-Caveat Lector- ----- Original Message ----- From: jim gregory <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: workbike list <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, August 17, 1999 11:59 PM Subject: [workbike] Report: Pedicabbing at the Iowa Straw Poll (long) Last Saturday I worked the Iowa Straw Poll using my homebuilt pedicab Since this was the first time I had seriously carried people for profit, I thought I'd share my experiences for the benefit of other novices, and hopefully gain some advice from other pedicab operators who have more experience than I do. For those of you unfamiliar with this event, the Iowa Straw Poll polls members of the Iowa Republican Party to determine who will be the likely winner in the Iowa Republican presidential caucus next February. This is event has national significance because Iowa is the first state in the U.S. with a presidential election. It often winnows the field of presidential candidates, since candidates who do not do well in the poll frequently drop out of the race. The poll is closely followed by the national media. The event was held at Hilton Colliseum, which is located about five blocks from my house. Hilton is located on the north end of a huge, level parking lot. Immediately around and to the south of the Colliseum, nine of the presidential aspirants had each set up a large tent to attract supporters. To the south of these tents was an area reserved for bus parking (most candidates had chartered buses to bring supporters from all over the state--in fact, _all_ of the available chartered buses in this state and surrounding regions were chartered for this event) about 2-3 blocks from the Colliseum. To the south of the bus parking area was an area set aside for automobile parking for voters who drove to the event. This meant that anyone who drove to the event (and there were many!) had to walk at least four blocks over a large asphalt parking lot to vote and/or find their candidate's tent. Some 10,000 people were expected to attend, but this estimate turned out to be far too low. Some 25,000 people voted, and 35,000 people were estimated to have attended the event. My pedicab is based loosely on the Penang cabs described in Tony Wheeler's book, "Chasing Rickshaws". It has a tadpole wheel configuration (2 front wheels, 1 rear wheel) with the passengers sitting between and over the two front wheels. The cab has three speeds and a rear coaster brake. I'll post a picture and more information on it shortly at http://www.bikesatwork.com/services/pedicab.html I was a little apprehensive about working at this event. I hadn't insured my pedicab yet (I had just completed it the day before), nor had I received the permission of the Republican Party or Iowa State University (who owns Hilton Colliseum) to operate during the Poll. I didn't know if I would be allowed on the grounds, or if I would be thrown off the grounds once I started to operate. I arrived at the Colliseum parking lot around 11 AM. By that time, a sizeable crowd had already arrived, but many more were still coming. Most of the buses had not arrived yet. My fears of not being able to work at the event turned out to be unjustified; the event was more chaotic than I had expected, and no one was really in charge. I first made a loop around the area, making a note of where people were most people were walking from and where each candidate's tent was located. This information later proved to be invaluable, since most people, once they arrived, had no idea where their candidate's tent was located, and I was able to take them to where they were going quickly. I strongly recommend anyone who plans to operate a pedicab for a similar event to first locate all the important destinations (including restrooms and refreshment stands) before beginning. The largest flow of people was from the automobile parking area to the north toward the tents and Colliseum to the south. So, my plan was to ride north toward the parking area, look for passengers, then ferry them toward the tents. Being inexperienced at getting passengers, I felt a little awkward at first. It didn't seem appropriate to ask "Do you want a ride?" to everyone I met on the path toward the parking lot. Nor did I want to just sit still and wait for passengers to come to me, since I thought I'd have a better chance at finding prospects if I kept moving. I finally settled on the strategy of simply riding slowly and watching the people walking by in the opposite direction. If I saw someone smile at my cab or make a favorable comment, I'd offer "Would you like a ride?" This method wasn't always successful, but every second or third person I asked would usually accept. Based on the advice of other pedicab operators on this list, I did not set a standard rate, and worked only for tips. When people asked how much I charged, I replied "Whatever you want to pay" or "Whatever you feel is appropriate". Most people paid between $2 and $5. Not unexpectedly, I received the highest tips from passengers with whom I had developed the best rapport. I had only minor problems with passengers who didn't pay anything. Four groups of people boarded my cab