A bike messenger who couldn't stop showing people around
I moved to Portland in 2014 for the bike culture. Within a week, I was working as a bike messenger downtown, weaving through traffic and learning every street, alley, and shortcut in the city. I fell in love with Portland -- the bridges, the neighborhoods, the food, the way the whole city seems designed for two wheels.
Friends and family would visit and I'd take them on these long, winding rides through the city. We'd stop at my favorite food carts, cross all the bridges, duck into breweries I'd discovered on my routes. Every single person said the same thing: "You should do this for a living."
"Every single person said the same thing: You should do this for a living."
In 2020, in the middle of everything, I took the leap. I bought three bikes, printed some flyers, and started running tours out of my garage. The first month I had eleven customers total. But every single one left a five-star review. Word spread. By summer 2021, I had a waitlist.
Today, Pedal & Coast has a fleet of 30 bikes (including 12 e-bikes), a team of 8 incredible guides, and we've taken over 15,000 people on rides through Portland. But we still run things the same way we did on day one: small groups, local knowledge, and the belief that the best way to experience a city is from the seat of a bike.
"Small groups, local knowledge, and the belief that the best way to experience a city is from the seat of a bike."