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They make it look easy
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| Couriers compete on ice: Three dozen bike couriers will come to Montreal for the Ice Cup, a measure of their on-the-job agility Montreal Gazette, February 04, 2006 By Steven Howell Move over, Turin. Here's some winter fun you won't find at this year's Olympics. The Old Port of Montreal presents Winter Cup 2006 and Street Static, two wintertime sports competitions - with a twist. Winter Cup 2006, being next Saturday, is a one-day event that brings together the best bicycle couriers from Quebec, Canada and the U.S. This is the third edition of the event. Three dozen athletes - all bike couriers - will compete in individual races as well as a relay race and ice polo. The event takes place at Bonsecours Basin with qualifying heats beginning at 11 a.m. Cyclists compete in two categories: studded class and rubber class. Studded class means that the bicycle tires have been transformed with screws from the inside out - sort of like crampons on wheels. "There's a different set of skills needed to compete between the rubber tires vs. the studded tires," said Tom Ostreiko, the event organizer and a full-time Montreal bike courier. As I speak to him via his cellphone, I can hear he's on the job as a car horn honks in the background. "The speed is faster in the stud class." He says that Bonsecours Basin is the perfect site: "Compared to a hockey rink, there are no boards to crash into." Boards or no boards, he does guarantee lots of spills along the way. Winner of the event receives the Ice Cup, a trophy made, yes, of ice. "The winner also gets bragging rights and free beer," he said. Ostreiko, 27, has been a Montreal bike courier for six years. He says there are about 450 bike couriers in Montreal during summer and about 150 who are dedicated as year-round messengers. "No matter what the season, we're out there," he said. On a typical winter weekday, he'll deliver 50 packages. "Just think of all the cars we keep out of the downtown area," he said. "What we do is good for the environment." Ostreiko dreams of a chance to compete in the bike courier world championships in Australia this October. "We're always looking for sponsors," he said. Winter Cup 2006 takes place Saturday, Feb. 11, at Bonsecours Basin in the Old Port from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit the website www.coupedesglaces.org. Admission is free. Next is Street Static, an urban snowboarding competition that invites the top snow-boarders from Quebec and Canada. Athletes compete in qualifying rounds called "jams" and then in a finale called "battles." Street Static takes place at Place des Vestiges along the Old Port promenade Feb. 24 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Feb. 25 from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. Admission is free. For all Old Port winter activities visit www.oldportofmontreal.com |
