NACCCs overview

By Jeff (Photos stolen from the brilliant artists on the Chicago NACCC flickr group, thanks iwinyoulose, JohnHartsfield, verly138. I highly recommend looking through everyone's. There's waaayyy too many photos to go through)

Stan is the Nation's number one Avid Cyclist! All drama aside, this man deserves a ton of credit. Whether he looks the role or not, he will proudly always tell you he has never been a messenger. Having spent plenty of time joking along with us yet having no actual experience with this game, he grinded his way to 9th place (top ten!) at the 11th North American Cycle Courier Championships and earned top spot with the title of non-messenger. Andrew got 5th overall and was top Chicago boy, followed closely by Nico's 6th. That's 3 Chicagoans in the top ten. New York got 3 in the top ten but also 2 where it counted most: Austin was the first finisher, Kym was the 4th finisher and first woman. Fergus from SF was apparently only 6 seconds behind Austin to place 2nd and one of two Friscans in the top 10. Boston's Craig Roth was 3rd and MKE's Chad Rice was 10th. Full results are in pdf form here.

My performance? Well, between firecrackers going into boxes, having a person dressed as a chicken steal your bike and having a pack of bitter current and ex-messengers put you through degrading hoops in order to get your package, I think my performance at the 4 Star/Breakaway checkpoint was a success. The best is, that was only for the qualifiers...

"Hey Rooster, about yesterday's checkpoint. Rad. Could you tone it down a little bit today?"

No worries Augie, all ready planned on taming CP #5. We set up the barriers behind the bus so no one knew where to go their first trip, even those that scouted the course couldn't see the "Loading Dock". The goal was to make everyone improve as you went along. It was amusing to put all of these seasoned vets back into their rookie pants. Harassment ensued but it was consistent.

40/Copper/Gipson/Mike G./...dad, call him what you will, he was top dog for a day. After sitting around and taking back some brews the Cuttin' Crew OG decided to hop in the mix and was showing everyone how this business works. He was as slick as could be and got the top qualifying time on Saturday. Come Sunday, however, the hangover and getting a poorly timed flat proved too much and he DNF'd. Aw well, we need seasonal help for our 'cross season and his reds smokin', Bud sippin' style will probably foot the bill.

No Chicken this time, just a grown man in a banana suit, 7 cubes of PBR, more loud music, big cowbell and all day to fuck with people.

Mike Morell and OG Jason Marshall were the braintrusts behind a rather grueling course. It felt great to hear people numbed with pain and exhaustion. Good ol' pancake flat Chicago proved daunting to many people and we have the creativity (and dementedness) of Mike and Jay to thank.

Prom was a sensation. It could actually be considered too big. Putting Bottom Lounge past capacity is a hell of a feat. Big ups to Josh and Russell for pulling that together.

Augie and Vern were machines. Something about getting up at 630 to carry a bunch of shit all over Garfield Park was a tough sell. Having to do it two days in a row was borderline torture. Those cats were around for every minute. Those two have been dealing with a tough city, park district, police dept., and expensive bill for a long time and yet they pulled it off. Thanks guys.

Mareesha and Dilts were awesome go-to's for publicity and making us all look good. Bringing a big draw for sponsors and swag as well as event planning and execution is not something done easily with an event like this. Thank you so much you two.

A lot of volunteers came through and helped out in ways you could never imagine.

Cuttin' Crew qualified everyone for the final. Brynn had a nasty spill that tore some elbow ligaments, send her your best. She's a tough chick so she'll be fine, but it doesn't hurt to give the lady some kind words. Then, of course, there's this...

Note the hand still holding the bike. That's skill...

It was good to see everyone and meet many more. These things are so beautiful when it comes to that. Lil' Jen and Juice. Cyclejerks. DC crew. Jimmy and his LA peeps. Fhar. The ever impressive Philly contingent. Your DFL and GFG Josh Whitesnake. It's like one big hug going all around...aaahhh.

See you bitches in Boston.

North American Cycle Courier Championships

So it's no surprise to anyone that this week is a big deal. We haven't really plugged it here because it just hasn't seemed real. It's still hard to process: the NACCCs are here in Chicago. More work than you could ever imagine has been put into making this a success. It's scary how good this will be. Holy crap, it's so soon! IT'S THIS FUCKING WEEKEND!! "Labor day weekend, 2008!" Do you have any idea how many times we've told that to people? I'm going to say 946...this month at least.

So many people are amazed to see what Chicago has to offer as a host city. They sure as hell won't be let down. Aside from the visitors, mostly every local is in for something s/he has never seen before. Imagine 300 messengers from all over the world coming to have a good time and see what Chicago has to offer. Top male and female messenger champions will get tickets to Tokyo to participate in the World's next year. Every genuine dive bar, good restaurant, realest of bike shops, and loyal manufacturer will see their faithful clientèle skyrocket and finally gather in one place to hang out, race and have a good time. No lies, it's going to be a little intimidating, but at the end of the day, all that really matters is whether or not you hardened up and gave it a shot to participate. After that you'll truly understand what this craze, this fascination, this addiction, what this love is all about. NACCCs are such a beautiful thing. We're doin' it the Chicago way. Be sure not to miss out on it.

Oh. And, um. PS. The swag list is absolutely insane. Check out the sponsor list here.

Registration is here.

Details are here.

Schedule is here.

MySpace page is here.

