[Scroll down to see how readers have re-made the ad.]
Zipcar, the nation’s largest and most well-known car-sharing service (that just had an IPO), has long positioned themselves as a bike-friendly company; but a new advertisement has some people scratching their heads.
Check out the big banner graphic that’s running on Zipcar.com…
![](http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/zipcarad_orig.jpg)
Come on Zipcar; why make bikes look bad just to make a buck? I thought we were friends. And why use a car when a simple set of panniers or a front rack would do the trick?
Bike touring expert, photographer, and former Portlander Russ Roca, who knows a thing or two about low-car living, instantly went to work on his own versions of the ad:
![](http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/zipcar_russ1.jpg)
![](http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/zipcar_russ12.jpg)
Want to create one too? Our friend Tomas Quinones made a version of the image with a blank background for your convenience…
![](http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/zipcar_blank.jpg)
Feel free to Photoshop and caption to you heart’s content… And if any readers have friends at Zipcar, maybe drop them a line and point out how ridiculous that ad is.
UPDATES:
Reader Shane from Eugene sent in his mock-up:
![](http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/zipcar_shane.jpg)
And here’s one from Natalie:
![](http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/zipcar_redo2.jpg)
And yet another:
![](http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/zipcar_elephant.jpg)