Spoke Cards

Alleycats' little momentos

Spoke cards serve to identify alleycat racers, like numbers on a runner's uniform. Riders stick laminated cards between the spokes of the back wheel. After the finish, the cards are often kept as memorabilia or for future ornamentation. These spoke cards are a few examples from past races from around the world, lent to us by our friend and renowned racer Jur 74.

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Spoke cards where they belong; the rear wheel - Arden de Raaij

With: pierski akbar, Stefan Vis, Gijs van Amelsvoort
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Pristine Grand Opening 2009 (front side) - On Dec 12. '09, an Alleycat was held in honor of Pristine Fixed Gear's grand opening. The event included racing, a photo exhibition, mad DJing, and booze of course. Pristine is Amsterdam's first and only fixie bike shop.

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Pristine Grand Opening 2009 (back side) - 12 December 2009, Amsterdam- An Alleycat was held in honor of Pristine Fixed Gear's grand opening. The event included racing, a photo exhibition, mad DJing, and booze of course. Pristine is Amsterdam's first and only fixie bike shop.

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5 Boro Generals Broadway Bomber 2009 (front side) - The highlighted 5 Boro General Bombing event in Manhattan took place on the USA's Independence Day, a much celebrated holiday sure to have plenty of traffic. Racers shot down the entire length of Manhattan Island from top to bottom (about 21.50 kilometers).

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5 Boro Generals Broadway Bomber 2009 (back side) - 5 Boro Generals Broadway Bomber, June-October 2009, NYC - This flier promotes one of a series of bike bombing events throughout the five Boroughs (aka Boros) of New York City. Each borough is like a mini-city with its own set of challenges for an alleycat racer dictated by varied terrain and population density. The Bronx, Manhattan (Broadway), Staten Island (S.I.), Queens and Brooklyn are NYC's 5 Boroughs.

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Rumble Thru the Bronx 2005 (front side) - 11 June 2005 NYC- This unsanctioned alleycat through NYC's only inland borough is one of the many 5 Borough General events. This spoke card features artwork by Ugalde.

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Rumble Thru the Bronx 2005 (back side) - The semi-cryptic letters and numbers on the back of the spoke card serves as an acronym for the event, states the date (June 11th, '05) and the racer's number (79). Arden de Raaij

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Bridge Battle Two 2006 - This card comes from the second annual alleycat over the Brooklyn, Manhattan, Williamsburg, Pulaski, and Queensboro bridges in New York City. The race usually takes nearly an hour to complete and ends with a party.

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Bombtrack Berlin Alleycat 2004 - This bombing event was hosted by Keirin , a bike culture cafe in Berlin. Spoke card tag line: "two wheelz, one fixed gear, no brakes."

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Open Dutch CMC 2005 - This Cycle Messengers Championship of the Netherlands was held in Arhem and sponsored by the IFBMA (International Federation of Bike Messenger Associations).

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Demarrage 2009 - 14 November 2009 Maastricht- This spoke card advertises a group of messengers from the South of Holland that hosted an alleycat race. Their spoke card features a screaming beer can, while the flipside boasts "the fastest draw in the south."

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Demarrage 2009 - This spoke card advertizes a group of messengers from the South of Holland that hosted an alleycat race. Their spoke card features a screaming beer can, while the flipside boasts "the fastest draw in the south."

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Annick van Hardeveld Memorial Alleycat - 4 May 2007, Amsterdam This unique race serves to commemorate the resistance messenger Annick van Hardeveld who was shot by German forces the day before Amsterdam was liberated. Instead of heading to the Dam Square, these fixie folks ride for the day of Remembrance of the Dead. The memorial stone for van Hardeveld is the finish line for the race, and competitors must complete it by 20:00 in order to observe the national two minutes of silence. Participants also grab white roses from the last…

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Little 16th Halloween Berlin Alleycat, Berlin (front side) - Halloween is a popular time for alleycats worldwide. This spoke card features the tag line "Driving Cars is shit" and on the backside shows the racer's number and a cartoon of cat lying on its face (the victim of a hit and run).

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Little 16th Halloween Berlin Alleycat, Berlin (back side) - The back of this spoke card shows the racer's number and a cartoon of cat lying on its face (the victim of a hit and run).

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Australian Cycle Messenger Championships 2000 - Australian Cycle Messenger Championships 2000 - This spoke card features the list of sponsors, the racer's number, and an image of a bike messenger wearing a gas mask and holding a time bomb. "Bombing" usually refers to a super fast downhill bike race. Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 1997 - 17-19 May 1997, Amsterdam- For its second anniversary, the European Cycle Messenger Championships (ECMC) chose Amsterdam as its host city. This May, ECMCers will celebrate the 15th year of the race in Budapest. In these examples, red spoke cards were assigned to crew members, while the bigger white cards displayed the racing number of the competitors.

