Grocery Getter

I just followed an electron trail from other blogs to come across this one, and in particular this post:
http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/10/20/mmm-challenge-try-getting-your-groceries-with-a-bike-trailer/

A couple quotes jumped out at me, for their stark contrast:
"It’s very frustrating to drive to any of these stores, because you can see your final destination long before you reach it. “Oh! There’s the grocery store right there! Oh, shit, but here’s a long traffic light. Slow down. Stop. Idle. Wait for the crossing street’s left turners. Wait for the crossing street’s main traffic. Red light for everyone. Wait for the oncoming traffic’s left turners. OK, finally green for me. GO!!! Cut into a turning lane. Wait for more traffic. Enter parking lot. Wait for moms and kids pushing shopping carts. Wait for single lady to back out of parking space at 0.0007 MPH in the shiny black Escalade. Take spot far from store. Get out, lock car, start walking."

That, compared to Mrs. M's first bike grocery experience:
"The bike ride was extremely pleasant, even though it was all by road..... I cut through a park and took the small back roads to end up behind the grocery store (I’m sure you can find a special route as well). I got there quickly and was amazed at how easy and relaxing the bike ride was – it was quiet and I hardly saw a car. I locked the bike right next to the front door (how convenient is that!?)...."


This to me is a good quality of life indicator. If the regular tasks of life add to your stress and annoyance, then something is wrong with the way you're having to do them.

Prototype Early and Often!

Many of you may recognize this first prototype, seeing as I've been carrying my laptop and class materials in it for nearly three months now.

It's a Modello cosmetic bag from a thrift store, that I've modded slightly to do a few key things:








-- Strap connections have been repositioned, so it hangs vertically.





-- Old strap was replaced with new strap with pivoting hooks.

-- Small end seam has been opened, allowing pens to be stowed within grasp.

-- Exterior pocket has been positioned to face your back, so magazines are within grasp.

-- Piece of rigid plastic was inserted into the center to make the whole bag semi-rigid.

-- Interior pocket holds laptop in center, and rigid plastic provides impact protection.

The primary purpose was to create a professional-looking satchel that would be less obtrusive in crowds - especially on busses and trains - and also be more user-friendly for transit riders.

So far, despite needing some detail tweaks, it works better than any bag I've ever bought.




All photos: Carl Boyd 
Model: Erin DeWitt

What about a walk-bak?

I often find myself lugging things just a few blocks, and wishing I had a good, capacious cart to lug everything from animals to furniture just the 1/4 mile to my apartment. I've been taking note of how people are getting this done right now.

We are very accustomed to seeing people lugging shopping or laundry around in these:


...and regularly see kids, dogs and entire picnics loaded in these:

And I just saw a construction worker towing tools in this:

And this really wouldn't be a surprising sight in my neck o' the woods:

All of these solutions work, but I feel they all have weaknesses. The granny carts are made very cheaply, and are too deep to reach down into. The Radio Flyers are not very durable, and like the strollers, really are just made for kids, and the utility cart is just too .... utilitarian.

As much as I love the idea of loading all of this on some cool bakfiets (Dutch for 'box-bike') and zipping off, the idea struck me that the bike part of a bakfiets makes the cargo part very incompatible with owners living in small apartments, who don't have a good place to store them, and it also makes adding collapsibility very challenging.

What if there was just a really spacious, durable cart for schlepping things a few blocks in your neighborhood? What about a collapsible walk-bak?

Musing #1: What's missing from this picture?

Over the weekend, I saw a woman riding one of these, with a baby  in a carseat, strapped into the rear basket. Props to her for being so resourceful, but there was no room left for a sack of groceries, or even a diaper bag. The basket in back is woefully inadequate for her needs, because it's been over-engineered. Worksman Bikes are rated for 500 pounds of cargo (way more than most other bikes), and the basket is kept small, perhaps to prevent tipping over when someone drops a Chevy transmission in the back (car factories are one of Worksman's top buyers). What's missing is a basket designed for the purpose of carrying babies + groceries (or dogs), which collectively still won't weigh anything near 1/4 ton.

For a long time, I've felt that the answer to lack of capacity would be a 'tadpole trike', where the two wheels are up front like this one:

But I tested several at Chicago's first Cargo Bike Roll Call, and was quite surprised at how unstable they were in turns, even at slow speeds.
The Dutch and Danish bikes are a bit more stable, but 2 or 3 times more expensive.

I think America's own Worksman trikes are ripe for some modding improvements, and the tadpole is ready for some serious problem-solving.

So, here goes....

I'm starting a small company designing and making products that encourage and empower urban people to be mobile without motors more often, and throughout the entire year.

I anticipate the product offerings to grow to cover a wide range: accessories for pedestrians, gear for bikes, things to improve your transit experience, and (eventually) commercial-grade cargo bikes.

This blog will track my process of building the business from scratch. It is a way of keeping me honest and proactive. As my viewers increase, I will undoubtedly feel more responsible for making evident progress, and documenting it for your viewing pleasure. And quite frankly, I'm hoping it will also generate interest in the products and services I will be developing.

And though it might sound ungracious or naive, I'll admit that I'm hoping for support, but not necessarily advice. I've done this before, and I will not be taking the normal route of starting a business. So your well-intentioned advice to go talk to SCORE will go unheeded. I also share the view (with many others) that design by committee often leads to compromised results. I will definitely solicit suggestions when I'm stumped on something, but for the most part I'm looking for nothing more than positive feedback.

I will post progress here weekly, and occasionally post surveys that offer rewards for completion, and even host events where I get to thank you for just being there.

Oh, and the name of the company (for which I've already procured a domain) will be Toynbee Carriage Co.