in actuality, they were the strong ones comforting us. As we all assembled at that intersection to set up the bike, Luke, Matt's brother, jumped at the opportunity to help get the bike unfastened and set up. It was only fitting that he was given the key to the final lock that would symbolically anchor Matthew's legacy.
Everyone gathered their thoughts as each of us took in the scene in our own way. Some made rounds to comfort others, some found comfort in their own place, and/or some tried to comprehend the traffic buzzing around us. It was a mass of people trying to make sense of it all.
It was phenomenal seeing so many people there, but it was just the tip of the iceberg. This community comes together in the worst of times to bring out the best we can, in the best way we know how. It's a comfort to know that, even though it might seem as such, we are not alone in what we do. The decisions we make and their outcomes affect us all. Matt's family and friends allowed us to show them how much we care. It was an honor to be a part of it, I hope they can now see how much this has touched us and I hope they know our hearts are with them.
Matt loved cycling. It was apparent seeing his face and name at our rides over and over. Like many, I never had the honor of knowing Matt as a writer, chef, student, family member or old friend. Instead, I was one of the many that knew him as a cyclist. It was a common bond so many of us share. We hardly know what everyone else's lives entail outside of cycling but it's this incredible passion that brings us together and helps us to share our lives. Matt was so amazing for coming out to ride. He was a mystery to most of us because he came out to do what he loved, he would even whoop on us quite a bit, but then would return to his other routines without a peep.
God I hate this news. Up until now, the worst day of ever having to get back on the bike was the day after finding out about Ryan Boudreau's fatal accident. It's become a horrifyingly familiar feeling. It's an instinctive reaction to feel some responsibility and be overcome with guilt. Damn me for ever picking up a bicycle and damn me for even thinking of riding a bicycle ever again. Why do I promote these things? Why do I ride like that? Why wasn't I there? Why couldn't I do something? Why do I do this? Jesus, it could have been me!
It feels disrespectful and disgusting to consider getting back into the very thing that Matt had given his life to enjoy. Not only that, think of the consciences of the truck driver that took Ryan's life last year and the conscience of the driver of that SUV from that morning being forever haunted by these horrible experiences. Above all, his poor family and friends are left to grieve over an all too sudden loss.
Had anyone known that the tragedy of Matthew Manger-Lynch's death was going to happen, there isn't a soul on this earth that would have done what they planned on doing today. Life can be so fragile, I am often afraid to ever live it. The one time you forget your seatbelt. The one time you eat the wrong thing. The one time you forget your medicine. The one time you cross the street. The one time you forget to say goodbye. It's not fair how easily something this precious can be taken from us.
You cannot stop living the life you love and doing the things that make you happy. Sure, you can change the way you do something, but there will always be a possible moment you slip up and luck will either carry you through or it won't. The only certain thing is this moment you have to contact those important to you and let them know that.
It's not disrespectful to get back on that bike and do the things that make you and others happy. I would think it's disrespectful to witness something like this and not see the opportunities life has given you. This has given you a reminder to get a hold of those important to you. It has given you a reminder to let your family know you love them, let your friends know you're grateful for them, let your world be a little bit better because you have the opportunity to do so.
Matt has not gone in vain. He will make all of us better at enjoying life and the things we truly love. Let's return the favor by letting those we love know it and helping those who have lost the great gift of Matthew Manger-Lynch to make it through these hardest of times...
Here's CBS 2's report: http://cbs2chicago.com/local/cyclist.killed.crash.2.661587.html
From Alexis...
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Family Night: please come over to my place tomorrow night (Tuesday, February 26th). This will be in part a place for those who were there during Tour de Chicago this Sunday. It will be a place for us to grieve over the death of Matt Lynch and cope with the shock and aftermath of such a horrible event. It will also be a place to share the positive moments of the race, and remember that Matt was at the head of the pack, winning the race when he passed away.
Please to those who were not there on Sunday, we need you as well. Shoulders to lean on, experience with tragedies past and how you got through them.
I will have a pot of [nearly] vegan chili hot on the stove [it has an accidental splash of chicken broth and a bit of butter in it]. It should be enough to feed about 20 or so. If there's anything else folks would like to be eating please bring it along.
2438 N. Lawndale Ave [1/2 block n. of fullerton, 2 blocks west of central park] 3rd floor lock your bikes to the fence downstairs
.alexis.
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Thank you Luke for finding and providing this information so quickly. From his obituary...
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Visitation will take place on Thursday, February 28, 2008 at St. Christopher's Episcopal Church, 7845 North River Road in River Hills, from 2:00 PM until 4:00 PM. A service in celebration of Matt's life will follow at the church at 4:00 PM. Interment will be private. In Matt's memory, memorials may be made to the YMCA Camp Manito-wish, Box 246, Boulder Junction, WI 54512, or to the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation, 9 W. Hubbard ST, Suite 402, Chicago, IL 60610-6545. FEERICK FUNERAL HOME Shorewood (414) 962-8383 Condolences may be sent to: www.feerickfuneralhome.com
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Photos were put together on this flickr page as well as an online guestbook here.
This just got real scary. Seriously. I've got goosebumps typing this. Cuttin' Crew just grew from something to fear on the street scene to something above and beyond. Come on, you knew this was coming, ya'll had to expect this one too. Damn, it's still crazy when these things actually happen... Cat 3 on the road playing domestique? Probably the most underrated 4 on the track ever? This just went from punking everyone on the race scene to a straight up campaign! Chicago has just awoken to a new day. Be proud to be a part of this street scene, let alone any street scene. We're going to be out there putting you on the radar. Shit. Do I still have to say his name? I'll give you some hints...Orange jersey. Big ass smile. Silver tooth... If you don't know him by now, you've been walking or driving way too much.
Okay, okay. *ahem*
Ladies and Gentleman. May I present the latest addition to the Chicago Cuttin' Crew: Nico West.
