Each year at the Cycle Messenger World Championships (CMWC), the strongest, smartest and fastest bike messengers from across the planet converge to determine who is the best in a variety of events that test riders’ physical and mental limits. This year the 2019 Cycle Messenger World Championships are in Jakarta, Indonesia later this month on August 21, 2019. CMWC is a world championship cycling event but it is also a global festival celebrating bike messenger culture.
The Official Cycling Cap
With Cinelli as a lead sponsor of the event, the Italian cycling cap maker has produced the official 2019 signature cap. Today, it is now available at Cento! The cap features printed graphics in vibrant tropical colors against black panels. The top of the brim is emblazoned with 'CMWC 2019' to denote the event, and 'Jakarta' is etched into the right side of the cap to give it a sense of place.
One size fits most, the cap has elastic in the center-back. The cap is made of fabric that is 65% Polyester and 35% Cotton. Each cap is genuine Cinelli merchandise, made in Italy.
Supporting the Messenger Scene
Cycling caps have been a mainstay of the messenger community for decades, and Cinelli has played a leading role. Most recently, the 2019 ECMC (European Cycle Messenger Championships) were held in Brussels, Belgium this year, held just before the Grand Depart of the Tour de France. We've got that cap available here, of course.
Stateside, Cinelli has produced cycling caps for messengers and races as well. Most notably, the celebrated Nelson Vails has his own signature 'Stars & Stripes' cap. Vails was the youngest of 10 children growing up in the Harlem projects. He started winning races in Central Park at a young age and worked as a New York City bicycle messenger to support his family. He rode furiously while working, trained in Central Park after work and raced locally on weekends.
By 1981 it all paid off when he earned a spot on the U.S. team which led to a gold medal in 1983 in the Pan American games in Venezuela. He represented the USA at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, where he won the silver medal in the individual 1000-meter Match Sprints, behind countryman Mark Gorski. Vails was the 1984 National Sprint Champion and National Tandem Sprint Champion in 1984, 1985 and 1986. In 1985 he earned a silver medal in the Tandem Sprint at the World Championships. In the 1980s and early 1990s he competed professionally in 6-Day circuits in Europe and in Japanese Keirin events from 1990 to 1995.
Monster Track
Also a mainstay in New York City, is the Monster Track messenger race. Cinelli has produced the official cap for this race as well. Above is the 2016 version. Monster Track is the premier NYC alleycat race now in its twentieth year. The extremely high intensity race is specifically for brakeless, fixed-gear bicycles and takes place in New York CIty. Monstertrack is the toughest race in North America, attracting racers from all over the US, Europe and Japan. Cinelli has long been sponsor of the event and is supporter the worldwide bike messenger community. See what the race looks like from inside: