Even if she doesn’t advance in “American Idol” competition, Tami Gosnell gets style points for riding the concept of the pedicab into the pop culture mainstream. Here are few more key points to ponder about the human-powered urban conveyance:
Pedicab. Pedalers at Denver-based Mile-High Pedicabs insist – emphatically – that no matter what you think you heard on TV, it’s “pedicab” not “petty cab” or “peti cab.” You can also call the three-wheeled, 21-speed vehicles “bike taxis.”
Pricing. As a rule of thumb, drivers charge about $2 per city block. But Mile-High manager Greg Duran says most drivers offer a ride for free and hope for a big tip. Which explains why Gosnell, one of the strongest riders in Duran’s fleet of 70 drivers, was out in the freezing cold Christmas Eve shuttling Broncos fans between the stadium and their parking lots. Ka-ching!
Riders. Pedicab riders are typically freelancers, leasing their bikes from the cab barn, although there are a few indie operators, who own their own bike rickshaws. Duran says his crew includes Ph.D. candidates, engineers, musicians, college students and freelance journalists and photographers. “They’re all people who want the freedom to do their other interests,” he says. “They’re filling in until they can make it.”
Where. It’s harder to find a pedicab during the winter, but watch for them weekends in LoDo and the 16th Street Mall, around the Pepsi Center when there’s an event, and along the Broadway club zone.
Will we see Gosnell out next weekend? No one’s saying.
