In the life of the globally connected courier community, there are a handful of events each year where people connect, reunite, and, in proper sporting fashion, measure themselves against each other, far beyond the borders of their own city or even their own country: the CMCs. Kept cosmopolitan in English, CMC stands for Cycle Messenger Championship, and this year, in our case, with a "E" for European in front of it.
That's right, the Berlin community is hosting the European Championships for bike couriers, as it last did back in 1996. A five-day event with social activities and parties, but at its center is the so-called Main Race.
For this, we managed to get Tempelhofer Feld approved as a closed-off, official race course, which should make the weekend of May 16 and 17 the absolute magnet of the event.
Hoping for good weather and plenty of spectators, participants take on a whole series of challenges over a race course of more than 6 km with 13 checkpoints. Because a CMC isn't just about fast legs, it's also about sharp minds. Only those who can memorize the course, made up of a maze of one-way streets, and calculate the correct order of checkpoints on the fly, mid-pedal-stroke, depending on the task at hand, make it onto the podium.
Co-financed by a range of local, regional, and international sponsors, our event becomes, as it does every year in a different city, an important meeting point for couriers, but also for anyone interested and for friends. Neither participation in the race nor in the other parts of the event is restrictive; anyone who wants to can take part, for a fee.
Courier El Niño #02 belongs to CROW Courier, which replaces delivery vans with cargo bikes and, in doing so, helps improve quality of life in the city. The car-free Berlin courier service also fosters a cooperative way of working. Info at crowberlin.de