Pedaling his patrons

From Arizona Daily Star
Entrepreneur powers his one-man horseless carriage during the wee hours Downtown
By Valerie Vinyard
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 01.31.2009

Wes Weisheit vigorously pedaled his bike along North Fourth Avenue, pulling a reporter in the "cab" behind. The gentle bumps during the ride seemed to echo the pulsating beats from the Bose stereo attached to his bike.
This open-air taxi burns no gasoline and provides a leisurely ride to your destination.
Otherwise known as pedicabs, rickshaws or bike taxis, you've probably seen them cruising the streets during University of Arizona football games or late night on Fourth Avenue.
The pedicabs are free to ride, but the lively individuals, such as Weisheit, who power them work for tips.
The 46-year-old prefers to call the pedal-powered people-mover a rickshaw.
"It kind of gives it that foreign influence," said Weisheit, who works most weekends on Fourth Avenue starting about midnight.
He's pedaled people during pub crawls, UA football games and some basketball games.
And, of course, there's St. Patrick's Day. "That's the best," said Weisheit, whose usually starts around 3 p.m. on that day.
Riders include anyone from students to bar-goers to senior citizens, depending on the time and where they're riding.
You often can spot a pedicab along Fourth Avenue or Downtown on weekends from midnight to about 3 a.m.
A pedicab usually is a bench seat on wheels enclosed by arm- and backrests. A bicycle — and its operator — serve as the "engine."
Larger cities such as Phoenix and tourist towns like Key West, Fla., have an abundance of pedicabs in their downtowns. Tucson has just a few.
Weisheit first worked for Sean Dile, who bought his $4,000 pedicab in November 2007 from Colorado-based Main Street Pedicabs. The two met in December 2007, and Weisheit worked for him for about five months before branching out with his own Main Street pedicab in May. His model is tricked out with a $5,000 Bose stereo and gas-charged Volkswagen shock absorbers.
"The reason I came up with the idea is because I live by The Shanty and I wanted to go to Congress and not have to walk," said Dile, who works at New Empire Food Market on West Ninth Street and commissions out his pedicab.
Weisheit said he's logged about 1,500 miles on his rickshaw and probably carried 2,500 passengers.
"I think they do have a place here," said Matt Zoll, bicycle and pedestrian program manager for the Pima County Department of Transportation. "It would be nice to see a successful one here — they have tremendous capabilities."
Thom Devrie has hitched rides on a pedicab along Fourth Avenue. He said he likes the convenience of it when he's on a date.
"Sometimes she's wearing high heels and it's hard for her to walk very far," said the 22-year-old, who has tipped about $5 each time he's used one. "It gets us to the next place faster and easier."
Besides the hefty initial investment, owning a pedicab isn't as simple as it seems.
"It's not easy to make money at this," Weisheit said. "A lot of people think that they can do it, but they can't."
Dile agreed.
"You can't just sit on the corner and wait for people to ride," he said.
Though Dile and Weisheit agree that it would be nice to operate the pedicabs during the day, they said demand tends to be low.
"People are on the Avenue in the daytime, but they tend to be sober and don't ride," Weisheit said.
As to how far they'll ride people around, well, that depends.
"Far is relative to how many people you've got," Weisheit said.
He has crammed six "small" students in his cab, which comfortably seats three to four. He said he's carried about 800 pounds before, and he estimated that his cab alone weighs 170 pounds.
Weisheit said the average tip runs about $10. Of course, some riders don't tip. To velvet-tongued pedicab drivers like Weisheit, non-tippers are few and far between. He usually persuades riders to give him something, even if it's pizza or beer.
The real money is in the advertising on the cab. Dile's rickshaw has had up to eight ads on it, from Nova Home Loans to Bison Witches Bar and Deli.
Weisheit mainly sticks to area advertisers like Brooklyn Pizza Co. and Ordinary Bike Shop. Depending on the placement of the ad — the back is the best spot — revenue varies, but the ads bring in hundreds a month.
David Tang, the 27-year-old owner of Ordinary Bike Shop, is pleased with the attention his ad brings.
"It's great — it gives us lots of local exposure," Tang said. "When members of the community are involved, it's always great. It does a lot of local outreach."
Erik Ryberg, self-described Tucson Bike Lawyer, thinks pedicabs are a great idea.
"I had some friends come into town to take the bar exam," he said. "I wanted to show them old parts of Tucson and El Presidio, so they rode in the back of (Weisheit's) pedicab.
"It was a great way of showing a couple of friends from Maryland what Tucson is like."
Contact reporter Valerie Vinyard at 573-4136 or at vvinyard@azstarnet.com.