Hub Racing

Friday was a treasure hunt in which messengers attempted to collect various objects such as certain visitors passes and specific press releases and documents. While many of the 10 objects proved simple for the experienced courier, several proved to be stumpers for all but a few. Each treasure allowed a 30 second head start in saturday's alleycat cycle messenger race, meaning the start of the alleycat would be in groups, 30 seconds apart, across 5 minutes.

Saturday's race was a return to the classic checkpoint to checkpoint race. No gimmicks, no bags, no locks. Just speed through the streets and a full dismount at every stop including the finish. The race began at Farragut Square and headed up Connecticut Ave to the first stop at Porter and Connecticut near the National Zoo. The race then went to the second checkpoint at Ben and Jerry's and City Bikes in Adam's Morgan, followed by CNN near Capitol Hill, the Convention Center and back to Farragut Square.
At 5:30pm, the first group of riders were sent off. The best riders proved to be from the third  and second groups, with Zack Doo-Doo Brown catching the leaders from a full minute behind, and Barry McMenamin catching them from 30 seconds back. At the finish, Barry beat Zack in the sprint, but struggled to pull his manifest out of his pocket. Zack arrived manifest in hand, but found himself stuck in his left cleat, unable to dismount. Finnally, Barry ripped his manifest out from his jersey and slapped it in the official's hand as he let out a victorious yelp.

In the women, a perfect Treasure Hunt gave Sheba Farrin the jump she needed to secure the women's title, but that wasnt enough for her. She set her sights on the overall. While she couldnt hold off the very best of the men, her exceptional ride humbled most of the field. She placed 10th overall, just minutes behind Zack and Barry. Lisa Thomas came to race despite having missed the treasure hunt completely, but made up the time on the road. Starting a full 4 minutes behind the previous woman, she passed all but Sheba to take 2nd place.

 Thanx to our sponsors:
Ben and Jerry's , City Bikes, Boston Market, Harry's, and the  The Crow Bar .
RUSHed -- alleycat home