Alaskan Alleycat

To the best of my knowledge, there are no alleycat bike races here in Alaska. I've heard of cute little scavenger hunts amongst some hipster circles, but it seems that all racing here is legal and organized. I've never placed very well in alleycats, though I have participated in my fair share in Chicago and Madison. I loved them all but with a family and a mortgage these days the thrill of burning red lights indiscriminately just to get to the pbr a little quicker does not have the allure it once had. I burn my red lights with a little more tact. The goal is now to get a good ride in and get to work safely.

If I designed an alleycat up here, I suspect it would be like my Saturday last week -- ride 24 miles out to Chugiak, pound a Clif Bar, change into Carhartts, work on the septic drainage field for the rest of the day, have dinner, work a bit more, and finally pedal the 24 miles home at 9pm. I arrived home at 10:30 pm with just as much blaring sunlight as when I left earlier that day. I was certainly a bit tired, but you just can't waste warm, long, sunny days up here.