They say that a cargo bike race is won or lost in the loading pit. I can now absolutely confirm that this is true. I can also tell you that’s where you’ll find the most full-contact action and nail biting cycling drama there is to be had, especially compared to any “normal” bike racing event. You can watch bikes go fast in circles on almost any continent on earth. But watching BIG bikes go fast in circles, stop to chaotically load some items, then go fast in circles AGAIN?! Now we’re talking Cargo Bike Racing!
I’d arrived in Denmark 5 days prior to the Svajerløbet with Joel, co-owner of Splendid Cycles, from Portland, Oregon, USA. Aboard a pair of Bullitts loaned to us from Harry’s personal collection, our plan was to pedal through the Danish countryside for the first few days there, sleeping in shelter huts and drinking espresso until we acclimated to the 9-hour time difference. Some mornings the jet lag had us awake and rolling by 6am - but we didn’t mind, as this gave us more time to explore the quiet gravel roads and garden cut-throughs of Nordsjælland.
I welcomed the chance to spend a few days getting used to the same Bullitt I would be racing in the Svajerløb. To be honest, I couldn’t have picked a more perfect race bike myself: Shimano XT in 12 speed with a 34 tooth front chainring, 4-piston TRP brakes, and a wide riser bar mounted low giving it a good bit of drop from the saddle down to the cockpit - very aero. It looked fast just sitting there. I packed my own saddle and pedals to give it that ‘at home’ feel, but new to me was finally seeing the B-106 special edition paint - which I think looks best with some dust and scratches on it, like a Cold War era jet fighter after a tour of duty. I felt strong on this bike, but how would my fitness compare to the international contingent of cargo bike racers about to coalesce in København? Jojo, a German bike mechanic we met on Friday, had rode his Bullitt hundreds of miles from his hometown of Wuppertal. The Swedes, likely the descendants of viking conquerors, who stood at least a half head taller than me. The crew of young Swiss pals who I imagined had descended from some heavenly altitude to compete - at sea level - against us mere mortals. (Spoiler alert: they all took home medals).
Race day came and I was feeling good. The jet lag had subsided and the B-106 and I felt as one. Negotiating the bike lane traffic in København acted as a form of training in and of itself, a sort of thrill different from any kind of bike traffic we see in the States. The volume, the warningless passes, some so close that you’re brushing elbows with beautiful Danes in stylish outfits - all good preparation for the tight turns (and styles) of the Svajerlob circuit. Saturday morning I ate a heaping plate of smoked salmon and eggs and pastry - a hearty foundation which I would later drown in Red Bull and beers. But those weren’t the only wings I would fly, I had packed my green “Go Birds” socks for race day with the hope they’d bring me some underdog luck from back home. If you know, you know - Go Birds!!
We rode the few kilometers to the event site, an athletic club’s parking lot repurposed into the Cargo Bike World Champions’ Arena for the day. I said some quick hello’s then got right to business taking a few practice laps and sorting out the loading logistics - after all, I was not attending this historic and internationally known cargo bike race to go home empty handed. As expected, the bike felt dialed for the course. I put a bit of air in my tires, but then let some back out after my first couple laps. I tied one innertube diagonally across the load deck and tensioned it just right for a two-tire stack. When the time came, the svajeres all lined up to receive our race numbers. I paid my 50 kroner for the registration into the “2-Wheeler Open” category - which I understood to be the largest, most competitive field. The main event of sorts. The referees handed me my placard: number 007. Perfect.
Lining up for the first heat, I was a healthy mix of excited, confident, and nervous. “Three! Two!! One!! CARGOOO!!” and we were off. Besides the loading pit - it’s also all about positioning right at the start on this course. There was maybe 10 meters of straight right off the line then into a 180 degree tight right turn. Then a shallow little S-curve followed by a steep left and a shallower big right curve into a straight away that crossed back over the start / finish line. I was almost through the first lap with a pretty big lead on everyone. First into the load zone I started to get a little too confident and too in-a-hurry. Tires loaded on stacked horizontally, then 2 cobbles into the center, then tuck the Woom bike into the top. I pulled away and immediately realized the Woom was loose and lopsided. No time to fix it because I’m immediately into the first turn. Some of the others are just getting to the load pit - it's all good - I have plenty of space. Trying to fix the load with one hand in the second turn… unsuccessful. Next turn into the bumps and I’m losing most of my cargo. My lead is shrinking quickly. Load load load load STRAP DOWN THE BIKE and I’m pushing off the kickstand. I think one person passed me? I don’t even know at this point. I black out and pedal through the loaded laps, pass one person or two still in the load zone? All mostly a blur. I wasn’t counting my laps and somehow squeaked by in the top 2 to advance into the next round. Let's not make that mistake again.
