Photo credit: Taylor "Niki" Hurley (Film: Color Negative)
Queen Ayda being taped up before her fight at Messenger Boxing 2009
The mobius Core Whore Alleycat will henceforth be held annually on 10/9 day. (October 9th)

Taking the title free and clear, Ayda Rojhantalab ruled them all to become 2010 Queen of the Core and my personal hero. The second place struggle for King was a tie between Dave, last year's King, and Ross (easily one of the biggest Core Whores in Downtown Seattle today). Amy "The Badass" walked away with Second Place Ladies. Sarah Kerr took Third Ladies (with an injured ankle to boot). Third/Fourth boys was a tie between Rob K, King of Track WSI 2004 v Elliot T, a recent addition to the Seattle Core.

In order to settle the ties, Jon Denver took us to the origin, Alley Sprints. These are the true Alleycat. Luckily, mobius has a perfect alley for sprints. There was a coin toss between Dave and Ross. Their coin-opted for best of three. Rob told Elliot, "One race." He agreed and we all headed to the alley for the best tie-showdown, ever.

Photo Credit: Taylor "Niki" Hurley (Digital Nikon D40X/Nikkor 35mm 1.8)
King Dave successfully defending his title against Ross the Bullet

First up were Dave and Ross for King. It was so fast I barely saw them go by. Luckily, my camera caught them. Dave was so pumped, he continued into the street...at the last second he saw the car, grabbed two handfuls of brake and endo'd right next to it. He was fine but his wheel, which was already almost toast, gave up the good fight and taco'd right then and there. We called it at one race since Dave clearly won. He requested a trade of his King of the Core wheelset for a rebuild of his Chris King wheel that just blew up. No problem, Dave, and with that even more prizes went into the kitty.

Next up were Rob K and Elliot T for 3rd and 4th. Rob ate him up with those thunderthighs. Solidly securing his third place win, with the wheels up for grabs, we gave him a shot at Ross. No dice, Ross took the Sprint and claimed his wheels, he earned them!

Overall Standings:

1. Queen Ayda R #1 Ladies 140 points $1,400 Level Track Hubs to DT Swiss RR585 Wheelset Black
2. King David M 139 points $1,390 Alley Winner v Ross M White DT Swiss RR465 rebuild
3. Ross Miller 139 points $1,390 Alley Winner v Rob K Level Track Hubs to DTRR585 Wheelset Silver
4. Rob Kittelson 138 points $1,380 Alley Winner v Elliot T MKS Sylvan Track Pedals
5. Elliot T 138 points $1,380 *Road Morph Pump?
6. Fred 135 points $1,350 Velocity DeepV x2 Machined Rims Gunmetal Grey
7. David T 133 points $1,330
8. Todd McMeen 129 points $1,290
9. Jon Denver 125 points $1,250 Cops pulled him over in the first hour Izumi Eco Chain Black
10. Cory "Corndog Classic" 121 points $1,210 Izumi Eco Chain Black
11. Amy "Badass" #2 Ladies 111 points $1,110 Red Velocity 650c Nonmachined Rim
12. Greg Boyer 111 points $1,110 Red/Pink Double Darn Hat
13. Chris Boyer 109 points $1,090 Blue Continental Tire
14. Sarah Kerr #3 Ladies 93 points $930 Mini Morph Pump
15. Leslie #4 Ladies 91 points $910
16. Mark Koz 91 points $910
17. Walker #5 Ladies 89 points $890 Pilderwasser Light Pink Nipple Driver T-shirt
18. Robert 87 points $870
19. Sarah Galvin #6 Ladies 81 points $810

*Everyone got prizes, these are the ones that stand out in my memory. Lots of T-shirts and our Limited Edition Harden the Fuck Up Stickers, Stencil by Ross Miller, 2nd place boys, 3rd overall.

There was a win near miss with Fred as well. He added his score up to 142 before confirmation. Unfortunately, in the end, his score added up to 135, $1,350. Mama Bear is mean with an adding machine. Thanks to her and her brother, the at least 12 Manifest/Money packets we had to count got done with the utmost expertise and precision.

Craig Etheridge, Messenger World Champion 2010, stopped half way through to "save himself" for the Cyclocross season opener. Ross had to race the next day but finished the race anyway. Maybe next year Craig will wear the belt. I guess we'll never know what may have been.

Elias the Savage, of "brobius" apprenticeship, had to leave half way as well, having to tend bar at the Skylark. He was definitely in the running for King when he bowed out, the only racer who didn't look hammered at the time.

I expect to see the rest of you next year. Harden the fuck up and race.

Never been to mobius? Many people have a hard time finding Mobius Cycle the first time they come, it's between 1st and 2nd on Spring Street in downtown Seattle. Everything was built and animated in 12 hours, sounds and effects were added later. What you hear is the sound of Niki's Campy Chorus freewheel. The music. by Scissor Sisters, was remixed by Jon Denver who is the mechanic who built my wonderful bicycle. -Chris "Beard" Animator

And our race video from 2009...
If you didn't race last year, this is how it works:

It all starts Saturday, October 2nd with registration at 4:00pm. mobius. Since the boys were so jealous of the Original Core Whore Westside Invite Alleycat, we have decided to invite them to compete right alongside with the ladies. This one is open to everyone! We will all start together but the roll of the dice insures we all ride alone! The ultimate messenger emulation Race 2010. Last year we climbed the hills in the core till we puked! This year it's longboard...how fast can you get from one end of the core to another. Have delusions of grandeur? Bring them to the Core Whore and put 'em on the line. Just love to ride? The Core Whore is perfect for that too. Never had the chance to messenger but always wanted to? This couldn't be more up your alley. And last but certainly not least, to all those crusty messengers out there, this is your race. It's on Saturday so no excuses. From out of town, pah, here's the map. Bring it don't sing it. Oh, yeah did I mention the HUGE party afterwards? Fun will be had. Sweat will pour. See you on October 2nd if you've got the ovaries.

Model Credit: Esra 2nd Place in Core Whore 2009 Originale

Core Whore 2010 Map, study up kids you'll need it!

View Core Whore 2010 in a larger map

View Kermitastic @Flickr!
For more than just visual appeal, visit grain.