Utility Cycling - UPS hiring in Portland

I don't know the details, but UPS is hiring bike delivery people in Portland OR. Here's a graphic.

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Another reason I wish I lived in Portland.

you don't want to live here.

also, they either filled it already, or that ad is full of ****. the only redeeming thing about the possibility of being a bike messenger for ups would be the fact you get insurance.

you don't want to live here.

also, they either filled it already, or that ad is full of ****. the only redeeming thing about the possibility of being a bike messenger for ups would be the fact you get insurance.

why don't I want to live there?

it sucks. trust me.

I'd be curious what they even do with bicycles. Most of their stuff is fairly large bicycles. I guess you could send two or three cyclists around with each truck and run 'em up and down the cross streets or something.

My son works part-time at the sorting facility here in the Dallas area. It's okay, and he's not planning to quit anytime, but it's no picnic, either. And doesn't seem to be the kind of job he'd want to do the rest of his life, either.

Edit: Found this article and this other one- on the second one, click on the "picture" tab if it's not showing:
http://bikeportland.org/2008/11/14/ups-gears-up-for-holidays-with-bike-delivery/
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/news/2920388-35/story.csp

What has me scratching my head is, how are they going to leave a bike double-parked with the four-ways on? It just seems a bike isn't well suited for that.

it sucks. trust me.

http://clevercycles.com/
http://www.oregonlive.com/iloveportland/
http://carfreeportland.org/
http://shifttobikes.org/
http://www.bta4bikes.org/
http://urbanmamas.typepad.com/urbanmamas/the-mamas-behind-the-site.html

These sites seem to paint a very different picture of life in Portland. Are they all liars and you the only one who tells the truth?

To get back to the original question, a lot of what UPS delivers, particularly to businesses, is small packages and document mailers. A bike, especially with a trailer, or something like this http://www.cyclesmaximus.com/jpcargohardtopL.htm would be good for that. And not block traffic the way the vans do.

http://clevercycles.com/
http://www.oregonlive.com/iloveportland/
http://carfreeportland.org/
http://shifttobikes.org/
http://www.bta4bikes.org/
http://urbanmamas.typepad.com/urbanmamas/the-mamas-behind-the-site.html

These sites seem to paint a very different picture of life in Portland. Are they all liars and you the only one who tells the truth?

I think it's just *****'s way of trying to say that they already have enough Californians in Portland already.

it sucks. trust me.

What you don't like The People's Republic of Portland?:eek:

the bike scene in portland is lame but you don't really get a feel for that unless you've lived there and interacted with most of the people out there. that said, it's not something you can get a feel for by reading about it on the internet or visiting and riding your bike around for 3 days.

the bike scene in portland is lame but you don't really get a feel for that unless you've lived there and interacted with most of the people out there. that said, it's not something you can get a feel for by reading about it on the internet or visiting and riding your bike around for 3 days.

As my debate coach said, "Define your terms."

What is this 'lame'?

I will agree that one can't get a real feel for a place via the web, that some aspects must be felt in the flesh, but what do you mean by 'lame'? That word can mean so many different things to so many different people that it is practically an unword.

as in, portland is not the cycling mecca it claims to be. the only exception being that it is easy to get around by bicycle. it's my opinion that all other aspects of the cycling community/scene are ****ty and not worth partaking in.

as in, portland is not the cycling mecca it claims to be. the only exception being that it is easy to get around by bicycle. it's my opinion that all other aspects of the cycling community/scene are ****ty and not worth partaking in.

I'm guessing by this you are saying that that "bicycle as transportation" aspect has taken over from the "bicycle as a statement". So the bicyclists are no longer needed to constantly spend every waking moment trying to figure out how to make their city one that can be made into a bicycle-able city. It already is such a city.

Hell I'd give up a whole bunch of "feel-good, brotherhood of cyclists" nonsense in exchange for a city I can actually ride in and has some facilities for cyclists in place.

the bike scene in portland is lame but you don't really get a feel for that unless you've lived there and interacted with most of the people out there. that said, it's not something you can get a feel for by reading about it on the internet or visiting and riding your bike around for 3 days.

Have YOU ever lived any place else? I have lived here 15 years its heaven for bicycling compared to most cities. Try to get some where in LA traffic first. It sound like your problem is with "interacting with people". Thats not a bicycling issue.

I did meet one of the UPS cyclists about a week go. She was hauling about 200lb of packages. Riding on an old Huffy through a flat suburb. She said they work in teams. She and a guy in a truck split up the neighborhood. It was her first week and she had not ridden in 20 years. She was pooped. But I thought it looked like fun. But it was a beautiful day. Not 28 and snowing like today.

I did meet one of the UPS cyclists about a week go. She was hauling about 200lb of packages. Riding on an old Huffy through a flat suburb. She said they work in teams. She and a guy in a truck split up the neighborhood. It was her first week and she had not ridden in 20 years. She was pooped. But I thought it looked like fun. But it was a beautiful day. Not 28 and snowing like today.

If she's not already in good shape, she will be. And perhaps she can use some of that overtime to buy herself a good bike.

it's my opinion that all other aspects of the cycling community/scene are ****ty and not worth partaking in.

