Minnie Moose Pedicab in Fairbanks, Alaska

This article is about one of the 2006 graduates of our Pedicab Operators Weekend Intensive. Congrats Lyn and your Minnie Moose Pedicab!

Minnie Moose saves the day!

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
Published June 4, 2007

Is Lyn Gilbert-Gard a superhero?

Let's start with the basics: does she have superpowers? Well, maybe
yes, maybe no.

Through her new business Minnie Moose Pedicab, Inc., Gilbert-Gard offers historic tours around downtown Fairbanks on a bright yellow pedicab, and intends to spends the whole summer huffing, puffing and providing "transportainment" to visitors and locals alike.

A pedicab is a bicycle with a carriage in back, the zippy cousin of the rickshaw.

While rickshaws have been a necessity of urban transportation for centuries, they've only been popular in America recently. Gilbert-Gard bought her rig from Main Street Pedicabs, Inc., which boasts yellow pedicabs cycling around downtown streets across the country.

Even though the pedicab has a double chain to increase leverage, and Gilbert-Gard has plenty of "residual muscle" from her days in cycling races and triathlons, she said it's not uncommon for old men on foot to pass her on the Wendell Avenue bridge.

Okay, fine, no superpowers. But does she have a costume?

Not a snazzy one, but to keep comfortable she wears the outfit known to bike enthusiasts the world over: cycling shorts, a mesh shirt and sunglasses.

And while her pedicab is no Batmobile, it is pretty decked out. She has turn signals and a bell for safety, she keeps a digital camera and a portable printer on board to take pictures of riders, and she is working on a miniature broadcasting system so that she can narrate her tours without turning around.

So on the costume, we'll call it a draw.

What about an alter ego? Most definitely.

Gilbert-Gard describes herself as shy and introverted, mild-mannered even, but those who know her work, both her day job as a teacher and her new summer job as a pedicab driver, say she's outgoing and energetic.

"I'm pretty shy and not very outgoing or very assertive. This is training for me to be more assertive … Good life growth things," she said.

Gilbert-Gard came to Alaska from Tucson, Ariz., 25 years ago to take a job as a speech pathologist with the Yukon Koyukuk School District. When she left home, she was an avid cyclist and triathlete and the only thing keeping her from biking the entire way to Alaska was time, she said.

Gilbert-Gard now teaches elementary classes at Chinook Charter School, and was looking for a summer job to make a little money, preferably something outdoors.

She came up with the idea for a pedicab at a Houston Rockets game, where pedicabs and rickshaws delivered people back and forth between the parking lot and the arena. A pedicab operation takes boldness supplied by her alter ego.

Often, people have to be persuaded to hop on board. And the tours require her to not only perform physically, but theatrically as she explains the origins of Growden Park or points out which houses on 4th Avenue were once part of Fairbanks' red-light district.

Gilbert-Gard said those skills don't come to her naturally. She enrolled in theater classes in college, but dropped out because she was "too timid."

"I do like to entertain. With kids it comes really easy … It's just never been really easy with adults," Gilbert-Gard said.

Self-proclaimed as "a neophyte to business," Gilbert-Gard created her business plan with help from the Small Business Development Center and Google, using the search engine to find definitions for business basics like "profit-loss statement" and "cash-flow."

James McDermott, director of the Small Business Development Center, said he didn't see that the shy side of Gilbert-Gard at all when she came looking for help starting a new business. He saw the alter ego.

"She was different in the sense that she was very aggressive," McDermott said. "You know the saying about how you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink? She was drinking as much as she could hold."

McDermott said the tourism market rewards innovation, and he expected her to break even on her investment — which tops $6,000 just for the new rig, not to mention insurance and maintenance — by the end of the summer through hard work.

Gilbert-Gard's longtime friend Cathi Bouton has known about the alter ego for years. The two met 20 years ago working together at Barnette Elementary School, where Bouton interpreted Gilbert-Gard's lesson plans into American Sign Language.

Bouton said Gilbert-Gard's shyness is paired with her energy and innovative spirit. The two frequently attend shows together and dare each other to try out for parts.

"Her alter ego wants to come out and play. She is really committed. She is really dedicated to what she's doing," Bouton said. "That's what makes her a good teacher and that's what makes her a good athlete."

By the way, pedicabbing is a great summer job for teachers. We have a teacher or two in our own crew.