Problem child

We have a driver we refer to as our "problem child." He's our youngest active driver -- a bit of a prima donna. He's sensitive to every click, rattle and squeak, but has little knowledge of bike maintenance. His attempts to "have a little fun" are reckless, bordering on dangerous. Sometimes he's too focused on the money at the expense of the cab, but when he focuses on the experience he gets into trouble.

When they're not complaining about him, the older more experienced drivers talk about him, laughing and telling stories about the things he says and does to try to impress them. Like big brothers and sisters, sometimes they call us to tattle on him.

To his credit, he's very smart, polite and personable. He likes to participate in most any event. He always shows up. He's cute, young and full of energy and enthusiasm ("It's great to be 19!"). He can ride into the wee hours of the night, then come out a few hours later for a grueling day at a Broncos game. He really likes driving a pedicab and makes good money at it.

What do you do with a driver like this? How far do you go to try to coach him? What can you say or do to rein him in? Where do you draw the line and finally give him the boot?

Riding for the ages

The other day, I was thinking about how these pedicabs have affected the different generations in my family. Four generations still living -- my mom is in her eighties, Greg and I are (ah-hem!) 40-something, my son is in his twenties, and my grandson is a preschooler. I hope to explore some of these thoughts and observations in this blog. And I hope you'll add your ideas and comments too.

Always a marketer at heart, I'm facinated by how people of different ages relate to the pedicabs. It doesn't really matter how old or young they are, there's something about pedicabs that appeals to most everyone on some level. Some are tentative at first; others hop right on. Some think it's really hard work; others think anyone who can ride a bike can drive a pedicab.

Pedicabs are more than transportation, more than entertainment. They can be fun, exciting, romantic, sexy, haute, cool, modern, retro.

What a business!