Thursday, March 27, 2008

Tour de Cow Town - Alleycat and Swap Meet


It's billed as the 834th annual Tour de Cowtown, which could mean this is the longest lasting bicycle event on the planet. Or possibly these guys have vivid imaginations.

On Saturday May 17 2008, in celebration of Bike to Work week, Kansas City will have an alleycat race and a bicycle swap meet.

Link to KCBikeFed
Link to Acme Bicycle Company

There's the LCI part of me that recoils from the usual behavior found in alleycat races, where breaking traffic law is normally part of the competition. Since the death of Matt Manger-Lynch in the Tour da Chicago alleycat racing has received a lot of media attention, and as can be expected, much of it is negative. My feeling is that alleycats are an endangered species, not due to police action, motorist outrage, or political pressure, but because the inevitable crashes will eventually result in lawsuits against organizers.

But despite that, I find the idea of trying to ride across town as quickly as possible an intriguing one. Alleycats are for younger, faster riders, however. A slightly overweight middle aged guy like me would be hopelessly outclassed...and hopelessly lost!

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2 Comments:

Blogger amidnightrider said...

We I go on group rides I try to organize a separate section and call it the AARP Coasters.

10:54 AM  
Blogger Paul Tay said...

The problem with alleycat deaths? Organizers should simply keep it all on the down-low QUIET. Dump the dead body six feet under. And, plant a tree on top of it.

Actually, I'd like to see a cops versus cons urban bike race. Oh, wait, there's already one in Tulsa.

8:53 AM  

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