An Alleycat is basically an informal bike race. They sometimes consist of multi-checkpoint scavenger hunt-like competitions originally spawned by bike messengers in New York and San Francisco.

A friend of mine linked me to this article written in the Phoenix New Times News. It is a really well written article highlighting the fixed gear scene in Phoenix, along with one of their favorite Alleycat's, The Kill Mill. The article also highlights the FixEd Alleycat, which sounded like a blast.

"The FixEd alleycat had consisted of two-person teams (with members being allowed to hit checkpoints separately). At one stop, riders had been handed a 12-inch plastic tube, baton-style, as they rode past. And at each of the seven other checkpoints, teams had been given a fluorescent-yellow ping-pong ball to put inside their tubes. Every ball had a playing card painted on it, and the team with the best hand (in addition to the top three teams across the finish line) received a prize at the end of the race."

The article also discusses common stereotypes and controversies that sometimes go along with fixed gear riders and the lifestyle...kind of a bummer.

"At an alleycat jokingly called "Race for the Cure," riders ended up entering the grounds of the Arizona State Hospital because of a mistake by first-time race organizers. A confrontation between riders and hospital security ensued, and depending on which side you believe, a guard was either assaulted or the guard attempted to run over cyclists with a hospital minivan."

Shit happens.

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