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Bike Race On Dark Red Hook Streets Without Brakes! DIY Not?
By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 26, 2009
Modified Mar 26, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Mar 26, 2009
Modified Mar 26, 2009
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At 11 o'clock Saturday night—while the bourgeois sheep are filing their nails watching whatever season of Mad About You Netflix delivered to keep them meek and complacent—a group of cyclists are going to be living life to the fullest by competing in a gnarly unauthorized brakeless bike road race through Red Hook. According to Bike Blog NYC, the 2nd annual Red Hook Criterium will be held on a "quarter-mile course which features several hairpin turns, a fast sprint through the parking lot of a chain retailer, a cobblestone stretch, and a sprint finish." Organizer David August Trimble elaborates: "Last year was perfect. Not too big but the racing was intense but safe without any crashes. I couldn’t believe the pace that we completed the race at." The winner after 16 laps gets $300, but because "bus and automobile traffic on the course... is a near-certainty, " anyone who survives should be considered a winner. As for the exact location, you'll have to do some digging, or just follow that distinctive bike messenger smell. (And study this crazy video for a warm-up.)
Tagged
bike
criterium
race
red hook
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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