The next two heats go down smoothly. I race against these other two Americans who read about the Svajerløb online and had never ridden Bullitts before. I race against some of my new friends and make my other friends back home proud by beating the new friends. Strategy is pretty straightforward: be first into turn one, keep everyone behind you, good positioning in the load zone, load smooth, STRAP IT DOWN. Slow is smooth, smooth is fast, but what about smoothly-fast? Two wins to advance to the final heat. In between my own races I squeeze in some calories and jet fuel, half a sandwich and an energy drink, and watch my competition pare down to the best among them. Mayeul and Leo, two of the Swiss pals, have been slaying the competition all day long (on Bullitts, of course). Tomas the Viking Swede looked like a tower of power overtop the big wheels of his GinkGo. It would come down to us four for an all international final round. Sorry Danes.
We line up for the final, “are you really ready?” asks the MC. The crowd counts down and we’re off. I get a good push-off but Tomas is so fast he takes first position into the turn as I trail close behind with the Swiss, both of them in Hawaiian shirts, hot on my tail. We’re all tire-to-tire through the s-curves until the big right when we start to space out. I’m second into the load zone and botch my kickstand deployment. Slow is smooth. I grab the tires and load ‘em up. Eyes on the prize. Eyes on the ground trying not to trip. I look up just in time to see Tomas’ chest as we slam into each other with a CRACK! It feels as though I’ve hit a brick wall - which makes sense because he was carrying his two cobblestones. I’m thrown backwards, trip over Leo’s front wheel and catch myself before my back hits the ground. Oh! The Drama!! I scoop up my cobblestones, grab the Woom bike, smooth spin-move and toss ‘em in AND STRAP IT ALL DOWN. It's not enough as I begin the second lap in 4th place. Shit. No medal for 4th place.
Mayeul has a massive lead on us all, completely through the first turn by the time I’m exiting the load pit. Tomas is pushing to close the gap, scraping his kickstand as he leans hard in the turns. Leo is hot on Tomas’ wheel and me just barely hangin’ on. Smooth is fast. The race ain’t even half over! I take a few deep breaths through the straightaway into lap two and I hear cones scraping ahead of me - someone’s snagged the course tape! My eyes are on the pavement mid-turn until I pass the apex and realize I’m overtaking Tomas as he’s untangling himself from the course tape. Now he’s on my wheel! By the time we reach the hard left lean before the big right, I can feel him breathing down my neck.
Mayeul is now half a lap ahead on his way to the gold as the cowbell sounds for the final lap. Leo follows a few bike-lengths behind, and it's me and Tomas battling for the bronze. In the straightaway I feel him going for a pass. I maneuver to keep him on the inside of the upcoming turn. Is throwing elbows legal in this race? Certainly not gentlemanly. We brush elbows as he overtakes me, we’re both giving it all. We’re fast into the turn and the tight right lean and suddenly Tomas is sideways as he slides out right in front of me! A quick SKRRT! and a foot-down to avoid a human speed-bump and I’m pedaling away into podium position. In the last big right turn I see he’s conceded the race after uprighting his rig. I secure the bronze after a hard fought race out of all four of us.
After catching my breath, I locate Tomas in an effort to make peace in the aftermath of our brutish cargo battle. I find him with blood dripping out from a small gash in his face. Oh gosh - did I do that? He was laughing it off and we shook hands as we compared our bloody knuckles. Turns out the edge of my helmet had cut his face during our collision in the load zone. Didn’t I say something about full-contact action? No matter - nothing that can’t be fixed by a few post-race hotdogs and cold beers by the canal.
