Here at Cookie Loves, we are pragmatic dreamers. We believe deeply in hard work and personal responsibility, but also believe that the dreamers and adventurers out there are what bring magic and joy into life. Most inspiring to me are those entrepreneurs who pour their heart and soul into something they believe in. Some do it on the side while still putting in 8+ hours a day at a regular job; some brave the wild unknown and leap off the edge with no safety wire. No matter the style, I find the drive and vision of these people inspiring as I pave my own road towards discovering my way to make something amazing of my life.
And so, I’m going to be on the lookout for entrepreneurs, hobbyists, dreamers, and schemers to share their stories about why they do what they do and what lessons they have to share with us. Know someone I should talk to? Leave a comment! I would LOVE to share their stories!
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In the first blog of this series, I am proud to feature Spokes Eclectic Pedicabs by Justin Shannon.
Justin is a coworker and friend of mine, and we sat down recently at Ten Bells Tavern in his neighborhood, Oak Cliff, so that I could pick his brain about his company. My first question for him was, “Why pedicabs?” I’ve only seen a handful of pedicabs around town, and have not gotten a chance to ride them. Turns out he had been looking for a project to try and had seen a lone pedicab parked by Eno’s and thought..why not pedicabs? As we talked longer, I came to understand the core passion behind his pursuit was to affect a cultural change in his city to become a more bike friendly place for him and his fellow biking enthusiasts, but also to bring the healthy and fun biking culture to more people.
And so he bought a bunch of pedicabs, launched a cool site and got to peddling a few months ago. So far, Spokes has run routes around Oak Cliff and for a few local events, like the Brew Riot and the Oak Cliff Home Tour. They are looking to expand into other neighborhoods as they continue to grow.
One of the harder parts of growth is finding the cab drivers, known as “Scorchers.” This name for the drivers was inspired by the “Scorchers” of the 1890′s, who were bike speedsters running around town rocking sweet newsboy caps and vests. These are pedicab drivers with style! Even though I’m not a huge bike rider (I have an $80 walmart bike in my garage that I pedal around town sometimes), I was most intrigued by this part of the company when Justin described to me his favorite part this venture: Giving people rides and showing them a great time.
Are you kidding me? This is so up my alley! I can imagine now donning a sweet outfit with bow-tie and suspenders and hosting my own moving party in a pedicab. Come one, come all and hop on the Cookie Cab Express! I’d peddle laughing children, and entertain couples on dates with Dallas lore and recommendations on cool restaurants to check out! I’d rock some LED lights on my cab for night time rides and pick up tipsy, happy people going from bar to bar! I’d do this all while looking cute and not sweating through my clothes while hauling double or triple my bodyweight…
ER WHAT??? Ok, so maybe I should try this out first and see if I can handle that kind of workout. So, Justin, just putting it out there, I’m volunteering to Scorch for ya! You can hold me to it. I’ll take a video and prove to everyone what all those burpees and jump squats have enabled me to be an awesome Scorcher!
In any case, see below for the Qs&As, and next time you see a pedicab, hop on in and give it a whirl! If you are a bike lover, definitely consider signing up to be a Scorcher to help spread the bike/pedi-cab love in Dallas AND get a great workout in. You can contact Justin (justin@spokespedicabs.com) for all the details on joining his team!
Find Spokes on:
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(all photos from Spokes Facebook Page)