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ECMC 2001 - The ECMC traveled to Rotterdam for its 2001 event. Different spoke cards were created for different positions, like crew member and participant. Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2001 - The ECMC traveled to Rotterdam for its 2001 event. Different spoke cards were created for different positions, like crew member and participant. Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2001 - The ECMC traveled to Rotterdam for its 2001 event. Different spoke cards were created for different positions, like crew member and participant. Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2002 - Dublin - 31 May - 3 June 2002, Dublin- For the 2002 four day competition of Europe's best messenger cycles, yellow spoke cards differentiate crew members from cyclists. Also, the third spoke card carries a sticker dedicated to the memory of a deceased cyclists. Often, spoke cards themselves are often created explicitly to commemorate the dead. Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2002 - Dublin - 31 May - 3 June 2002, Dublin- For the 2002 four day competition of Europe's best messenger cycles, yellow spoke cards differentiate crew members from cyclists. Also, the third spoke card carries a sticker dedicated to the memory of a deceased cyclists. Often, spoke cards themselves are often created explicitly to commemorate the dead. Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2004 - 28 July - 1 August 2004 Warsaw- This European championship was dedicated to memory of a deceased cyclist, killed in a collision with a truck earlier that year. Sarah Smith

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ECMC 2008 - 25-27 July 2008 Eindhoven- ECMC event Organized by Tour de Ville, promotional artwork on flipside of the spoke card provided by erosie. http://www.tourdeville.nl/page/ Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2008 (back side) - 25-27 July 2008 Eindhoven- ECMC event Organized by Tour de Ville, promotional artwork on flipside of the spoke card provided by erosie. http://www.tourdeville.nl/page/ Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2008 - 25-27 July 2008 Eindhoven- Eindhoven Rockcity , an organization dedicated to spreading news on the cultural activities going on in Eindhoven, also created their own spoke cards for the event, stamping their emblem on it. Sarah Smith

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ECMC 2008 (back side) - ECMC organized by Tour de Ville , promotional artwork of the spoke card provided by erosie. Sarah Smith

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ECMC 2009 - Berlin - 28 May- 01 June 2009 Berlin- The most recent ECMC was hosted in Berlin. (Berlin was the original urban playground for the World Championships in 1993). This spoke card displays the stylized city skyline and the competitor’s number. Arden de Raaij

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ECMC 2009 - Berlin - 28 May- 01 June 2009 Berlin- The most recent ECMC was hosted in Berlin. (Berlin was the original urban playground for the World Championships in 1993). This spoke card displays the stylized city skyline and the competitor’s number. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 1998 (front side) - The Cycle Messenger World Championships pits the planet's best cyclists against each other and hosts events that celebrate bike culture. This highly competitive event is sanctioned by the International Federation of Bike Messengers Association. In 1998 the DCBCA (Washington DC's Bicycle Courier Association) hosted the events. This spoke card exhibits a series of commercial sponsors, and on the back, quotes the racer's time. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 1998 (back side) - The Cycle Messenger World Championships pits the planet's best cyclists against each other and hosts events that celebrate bike culture. This highly competitive event is sanctioned by the International Federation of Bike Messengers Association. In 1998 the DCBCA (Washington DC's Bicycle Courier Association) hosted the events. This spoke card exhibits a series of commercial sponsors, and on the back, quotes the racer's time. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 1998 (riders number) - The Cycle Messenger World Championships pits the planet's best cyclists against each other and hosts events that celebrate bike culture. This highly competitive event is sanctioned by the International Federation of Bike Messengers Association. In 1998 the DCBCA (Washington DC's Bicycle Courier Association) hosted the events. This spoke card exhibits a series of commercial sponsors, and on the back, quotes the racer's time. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 1999 - This foxy spoke card was a product of the 7th annual world championship for cyclists. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 2000 - This card comes from the Cycle Messenger World Championships of 2000. The 2000 Championships were held in Philadelphia and was featured in publications like the Village Voice http://www.villagevoice.com/2000-09-19/news/spin-city/1 and the US News & World Report http://www.andrewcurry.com/portfolio/SpandexSpokesandaLottaNerve.html Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 2001 - 27-29 July 2001, Budapest- Home of the 2001 world championships, Budapest will also host the European Cycle Messenger Championships this May. Sarah Smith

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CMWC 2001 (back side) - 27-29 July 2001, Budapest Sarah Smith

