June 10/99 12:28 pm - Results from N. American Courier Champs, Singing Cyclists!

Posted by Editoress on 06/10/99
 

2nd North American Cycle Courier Championships Race Results

Held in Toronto June 5 & 6, 1999

Jet Fuel Coffee Shop and the Toronto bike messenger community are pleased to announce the winners of the 2nd North American Cycle Courier Championships (NAC3). A field of just over 150 competitors - including about three dozen women - took part in the two-day competition (June 5 and 6, 1999). Among the cities represented were Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Calgary, Columbus, Halifax, Hamilton, Houston, Minneapolis, New York, Ottawa, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Toronto and Washington DC. Apart from the North Americans, a few guests turned up from Berlin and Amsterdam as well. Sunday's finalists faced gruellingly humid heat as they battled it out on three levels of the parking garage, as well as parklands and concrete staircases at Toronto's College Park.

CHAMPIONSHIP WINNERS
MEN
1. Ted Ingram Toronto
2. Justin Gullickson Calgary
3. Gary Watson Ottawa

WOMEN
1. Helen Reeves Toronto
2. Angie Zubrzycki Ottawa
3. Reba Plummer Toronto

TOP TRACK BIKE FINISHERS
MEN
Michael Rudnick Minneapolis

WOMEN
Rebecca Reilly New York

200-METRE SPRINT (standing start)
WOMEN
1. Brooks Rappley Toronto
(16.02 seconds, riding fixed gear)
2. Kevin X Toronto
3. Fish Amsterdam

WOMEN
1. Crissima Pearce Toronto
2. Laura Hopcroft Toronto
3. Marlee Cargill Toronto

SKID COMPETITION
MEN
Chris Bishop Baltimore

WOMEN
Rebecca Reilly New York

TRACK STAND COMPETITION
MEN
Fish Amsterdam

WOMEN
Rebecca Reilly New York

BEST DRESSED
Corey Hillard Philadelphia

MOST SUPPORTIVE
Lisa Ramsey New York

NAC3 was an official event of Toronto's Bike Week. Proceeds will be donated to St. Stephen's Community House. (The Toronto bike messenger community has raised over $15,000 for St. Stephen's since the inauguration of an annual bike race known as the St. Stephen's courier classic.) The next major bike courier racing event is the Cycle Messenger World Championships, to be held in Zurich later this summer.

NAC3 was also proudly sponsored by Amsterdam Brewery, Batcave, Boundless, Cadmus Communications, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), College Park Shops, Courier Cavern, Daredevil Clothing, deVinci, Hideousewhitenoise, eye Weekly, Spreads and the Toronto Hoof & Cycle Coalition (THC).

MEDIA INFORMATION: Cadmus Communications, 416-531-5670
WEBSITE: http://hideousewhitenoise.com


SONG CYCLES, TORONTO'S CHOIR ON BIKES, RELEASES DEBUT CD: THE ROUND ALBUM

For immediate release
June 7, 1999

Just in time for Bike Week, Song Cycles, Toronto's Choir on Bikes, has released its first-ever CD. THE ROUND ALBUM includes 15 songs, both adapted and original, that reflect the choir's mandate to promote and celebrate bicycles, and - by extension - a healthy urban environment in every sense of the phrase.

The selections on THE ROUND ALBUM are chosen from among six years of songs satirical, silly, sardonic and sentimental, with lots of humour and more than a dash of politics. They include some original compositions and many original arrangements by choir director Greg Furlong. Instrumental accompaniment ranges from accordion to kazoo. Some numbers are underscored by park sounds, like birdsong and children at play - from Toronto's Christie Pits park, where several cuts were recorded.

Formed in 1993, Song Cycles has made many appearances on Canadian TV and radio, and at special events in the Toronto area. They have toured to perform in Montreal (Quebec), and in Ottawa, Belleville and Hamilton (Ontario). The ensemble specializes in "bicyclized" lyrics to well known standards like Beethoven's "Ode to Joy", "Teddy Bear's Picnic" and "Oh! Susannah". The choir has also adapted and re-arranged less familiar material, including folk songs and hymns. Some songs contain local references, while others will resonate with cyclists in any city.

A highlight is the saucy, original "Two Wheel Tango", in praise of "gentlemen on bikes", featuring a guest solo by the song's composer, Canadian folk performer Marie-Lynn Hammond. Many listeners will laugh along wrily to "Transit Song", which sings the praises of Toronto's public transit systems, TTC and GO, when there's a "Four car pile-up ahead, the QEW's dead, the power is out and an ice storm is heading this way..."

THE ROUND ALBUM was supported by the Dan Leckie Trust Fund. Half the proceeds will be donated back to the fund, which was set up in honour of the late Toronto City Councillor Dan Leckie to support projects that bring the community together to support positive environmental change around Toronto.

The CD is priced at $15 Cdn, and is available at retail outlets in Toronto, as well as through the internet at www.web.net/~detour/songcycles (where many of the songs on THE ROUND ALBUM may be sampled.)

MEDIA CONTACT: Cadmus Communications 416-531-56700