For as long as there have been messengers there have been
messenger races. Foot messengers raced all over the world and with the
invention of the bicycle came bike messengers and bike messenger
races. In 1895, bicycle messengers from rival Toronto
telegraph companies were racing each other. In the first documented
bike messenger race the Great North Western Telegraph Company (GNW)
messengers challenged the Canadian Pacific Railway Telegraph (CPR)
messengers to a bicycle race at the Toronto island track.
In 1896, the fall championship meet of the New York State Division
League of American Wheelmen. included a race for District
Messenger boys.
Many telegraph messengers in the 1930's were racing enthusiasts. Like
many messengers today, they rode fixed gear racing bikes with no
brakes. Toronto messenger Bob McLeod surprised the world by beating a
very strong field to win the premier
cycling event of the 1934 British Empire Games – the 10-mile race. In
addition McLeod came
second in the time trial. And in 1984, New York messenger Nelson Vails
became the first African-American cyclist to medal in the Olympics,
collecting a silver in the sprints.
By 1985 messengers in Toronto were competing in races that mimicked
their work day by delivering to various checkpoints throughout the city
in live traffic. In 1989, ex- courier, Johnny "Jet Fuel" Englar would
coin the phrase "alleycat scramble" to describe his annual Halloween
messenger race. From then on, live traffic messenger races would be
known as alleycat races.
In 1993 Toronto messengers brought films of their alleycats to the
first ever Cycle Messenger World Championships in Berlin and messengers
from around the world returned home to organize alleycat races in their
own cities.
An alleycat race requires the racers to think and plan the quickest
route to a series of checkpoints. The type of bike the racer
chooses is irrelevant.
Alleycat Race
Links and Articles: (under
construction)
Alleycat Scramble - The
original Alleycats now have a site up with information and flyers from
the historic first Alleycat Scrambles in Toronto.
The
Toronto Story - Lost Cat, Mid-winter 1998
Those Crazy
Messengers- Hideousewhitenoise, #56, 2003
Bicycle
Couriers
in Love With Life on the Mean Streets - Toronto Star, March 1993
Alley Cat
Couriers - The Atlantic Monthly, Jul 97
Guido
Does New York- Hideousewhitenoise, #33, Summer 1997
Full Contact Traffic -
Hideousewhitenoise, Summer 1996
Sixth Annual Halloween
Alley cat Scramble - Moving Target, Spring 1995
Many more to come
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