4/25: Hello readers and friends. I'm still recovering from a surgery I had on 4/11, so I'm unable to attend events and do typical coverage. See this post for the latest update. I'll work as I can and I'm improving every day! Thanks for all your support 🙏. - Jonathan Maus, BikePortland Publisher and Editor
This week’s Monday Roundup is brought to you by the Community Cycling Center, who invites you to their 25th anniversary Momentum Gathering this Friday May 10th!
Here are the most noteworthy items we came across in the past seven days…
Safely breaking the law: This excellent piece from David Alpert at Greater Greater Washington says that not all traffic laws are equal and pretending it’s safer for bicycle users to follow them is spurious.
“How can you call yourself a bike-friendly town if you have people of color who are afraid to leave their house? How do you even accept these awards? It’s a moral question.”
Those comments are why Charles Brown (@CTBrown1911) is a name that won’t soon be forgotten by the hundreds of people in attendance at his keynote speech during the Oregon Active Transportation Conference last week.
Brown, a researcher and transportation justice activist, delivered some very real talk to the policymakers, advocates, and agency staffers in the room — several of whom audibly gasped when he questioned our bike-friendly status viewed through a lens of racial justice.
We knew it wouldn’t be easy.
Senate Bill 998 — affectionately known as the Idaho Stop bill because it would allow bicycle riders to treat stop signs (and flashing red signals) as yields — is floundering.
Even though it sailed through the Senate Judiciary Committee on April 9th, the bill has stalled out and is currently in the Senate Rules Committee. Asked for a status update on the bill, its chief sponsor, Senator Floyd Prozanski (D-Eugene) said, “A preliminary assessment shows that I do not have the necessary votes with in the caucus to move it to the floor.”
When the warm sun comes out in Portland, everyone grabs their bikes. That means local shops and bike businesses spring to life and need help handling the onslaught of customers. If you’re looking for a job, you’re in luck.
Check out the latest opportunities below…
–> Part-Time Bicycle Tour Guide – LifeCycle Adventures
–> Part time bike valet attendant – Go By Bike
–> Bicycle Mechanic – Community Cycling Center
–> Seasonal Retail Specialist – Community Cycling Center
–> Seasonal Retail Sales & Customer Service – Clever Cycles
–> Bike Mechanic / Tour Guides – Everybody’s Bike Rentals & Tours
Shop Operations Manager
Pedal Bike Tours
At Pedal Bike Tours our mission is to create joyful and memorable experiences by bicycle.
We encourage healthy exploration of our world through fun and safe bike riding experiences, guided by friendly experts and supported by professional customer service.
Our guided tours help people learn to comfortably and safely explore by bicycle, while encouraging a deeper understanding of the history and culture of each place we visit.
Our bike rentals let guests create their own experiences using our high quality and well maintained bikes, helmets and equipment
Our knowledgeable staff are always happy to give insider tips on things to do, places to visit and must-sees while exploring the area.
Since it was started in 2008 with just four bikes and operating out of a garage, Pedal now has several dozen bicycles and takes thousands of customers on tours of Portland and Oregon from our beautiful shop in downtown Portland.
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You will be responsible for running the day to day operations of the store Love of bicycles is a must, bike shop experience is a plus.
The responsibilities of the Shop Operations Manager consists of working with the business owner, shop coordinator, lead mechanic, shop staff and tour guides to insure the smooth operation of the business.
People Management: Manage shop and employees in order to insure productivity, cohesiveness and a high level of customer service.
Train employees
Address apparent performance issues and employee concerns as they arise
Review timecards for accuracy
Train employees in tour, reservation and retail procedures
Work with the mechanic to make sure bikes are properly maintained
Project Management:
Work with the mechanic and clerk to insure customers’ bikes are repaired in a timely manner.
Manage the tour reservation system- Insure guides and tours are properly scheduled. Create and update pricing, partners and tours.
Manage the bike fleet to make sure we have enough bikes, helmets and locks between tours and rentals.