without asking about rates and, when the trip was complete, simply got off without paying anything. I had no signs on my cab indicating I was working for hire or that I was seeking tips, and wonder if I should add these in the future. (Do other pedicab operators do this?) I wasn't able to get passengers on every trip to the parking lot in the morning, so I sometimes made a loop back towards the tents empty,.seeking a "short-haul" trip instead. Sometimes I was successful, sometimes I wasn't. The weather that morning was very pleasant (mid 70's F) and most people, having sat in a car in traffic quite a while, seemed glad to be able to get out and walk. By 2 PM, things were getting very congested. Multiple buses were arriving at once and trying to drive thru the crowds to the tents. Large numbers of people were simultaneously trying to walk from their car to the tents. I was starting to have some trouble getting thru, as well as find passengers in the thick of the crowd. (How would other operators have dealt with this?) Also, I noticed I was starting to get badly sunburned on my face. I had forgotten to apply sunscreen before leaving home. Since I'm accustomed to riding a bike outside most of the day, this normally wouldn't be a big problem. However, my bicycle helmet visor usually protects my face, and today of course I wasn't wearing a helmet and had neglected to wear a cap. The upright riding position of my cab only increased my facial exposure to the sun. I decided to go home, have a quick bite to eat, and get some sunscreen on my face and arms. I went home and emptied my fanny pack. (I stuffed all my tips in a large fanny pack I was wearing). So far, I had made about $38 in tips. Refreshed, I returned about a half hour later to the Straw Poll. Congestion had improved considerably--most of the buses had arrived, discharged their passengers, and parked in the bus parking area. People were now both arriving to the poll and starting to depart, so I started carrying passengers in both directions. By now, I was getting pretty good at identifying prospective passengers. The most likely passengers, I found, were elderly people (especially couples) who were walking slowly. These people GREATLY appreciated the ride, which made me feel good. They generally tipped well for the service, too. The last few hours, I was REALLY busy. By then, most people's legs were getting tired, which made finding passengers much easier. I also found my services in demand from some of the political campaigns. Only two of the candiates (Gary Baeur and Steve Forbes) appear to have rented golf carts to ferry people around for this event, and they appear to each have had only three or four at most. I had the only pedicab. Hence, representatives from George W. Bush's and Elizabeth Dole's campaigns started seeking me out to help ferry their supporters back to their buses. They'd ask me to pick up someone sitting by their tent and take them to board their bus home. Trouble was, their description of the prospective passengers and their location was usually vague, and I usually found someone equally in need of a ride on my way to their tent. Hence, while I could sometime help them out, I wasn't always successful. It was this last experience of ferrying people to their buses that confirmed what John (Snyder) had told me some time ago. A pedicab really excels at carrying people short distances over parking lots. The distance from the tents to the buses was at best only two or three blocks, but I could cover this distance much faster than someone could walk it. And, for a tired elderly, obese, or disabled person, this distance was a challenge, especially on a hot summer day. Since short runs like these can be turned so quickly and easily, the tips add up fast, making short runs like this very profitable. Longer runs aren't as profitable, as most people won't usually tip twice as much for a trip that takes twice as long. Based on my experiences Saturday, I'm not sure its profitable to operate a pedicab in which the average trip distance approaches one mile in length. By 7:30 pm, the crowd was starting to thin considerably, my legs were getting quite tired, and I had promised Joan I'd make pizza for supper. So, I decided to call it a day. I went home, emptied my fanny pack (which by then was stuffed with bills), and counted my earnings for the day. I grossed $128 for the day. Not bad for 8 hrs of work. In retrospect, the Iowa Straw Poll was an excellent event for operating a pedicab. The terrain was flat (easy cycling), the crowd was large (lots of passengers), most people were middle-aged or older and relatively affluent (good tippers), and the event lasted all day (continuous stream of potential passengers). I really enjoyed it, and am eagerly awaiting the next one four years from now. -Jim =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Jim Gregory & Joan Stein Bikes At Work, Inc. [EMAIL PROTECTED] 216 N. Hazel Ames, IA 50010-5948 515-233-6120 providers of bicycle delivery services & equipment since 1991 http://www.bikesatwork.com DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! 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