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YouTubeWhat are your feelings on Bike Valets? I know they have them at large outdoor events in the summer, but would you use them on a regular basis? An alternative to driving and/or walking?
Columbus Underground Messageboard » General Columbus Discussion
Bike Valet...
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Bristol Bar
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Posted 2 years ago # -
Bristol Bar
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Ok, why? Value? Trust?
Posted 2 years ago # -
blammo
in the shadow of the wonder of bread
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do they ride the bikes to another location? or just carry/roll them to a designated area? some of those fixies might be a little challenging for a stranger to hop on & ride. there's a reason they don't valet motorcycles, lol.
I would guess if you had a designated place to park the bikes in the first place, most cyclists would be willing to just ride there in the first place, lock 'em up & walk to the bar, as long as someone was there watching the bikes full-time. Kinda like the bike corral at comfest or something similar.
Posted 2 years ago # -
lifeontwowheels
Highland West
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I would say racks would be the better option. Pay for them once and you are done. If you go for the valet you'll end up paying someone to sit and watch bikes for 3-4 hours with very little work to justify it. And frankly I won't pay much for bike valet-if anything at all-if there is a meter 20 feet down from the bar to lock to.
ETA
I'll go a bit further and say this would be a potentially awesome concept for an area with a higher density of bars and nightlife. SN, AD, Campus and even downtown. In those areas the businesses could come together and find a way to make it work and spread the cost so it wasn't a wash for any one business. I know the few times we have done some rides and went to a place like Surly Girl it was a challenge trying to lock up 6-7 bikes.
Posted 2 years ago # -
blammo
in the shadow of the wonder of bread
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yeah, cyclists at this point are pretty used to finding a place to lock their bikes. just have some sweet racks installed in a really conspicuous place & be done with it. maybe install a "bike rack cam" in the bar just for the more obsessive owners.
Posted 2 years ago # -
groundrules
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I would say a good part of the joy of riding my bike places is that 1) it's free 2) it's fast- roll up, lock up, and be at the bar in seconds 3) i don't have to worry about parking
valet takes away all that. or, at least reduces all that.
As for theft, I have a bike I care about that doesn't get left alone. ever. and then I have a bar bike, which i love but is replaceable.
Posted 2 years ago # -
NerosNeptune
Goodale Park
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Most people riding bikes like exercise and saving money. Being able to ride right up to the bar and pay someone to take your bike somewhere and lock it up for you doesn't sound very appealing to me.
A nice rack out front would be though.
(reads that again)
Posted 2 years ago # -
rory
NW Short North
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It's not the craziest idea. There aren't that many places to park your bike around there. And there's not a lot of room for a bike rack either which I would use before a valet.
@JonMyers. you never valet park your car? I can only imagine the scene where the valets made off with someones bike.
Posted 2 years ago # -
lifeontwowheels
Highland West
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garrettbe wrote >>
Are you planning on having the car valet guys take them down to the basement and lock them up down there? If so it would be safer in a way than being outside and the basement is weather proof, so no wet seat.I think the one advantage to having a basement or other secured area is the ability to stash helmet and bag so I am not dragging it around all night. A compromise to this (don't know if you have a basement space or anything) might be a self serve deal. Clear a space (if you have a basement that is accessible from outside) and have a couple racks that people could lock to-just to keep people honest. If you have someone at the door-even your car valets-they could simply unlock the door going in. You could put the hang tags on the bikes to verify ownership at the end of the night.
Posted 2 years ago # -
garrettbe
Iuka
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lifeontwowheels wrote >>
garrettbe wrote >>
Are you planning on having the car valet guys take them down to the basement and lock them up down there? If so it would be safer in a way than being outside and the basement is weather proof, so no wet seat.I think the one advantage to having a basement or other secured area is the ability to stash helmet and bag so I am not dragging it around all night. A compromise to this (don't know if you have a basement space or anything) might be a self serve deal. Clear a space (if you have a basement that is accessible from outside) and have a couple racks that people could lock to-just to keep people honest. If you have someone at the door-even your car valets-they could simply unlock the door going in. You could put the hang tags on the bikes to verify ownership at the end of the night.
That would be perfect. I'm not sure how practical the basement layout is for this though as of right now. Something like this would work even without valet guys being around. I think if the bike valet goes well they could make the changes needed for this.
Posted 2 years ago # -
lifeontwowheels
Highland West
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I would say that the greatest "challenge" of riding and meeting up with people was where to put all the shit-especially in the middle of winter. Maybe having a coat check or something would be an option for all guests?
Posted 2 years ago # -
Bristol Bar
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Here are my thoughts:
Make it free
Have the ability to also store the gear; helmets, etc...
Park them in the basement; secure, with security cameras
Start on Thursday, Friday and Saturday from open to closeJust see if people would use it, if it's popular, expand it.
Posted 2 years ago # -
lifeontwowheels
Highland West
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Bristol Bar wrote >>
Here are my thoughts:
Make it free
Have the ability to also store the gear; helmets, etc...
Park them in the basement; secure, with security cameras
Start on Thursday, Friday and Saturday from open to close
Just see if people would use it, if it's popular, expand it.Sounds good
Posted 2 years ago # -
michaelcoyote
!seabus
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This is a cool idea, but do you get enough bike traffic to maintain this service? I've never seen more than a few bikes at Bristol at any given time.. I agree this would be especially nice when its rainy out..
Posted 2 years ago # -
JerrodWagner
Clintonville
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I like this, especially if you can keep the bike overnight and pick it up the next day. I know some of my friends are more likely to ride their bike homes when drunk than if they were driving.
Safety first!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Bristol Bar
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I don't think keeping it overnight would be an issue. You would die if I showed you the number of credit cards people pick up the next day.
Posted 2 years ago # -
michaelcoyote
!seabus
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I kinda like how Zeitgeist does it:
It seems to work.. they've been doing it this way since at least '92
Posted 2 years ago #
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