Daniella Update

Our little sister team, Yojimbo's Track Cats had a hard lesson handed to them recently. We've been working with them, (in some cases tirelessly...Bre) and everyone agrees some great things have come of it. National champions, their Champion trainers, World class athletes, the finest mechanics and Alums from the School of Hard Knocks have all joined the incredible volunteer committee and seemingly endless generosity of Marcus to help these kids grow as racers, riders and people. This team has done a bit of work to accommodate. We're also doing our best to share our relatively modest knowledge of velodrome riding, the respectful advice of Kenosha's velodrome mentors has certainly humbled us all. On our latest trip to the Washington Park Velodrome (August 19), one of the promising young ladies on the Track Cats got caught a bad situation. In the final race of the night, the Consolation Race, Daniella went down and hit the track hard. Stories have narrowed it down to a wheel collision, a common cause for wiping out. The painful problem was amplified, however, by the awkward manner in which she fell. She was knocked unconscious and flown to a hospital in Milwaukee. The MKE hospital was more suited for handling minors and she stayed in ICU unconscious for approximately 12 hours. She is back to a wary yet stable state of consciousness as of late. She has a few scrapes and bruises and carries a bad concussion on her resume but the medical staff is expressing confidence that she is in the midst of a full recovery.

Please keep her in your hopes, prayers, actions, whichever method you see fit to help strengthen her and her fam. Heal up quickly and keep rollin' Daniella.

Team Pursuit

Well. Another trip to the track and a lot of fun watching people ride on their own. Whodathunkit? Photos are coming soon. Performance was good with plenty of room for improvement. Goal time of 5:10 was beat. Al bust out a 5:19 solo effort. Adam hit 5:29 thinking Vienna Beef the whole time. Team hit 5:06 all while having to crispen that shit up. The support and love was deep, be on the lookout for photo evidence.

Thanks again to Marcus. Every time we get on that track with some bona fide equipment and guidance it's because of that man. Yojimbo's, 1310 N Clybourn.

Bicycle Film Festival Block Party

Long overdue part 1: Chris Dilts is winner for best photographer. Do yourself a favor and check out his awesome flickr set. Favorites include: Gorilla drinking sparks, Candles mysterio with the megaphone, BMX dude putting on a clinic, bike somersaulter guy pulling it off, bike somersaulter guy not pulling it off and Augie doing his Augie thing. Links? No. No links for you! See if you can find which ones I'm referring to. Until then. Here:

Yeah. It was pretty much like that.

Big props to Jamie for winning the women's sprints and gettin' in the mix with the big boys. Stan pulled off the overall sprint victory after coming off a 4th place finish at Glencoe Grand Prix 2 hours prior. Badass tricks and skids filled the long day up until Pete (PETE!) won the raffle for the Capone Cycles 312 Track frameset. Nothing but compliments were flying in regards to the new frameset, check them when you can, nocturnal BMX at 1436 W Fullerton.

This team also has one great supporter to thank... Thanks Rachel!

Team Pursuit

Tonight is the night! Adam, Al, Brean and Jeff will be participating in a 4 man, 4 KM team pursuit on the track. Big shout out and personal dedication to Marcus Moore of Yojimbo's Garage for providing equipment, advice and support.

This will be quite a team showcase and hopefully we'll have something nice to report back!

8/13/2007

It was one year ago on this day that the worst news anyone could bear was spread through the community like a horrible shiver. I still remember what it felt like to hear what happened. The first thing that came to mind was that incredible smile and energy and style that defined Ryan.

It's shattering to be reminded how quickly beautiful things can be taken away. He was separated from this world and his two children and their mother. He was separated from this community that stands so unique and marginalized, yet he would never have a moment of hesitation when it came to backing you up. Seriously. He was separated but not gone. Never gone unless forgotten and that just won't happen.

Whether you had the pleasure of knowing him or knowing of him, Avi says it well:

"We all ride for our own reasons. Because we love it, or it sets us free, or it pays the bills, or because we just can't stop riding.

We fall, we rise up, and we ride again.

But when one of us falls forever, we all have to work a little harder to ride on."

It will be a difficult day for many out there. Everyone should consider the horrible weight that driver is left to bear as well. As hard as it is to move on, it's times like this Ryan reminds us to stop and think about the great things around us. It's only fitting that we pay tribute and respects to Ryan in a way that will always be one of his favorites...

He loved to hang out and be in great company. One of his favorite places was Cal's on Van Buren and Wells. Come on by Cal's on Friday (August 15). Come do what Ryan would undoubtedly be doing with us. Raise a cheer to a great life and buy Ryan a beer or whatever at the bar. That 2+ dollars will go into his memorial fund and be kept to help provide for his two children.

Also going on will be a memorial ride being assembled by the Chicago Courier's Union. It will be forming around 6 o'clock, Wednesday, August 13. The route will be determined there and departure should be right around 6.

Been seein' these around?

Click here or scroll down for the post from, like, TWO days ago. Milwaukee Bicycle Co. is for lovers. They've thrown in crazy swag with less than a week's notice. Gotta give it to the stylish Everybody Lies for helping out short notice. My man with the plan breaking out the newest line of hats for his local entrepreneurship, Granny Gear Hats. Be on the lookout for some goods from Soma Fabrications.

And of course, the pièce de résistance: Capone Cycles.

Chuey!!!!

Chuey Brand caps have been around a bit in SF and they are making their rounds through, well, everywhere. Particularly in the Midwest they are becoming instant favorites. Their caps are sharp and distinctive and we're damn lucky to have them making a run for us. We now have team specific designs available and they are fucking amazing! Those cats even did a bunch of hats for some weird cycling thing going on at the end of the month...

You should check out the new shirts they have going as well.

Hey! Wait! I know her!

Haaaaay Molly! Caught you being interviewed by dispatch101...