Customer Service:
Treat everyone with respect.
Respond to customers emails and phone calls in a timely fashion.
Tours:
Conduct tours as needed
Create custom tours
Retail:
Work with the shop coordinator to maintain inventory and order new products
Manage sale events, keep inventory stocked and attractively displayed
Lightspeed POS system- run reports, perform end of day, make sure numbers match and reports are filed, deposit cash.
Maintain petty cash, change for register
Vehicles: Manage vehicle fleet
Manage oil change and servicing needs.
Monitor cleanliness and have vehicles cleaned.
Computer Skills: Familiarity with common office and retail computer software such as Google Docs, Gmail, Calendar, Lightspeed POS and online reservation software
Physical Labor: Whether arranging the shop space, guiding tours, receiving retail items or retrieving disabled bikes, the Shop Operations Manager should be comfortable with occasional heavy lifting, repetitive physical tasks, riding 10 to 20 miles by bike, and being safety conscious.
Full Time through October. Must be willing to work weekends, particularly June-Sept. $20/hour
Please email a resume and cover letter to info@pedalbiketours.com or bring to the store for an on the spot screening.
Bike Mechanic / Tour Guides
Everybody's Bike Rentals & Tours
Hey bike-friends,
Everybody’s Bike Rentals & Tours is hiring 1 part time SHOP STAFF person and 2+ Tour Guides to join our team of friendly bike nerds!
Shop staff: $15/hr to start plus bonus. 7.5 hour days, 1-3 days a week, now to Nov 1.
Meet lots of nice cool people from all over the world and work in a fun, non-corporate, lower-stress environment. Must be outgoing, organized, and have 2+ years shop mechanic experience.
Tour Guides: Competitive pay plus tips and bonuses.
Must be a competent, safe rider with decent knowledge of Portland, charming, outgoing, and confident. Minor mechanical knowledge is helpful. Must be available more than 1 day a week.
As a tour guide, you would lead groups of 2 – 10 people on tours of NE/N Portland, stopping at breweries, coffee shops, parks, etc, following routes we’ve developed, all at a fairly casual pace. There are currently 2 tours that we lead and you can read a bit about them at http://www.pdxbikerentals.com/portland-bike-tours/ They run at 10:30am and 1PM everyday.
Schedule will vary based on your availability and how many tours get booked. Tours are often booked just a day or two in advance, so having a flexible schedule is a helpful.
Email us through our website pdxbikerentals.com with a résumé and tell us why you want to work with us.
Edith Mirante commutes by bike on the Springwater Corridor path right outside the door of her Sellwood neighborhood home. Since she moved there in 2007, the path between Southeast 9th and 11th existed as a goat trail of rocks and dirt alongside rarely used railroad tracks. When Portland Parks & Recreation announced plans to pave the path back in January, Mirante never expected to be the loudest voice in opposition.
We’ve got a great slate of rides and event suggestions this week. Hope you have time to partake in some of the action.
I’ll be headed to the coast on Friday for a stop to see the first section of the Salmonberry Trail in Tillamook on Friday, then on to Waldport to compete in the Coast Gravel Epic. It’s the first event in the Oregon Triple Crown and my goal this year is to do well at all three (the next events are in Oakridge and Cottage Grove). Hope to meet some BikePortland readers out there — including reader Josh E. who scored a free entry to the Coast Gravel Epic for responding to our story this week!
Whatever you do, have fun and enjoy the ride(s)…
Eight years after it was first conceived, a piece of the Salmonberry Trail will be officially opened to the public this Saturday.
What’s better than bikes? Free bikes!
Metro President Lynn Peterson and Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler have found a politically convenient way out of the predicament posed by the very unpopular I-5 Rose Quarter Project: the Albina Vision plan. Drowning in a sea of controversy around the idea of expanding a freeway through our central city, both leaders have made this plan central to their position on the project.
It’s still a month away, but it’s so big you need at least that much time to get ready. Yes, of course I’m talking about Pedalpalooza.