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CMWC X, 2002, Copenhagen - This spoke card is signed and/or tagged by team of cyclists out of Los Angeles, competing in the 2002 CMWC. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 2005, NYC - Bike messenger ID card including the event's contact info and the participant's basic info. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 2005 - Bike messenger ID card including the event's contact info and the participant's basic info. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 2005 - This spoke card comes from one particular race at the world champoinships called King of the Fucking Streets. Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 13-16 June 2008 Toronto - Home of the first alleycats in the 1980s, the world championships were held for the first time in the birthplace of the race: Toronto! The event was presented by the Toronto Bike Messenger Association and the City of Toronto. This card exhibits a CMWC logo, racer number, and on the flipside, the line "Fuck off, I'm Racing." Arden de Raaij

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CMWC 13-16 June 2008 Toronto - Home of the first alleycats in the 1980s, the world championships were held for the first time in the birthplace of the race: Toronto! The event was presented by the Toronto Bike Messenger Association and the City of Toronto. This card exhibits a CMWC logo, racer number, and on the flipside, the line "Fuck off, I'm Racing." Arden de Raaij

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Official Arnhem Uphill - 12 januari 2008, Arnhem - This spoke card contains the bike messenger lingo throughout: "posengers" "fakengers" "singlespeeders" "fietsers" "roadracers" "downhillers" "bmxers" "mtbers" "haute courier" "fixies". While some of these are self explanatory, "posengers" and "fakengers" are cyclists who dress/ride like messengers but aren't. While some real messengers snub these "pretendengers," others, like the hosts of this event, embrace them. Arden de Raaij

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Official Arnhem Uphill (back side) - 12 januari 2008, Arnhem - This spoke card contains the bike messenger lingo throughout: "posengers" "fakengers" "singlespeeders" "fietsers" "roadracers" "downhillers" "bmxers" "mtbers" "haute courier" "fixies". While some of these are self explanatory, "posengers" and "fakengers" are cyclists who dress/ride like messengers but aren't. While some real messengers snub these "pretendengers," others, like the hosts of this event, embrace them.

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Mermaid Parade, 25 June 2005, Coney Island - This spoke card features an intricate print of a mermaid wrapped up with bicycle chains and tires. Not only are bikes exhibited in the parade, but the 7th annual Skids and Sprints messenger competition took place at an undisclosed location afterward (true to alleycat style).

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Tokyo Rapido 2004 (front side) - 7-8 May 2004 Tokyo- In May, 2004 this two-day Tokyo Rapido event hosted an alleycat, sight-seeing ride, and a party. This spoke card advertises various sponsors and maps the location.

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Tokyo Rapido 2004 (back side) - 7-8 May 2004 Tokyo- In May, 2004 this two-day Tokyo Rapido event hosted an alleycat, sight-seeing ride, and a party. This spoke card advertises various sponsors and maps the location.

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Kyoto LOCO 2004 (front side) - 2-3 May 2004 Kyoto- This worldwide Messenger Jamboree hosted by KyotoLOCO , an organization dedicated to promoting bike culture in Kyoto.

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Kyoto LOCO 2004 (back side) - 2-3 May 2004 Kyoto- This worldwide Messenger Jamboree hosted by KyotoLOCO , an organization dedicated to promoting bike culture in Kyoto.

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Tokyo Rapid0 & Kyoto LOCO 2004 (front side) - A spoke card showing both the Kyoto Loco as the Tokyo Rapido event.

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Tokyo Rapido & Kyoto Loco 2004 (back side) - A spoke card showing both the Kyoto Loco as the Tokyo Rapido event.

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Rollapaluza 2009 (front side) - 10 October 2009 Eindhoven -This event was made up out of roller racing and bike polo and hosted by Tour de Ville

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Rollapaluza 2009 (back side) - 10 October 2009 Eindhoven -This event was made up out of roller racing and bike polo and hosted by Tour de Ville

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Unnamed Alleycat, London - (front side) - Like true underground alleycats, this spoke card has practically no information about the event. A cryptic map lists different routes for the races. The only concrete checkpoint on the route is Brixton Cycles, a worker's co-op geared toward bikers.

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Unnamed Alleycat, London - (back side) - Like true underground alleycats, this spoke card has practically no information about the event. A cryptic map lists different routes for the races. The only concrete checkpoint on the route is Brixton Cycles, a worker's co-op geared toward bikers.

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Goathedz B.C., Mike Giant / CARS SUCK - A Mike Giant creation for the Goathedz zine. The zine is dedicated to all things bikes, and was published by Mike Giant's Rebel8 brand in San Francisco.

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Goathedz B.C., Mike Giant / CARS SUCK - A Mike Giant creation for the Goathedz zine. The zine is dedicated to all things bikes, and was published by Mike Giant's Rebel8 brand in San Francisco.

