Submitted by Lola!  Pictures by AZ!

!Saludos, compañeros!
I got here Thursday, going to meetings with the organizers and locals, getting sunburnt on the lake, drinking Gallo (Cock) beer at the headquarters, and although I'm usually too impatient to sit still long enough to type something like this, it is crucial that y'all know how WORTH every penny it is to get here.   I also want to encourage folks who lost their Mexicali flights to try to get to Mexico City or Oaxaca somehow else because I saw flights as cheap as $50 on the Internet from Mex. City (DF) to Guatemala City...or you could take an overnight bus from there, like Biker Bob is doing right now!
If you are THINKING about coming or doubting coming, just COME! You won't regret it.

Results for El Gran Premio have been posted. 

http://www.cmwcguatemala.com/content/results

Special thanks to sponsors La Casa Ciclista, Telefonica Movistar, and the boys from Switzerland. 

Reginaldo Choch of Patum took top honors, with Nancy Pile as top female, and Luk Keller as top gringo. 

I have been put in charge of the art show. The latest plan has grown to a large scale festival with the entire community being able to showcase there artwork and craftwork. Our intent is to showcase the local indegenous culture and help with 200 local school children. The 200 students are to be treated to a art experience with which they can keep the art supplies that are supplied by us. I plan on bringing 200 sets of markers so each child can walk away with something.

In case we haven't mentioned it yet; Bring all the extra parts and tools you think you might need. Extra gears, cables, tubes, chains, bolts, tires. Oh, tires! Bring fat tires. Don't even think about coming down here with skinny 20mm road tires and hoping to push a 50x16 gear ratio around Pana. It is not going to happen. The race course is relatively flat, but Pana is in a valley so if you want to do any riding out of town, it will certainly involve serious climbing and descending. The right gearing is critical.

Hola amigos!

Things are really coming together down here. They better be! The CMWC is almost upon us! Tomorrow Luk shows up, and I get to put him to work. That is good because Nadir is in Mexico partying, I mean promoting the CMWC, until the 30th. I don't hablas Espanol too good, but fortunately, Luk is like C3P0, I'm sure he is fluent in Spanish. I hope.

Nadir working the Panajachel talk show circuit. Nadir is Big in Guatemla.

 Just a heads up: We are organizing a group ride around Lake Atitlan on September 7th. For 100Q (approx.$12) we'll provide participants with a specially designed t-shirt, water, support vehicles for your stuff and a shuttle boat ride to San Juan.

Greetings from Panajachel!
Nadir and I are down here getting things ready for you guys. Lots of meetings with members of various city councils, lots of handshaking, tons of headaches getting our shipments out of customs in Guatemala City (aye caramba!), and of course, lots and lots of safety meetings. Safety first!
There is still a lot of work to do, but things are really shaping up. Pana is all a buzz waiting for your arrival, and the city has some very special surprises planned for you guys!
It is not too late to book your ticket to join us in paradise. Don't miss this chance to have an experience of a lifetime! This CMWC will be like nothing that has come before. Prepare to be amazed.
--
AZ

Volunteers

This marvelous community of messengers would not exist without your hard work, your sweat, and your blood. Thank you.

Now, we come together in Guatemala for the 18th Annual Cycle Messenger World Championships.

This CMWC has been made possible by nearly a dozen volunteers working together from four continents. It will continue to be run by volunteers on the ground in Guatemala. Here, we need your help.

Please give a portion of your time in Guatemala to help support the CMWC.

So this wraps up our Registration Raffle Series. Many thanks to all our our wonderful sponsors, PAC Bags, RELoad Bags, Bagaboo Bags, Trash Bags, Seagul Bags, and Under the Weather Bags, as well as all the people who have registered so far.

OK, so I go the drawing done for the Seagull bag. Only one round left to go!

The video of the raffle is a bit janky. I used the wrong camera setting, said we were in the wrong place (we were nowhere near Dupont Circle), and called Jeff Oneill by the wrong last name. I effed that up pretty good. My bad.

Just a few more days left to get yourself in the running for the next round of our Registration Raffle. The last bag was won by a 14 year old from Warsaw. The next bag, a beautiful "Kurt Boone" signature siries messenger bag from Seagull Bags

Hey everybody!
So I just got back from Atlanta, where Skip and Justin from No Brakes bike shop helped me do the drawing for Round 4 of the CMWC Registration Raffle. On the line was a sweet custom messenger bag from our friends at Trash Bags in Minneapolis (and No Brakes threw in a t-shirt as well). Check out the officially sanctioned video:

Register now for the CMWC and become entered in our ongoing raffle series for your chance to win cool prizes! Our next drawing will be held on June 1st, so register before then to be eligible. Up for grabs is this dope bag from our friends at Trash Bags in Minneapolis.

 CYCLE MESSENGER WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

here in budapest. ecmc registration at the szoda in full effect. bagaboo raffle winner - jeff oneill from philly.
peace.
--
az

Hola!

This is your final reminder that CMWC registration goes up from $80 to $100 this Saturday night at exactly midnight Eastern Standard Time. This is also the cut-off time to be eligible for round 3 of our registration raffle. Up for grabs this time is this very exclusive, custom bag from our sponsor, Bagaboo Bags:

Yep sure did.

At La Carrera Cycles just say You are there for the coffee...

Ohhhh yeah, you need to be wanting to go to Guatemala in September too

more info here