Midwest Speed Racers

  That'san account of the first Milwaukeeto Minneapolis Tourist Trophy café race (M2MTT) in 1998 by Gary Charpentier,written for the Minnesota MotorcycleMonthly.

  TheM2MTT traditionally takes place the first Saturday after the Fourth of July andhas developed a devoted, secretive following.

  ScottJohnson, part owner of Fuel Café, organized the first few M2MTTs along with hisfriends. His inspiration came largely from a 1963 British film, The Leather Boys. The film has a racescene that starts at the Ace Café in London.The gang of bikers that hangs out there must race to a castle in downtown Edinburgh, Scotland,drop off a postcard, as proof they had been there, then race back to the café.

  TheM2MTT is similar, if not as theatrical. They traditionally started at Fuel Caféand raced up to Bob's Java Hut in Minneapolis,with the winner taking a trophy. You had to sign in for a route sheet, and avan followed the racers in case of bike problems. The number of riders hasfluctuated over the years from 25 up to a hundred, with an average of 30 inrecent years.

  "Itstarted with me and a bunch of guys I knew, but got kind of out of hand,”Johnson recalls. “We started with 35 the first year, and the next year weprobably had a hundred."

  Arider named Mark from Indiana,who won the 2001 M2MTT race, wrote about the experience in a posting after therace. He and two of his friends finished that year's 476-mile route in sevenand a half hours.

  "Theremust have been a hundred bikes at the Fuel,” Mark says. “(Scott Johnson is)very laid back, yet hugely enthusiastic. The Fuel crew is dread-headed, piercedand tattooed in the best urban tradition. It's a weird yet wonderful place.You've gotta like a joint that booms out speed metal before opening in themorning."

Getting Crazy?

  Afterthree years, Johnson decided to stop organizing the race. He was afraid thatthe races would be affiliated with his businesses, although they never actuallywere. Plus, it had gotten too big for him to handle. "It got a littlecrazy, and I didn't want to be involved anymore," he says.

  Thatcould easily have been the end of the ride, but the M2MTT had gained a devotedfollowing that wanted the event to ride on.

  Ispoke to the current organizer of the race, who wishes to remain anonymous dueto potential legal issues. I will call him "Racer X." Racer X droppedthe “TT” part of M2MTT, changing it from a race to a simple ride, also forlegal reasons. The year of each event replaced the “TT” in the title, making2008's race the M2M08. The race traditionally ran from Fuel to Bob's Java Hut,but the start and finish lines were rotated, along with the routes. The routeis different each year and mainly follows county roads.Riders have to find out by word of mouth when and where to meet, and route mapsshow up at the starting line. The route runs 400-500 miles, depending on theroute chosen.

  “In2002, a guy named Rutger Hauer, at least that's what I remember, organized (therace),” Racer X says of how he came to be in charge of the ride. “I spoke toRutger in early 2003 and he said he didn't want the task of organizing it. Iwas afraid my favorite ride would become history. Somebody had to take control,and that someone was me.”

  Manyof Racer X's fellow riders have expressed their appreciation for his efforts.In 2005, a rider from Illinoisnamed Christian wrote an account of his M2M05 experience.

  "Theroads you encounter will blow yourmind completely,” he says. “They will flip your lid. The people you meet willrenew your faith in humanity. The payoff for the accomplishment is a smile onyour face from ear to ear."

  Ofcourse, not everyone understands the appeal. In his account, Christian saysthat his co-workers seemed confused by his weekend plans.

  "It'shard to explain this event to people not in the know," he notes."‘Let me get this straight,' [they would say]. ‘You're doing a race fromMilwaukee to Minneapolis, and you don't care what place you come in?'"

  Christiananswered them by saying, “Buddy, if I finish the race, don't get hurt and stayon the route, I'm a winner.

  “Theyall just shook their heads at melike I'm crazy,” he adds.