by Tom Hudson, Peace Coffee Bike & Biodiesel Delivery Driver

Football fans from all over the United States get extremely excited for the Super Bowl weekend, whether it is the hype, the commercials, or the half-time show. People all tune in to watch this classic American event. Most bikers in Minneapolis, however, hardly take notice of the big event. They are spending their own time preparing and planning for the Stupor Bowl Bike Race. This year marked the 10th anniversary of the alley cat/messenger bike race which takes place every February on Super Bowl weekend.

This year’s event drew record crowds despite the -5 degree air temperature and up to -30 below wind chill temperature. Three hundred people from all over the country participated. An alley cat race is a race designed to emulate the rigors of what a “true” bicycle messenger endures. Everyone meets at a location. A manifest is then given out to everyone and the riders are off. The object of the race is to hit all of the stops, get your manifest stamped, and return to the appropriate finish spot without being late. Riders can choose their own routes and in which order they want stop at them.

The Stupor Bowl throws in a few extra options and the riders can choose to enter the race in any of 3 categories. There is the fastest, poker, and drinking options. The fastest racer must hit as many stops as he or she can before the time limit. For the poker option, the rider goes to as many locations that he or she chooses and is given a different playing card at each stop. The rider that returns with the best collection of cards to form poker hand is the winner. The final option is for the more surly riders that choose to drink a beer or shot at any of the “drinking” locations.

Being a resident of Minneapolis and biking throughout the year almost requires one to participate in at least one Stupor Bowl/ Having missed many years, I decided that this year called me to compete.

Everyone met at a local bike/coffee shop, One On One downtown, and waited for the crew to roll out to the secret starting spot. Once the time came the group was given their manifests and rode to the Stone Arch Bridge for the start of the race. The crowd was a mixture of messengers with single speed bikes, racer types, and even the casual rider. All were ready to brave the cold for a few hours to simply ride their bikes.

When the race began I quickly decided to head due north right into the wind to my first stop Psycho Suzie’s Motor Lounge. After the first mile or so, I realized that this might not have been the best decision. The cold wind hit me hard on the face and it took the wind right out of me. We arrived at the bar and decided it would be a good spot to stop and enjoy a beer. Many riders followed us in, but after getting their manifests stamped returned to the cold and the next stop. We choose to warm up and enjoy our beers.

For the riders that choose to participate but who realize they will not win, the Stupor Bowl is enjoyable simply to see what each stop entails. After a few bars in the mix we headed to an Altered Esthetics gallery to get our manifest stamped. It was a pleasant surprise to walk in and see an air-pot of Peace Coffee’s Twin Cities blend for the participants. I enjoyed a cup and was required to draw a bicycle before I could get my manifest stamped and headed on to the next location.

The rest of the three hours we hit fifteen stops which included a print house, bike shop, tattoo parlor, and even someone’s house. By the end of the allotted time I was exhausted but so happy to be a part of such a large bicycle related event. The cold couldn’t keep these folks off their bikes and didn’t stop anyone from enjoying the beautiful, sunny, Minnesota winter day.

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