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Dings trapt af 2009 - (front side) - 17-24 October 2009, Eindhoven As part of Dutch Design Week, DINGS held an exposition juxtaposing different types of bikes highlighting the new versus the old, function versus sex-appeal, profession versus hobby, etc. Participants and sponsors included a wide range of brands and organizations from Bitches in Control to VANS.

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Dings trapt af 2009 - (back side) - 17-24 October 2009, Eindhoven. As part of Dutch Design Week, DINGS held an exposition juxtaposing different types of bikes highlighting the new versus the old, function versus sex-appeal, profession versus hobby, etc. Participants and sponsors included a wide range of brands and organizations from Bitches in Control to VANS.

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Fxxxd Royal Loves You - This old school spoke card is made from a playing card, like many from back in the day. There's no markings to indicate time or location of the alleycat, it only references a fixie affiliation through the message sharpied on to the numbered side of the card.

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Mokum Fixed - An event held in Amsterdam, spoke card designed by illustrator/graffiti artist Tique . If anyone could provide some more info about this event, please let us know in the comments!

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Mokum Fixed - An event held in Amsterdam, spoke card designed by illustrator/graffiti artist Tique. If anyone could provide some more info about this event, please let us know in the comments.

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Courio City - Spoke card from the Japanese courier service Courio City , operating in Yokohama.

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Haute Courier - - One of the couriers from Haute Courier , Arnhem celebrated his 13 years of being a messenger with an alleycat.

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Alleycat Utrecht - A fun alleycat organized in Utrecht. Made possible by the Dutch messengers association and Infinity Express Arden de Raaij

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St. Paulopoly VIII (front side) - 28 february 2009, Hamburg - St. Paulopoly is an annual alleycat which moves through the most colorful neighbourhoods of Berlin. Afterwards there is an afterparty with music, etc. For pictures of the 2010 edition, check out this flickr set by trashisfesch Arden de Raaij

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St. Paulopoly VIII (back side) - 28 february 2009, Hamburg - St. Paulopoly is an annual alleycat which moves through the most colorful neighbourhoods of Berlin. Afterwards there is an afterparty with music, etc. For pictures of the 2010 edition, check out this flickr set by trashisfesch Arden de Raaij

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Fixt Rookies 2009 - 6 september 2009, Amsterdam - Fixt Rookies is an event with its origins in Copenhagen. This was set-up because at a certain point many messengers started to ride fixed, but did not have a lot of experience yet. Only the rookies could win a price at the first events in Copenhagen. Now the events are held in Amsterdam as well because of the growing amount of rookies. Parts of this event: Skids, shortskids, slow race, backward bullshit circles, foot down, time trial 3k and a Sprint race. Arden de Raaij

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Fixt Rookies 2009 - 6 september 2009, Amsterdam - Fixt Rookies is an event with its origins in Copenhagen. This was set-up because at a certain point many messengers started to ride fixed, but did not have a lot of experience yet. Only the rookies could win a price at the first events in Copenhagen. Now the events are held in Amsterdam as well because of the growing amount of rookies. Parts of this event: Skids, shortskids, slow race, backward bullshit circles, foot down, time trial 3k and a Sprint race. Arden de Raaij

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EHVFXD.net (front side) - A spoke card from ehvfxd.net (Eindhoven fixed). Not tied to a specific event. Arden de Raaij

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EHVFXD.net (back side) - A spoke card from ehvfxd.net (Eindhoven fixed). Not tied to a specific event. Arden de Raaij

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2nd Dutch 24hrs race (front side) - 29 september 2007 - The titan of all messenger races; the 24 hrs race. 400 km in 24 hrs. This race was organized with the Dutch Messengers association . Arden de Raaij

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2nd Dutch 24hrs race (back side) - 29 september 2007 - The titan of all messenger races; the 24 hrs race. 460 km in 24 hrs. This race was organized with the Dutch Messengers association . Arden de Raaij

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4th Dutch 24hrs Race (front side) - The titan of all messenger races; the 24 hrs race. 400 km in 24 hrs. This race was organized with the Dutch Messengers association . Arden de Raaij

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4th Dutch 24hrs race (back side) - 29 september 2007 - The titan of all messenger races; the 24 hrs race. 400 km in 24 hrs. This race was organized with the Dutch Messengers association. Arden de Raaij

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5th Dutch 24hrs Race (front side) - 6 september 2009, Amsterdam - Spokecard for the 5th Dutch 24 hrs race. Artwork by Magieke Jansen Arden de Raaij

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5th Dutch 24hrs Race (back side) - 6 september 2009, Amsterdam - Spokecard for the 5th Dutch 24 hrs race. Artwork by Magieke Jansen Arden de Raaij