January 30, 2007 – The Montreal bike messenger community, in association with the Old Port of Montreal, presents the Ice Cup – a celebration of the bicycle as a mode of transport in the winter and a bicycle ice racing competition at the Bonsecours skating rink this Saturday, February 3rd starting at 11am.

For the third consecutive year, professional bike messengers and winter cycling enthusiasts take it to the ice in the Old Port, competing for the Ice Cup – a trophy made of ice. Other prizes include various tools of the trade, including bicycles, messenger bags, clothes and other cycling supplies and equipment.

A tribute to the bike messenger tradition, the competition will include a courier championship style race, starting at 14h00 involving pick-ups and deliveries around the race track. This format allows us to demonstrate the skills that cyclists develop by working in the active transport industry.

Special hand-crafted ice-racing tires are an important technical part of the competition. Participants generally make their own ice racing tires for the event, installing 200-400 screws in each tire to assure traction on ice.

Information on winter cycling equipment will be available from our sponsors who will set up information kiosks on Bonsecours island as part of the Ice Cup village. Exhibits include bicycles, clothes, messenger bags and other equipment, used by couriers to transport items in an environmentally safe manner, with zero greenhouse gas emissions.

More information:
www.coupedesglaces.org
Tom Ostreiko
(514)836-9986
info@coupedesglaces.org