How so?

If she's not already in good shape, she will be. And perhaps she can use some of that overtime to buy herself a good bike.

I pointed out how much weight I have lost cycling, how great she will feel, and how healthy she will get. But she just was not feeling it. I think she would have rather been in a office. Its to bad UPS did not hire cyclists to cycle.

I pointed out how much weight I have lost cycling, how great she will feel, and how healthy she will get. But she just was not feeling it. I think she would have rather been in a office. Its to bad UPS did not hire cyclists to cycle.

Well, they can only hire those who apply. She may get to 'feeling it' after she's done it a while.

Have YOU ever lived any place else? I have lived here 15 years its heaven for bicycling compared to most cities. Try to get some where in LA traffic first. It sound like your problem is with "interacting with people". Thats not a bicycling issue.


i have spent weeks riding around in LA. traffic was nothing .i i have toured throughout europe and been in enough cities to tell whether if it was bike friendly, or not. besides, you're disregarding the first thing i said. i already said, it is easy to get around here. thats not my issue. my issue is a city that purports itself to be a bike mecca, the the idiots on the internet that believe it.


How so?

here are just a few examples. the bike shops, suck. not a helpful knowledgeable one in the bunch.
the fact that Oregon is one of only four states without a vehicular homicide law. for the time that i have lived here there have been 10 or so cyclist deaths, many where the driver was at fault and admitted as such, and NOT ONE driver has ever been cited or ticketed. the city government likes the pr of being a biking city, but when it comes down to it, it's all talk.
currently the bta is proposing a law to tax bicyclists on every new bike purchased to support funding blah blah blah. as if that were the best way to fund something that the city doesn't even care about.
and a lot of it is the culture. people here are mostly *********. now, thats pretty subjective, so you should just take my word for it.



*that is supposed to read: ********

here are just a few examples. the bike shops, suck. not a helpful knowledgeable one in the bunch.

I have found CleverCycles very knowledgeable and helpful. Of course, Todd's cycling philosophy may be different from yours.

i haven't been to clever cycles yet. is that the shop on 21st and hawthorne with all the scooters and ****?
granted, i haven't been to every shop in portland. i think i have been to most of the popular ones, and have had some sort of problem at all of them.

I find the thought of getting paid to wear a brown jumpsuit and riding a brown bike quite intriguing.
The fact the brown bike will be loaded down with cargo and it will most likely be raining every day makes the thought all the more exciting.
And the added bonus is that this will take place in Oregon.
Wow!

i haven't been to clever cycles yet. is that the shop on 21st and hawthorne with all the scooters and ****?
granted, i haven't been to every shop in portland. i think i have been to most of the popular ones, and have had some sort of problem at all of them.

This is their website: http://clevercycles.com/.

First you make a sweeping generalization about the bike shops in Portland--that there isn't a decent one in the bunch--and then you admit that you aren't familiar with all of them.

I think I know how much credence I should pay to any of your future spewings.

And I'd like to ask what you have done about the situation. Are you a member of any advocacy groups? Have you written to the mayor or your alderman? Do you write letters to the editor of the paper? Have you, perhaps, run for alderman on a pro-bike platform? What have you done about the situation? Or do you just sit around and fume and complain about what "they" are doing? I have news for you; we live in a democracy--"they" are "us"; if you don't like the situation, get together with some like-minded people, get of your collective butts, and do something about it.

are you stupid. do you realize how many bike shops are in the portland metro area. no way i am going to make it out to some shop in gresham just to say i have been to them all. what i did say, is that i have been to most of the main ones. the shops close in. the ones recommended by everyone.

power in democracy. riiiiight. yea, i could go out like these idealistic morons in the bicycle advocacy groups, handing out coffee at 7 in the morning on the broadway bridge, but then i would just be another idiot getting in everybody else's way who is trying to commute to work.

lets face it. you don't live here. and you don't know what you're talking about. so don't try and get in a debate with me about how awesome the bike scene is in portland.

lets face it. you don't live here. and you don't know what you're talking about. so don't try and get in a debate with me about how awesome the bike scene is in portland.

No, I don't know Portland first hand, but I have talked to lots of people who have been there and/or are still there, and what you say paints a very different picture to what they tell me. Hence, it is a matter of whom to believe--you or them?

I think that you are spoiled. Try being a cyclist here in WV, rated by the LAB as the fifty-first in bike-friendliness; even taking what you say about Portland completely at face value, you'd miss it.

Heh, yeah, it's weird how many places don't do the basics.

Remember the old Rabbinical proverb: "Do not make the perfect the enemy of the good."

power in democracy. riiiiight. yea, i could go out like these idealistic morons in the bicycle advocacy groups, handing out coffee at 7 in the morning on the broadway bridge, but then i would just be another idiot getting in everybody else's way who is trying to commute to work.

If you would prefer living under a tyranny, I can suggest some places on the planet for you.

And don't deride advocates and activists--they were the ones who got such infrastructure and amenities as you have built in the first place, and convinced the leaders that having at least the reputation of a cycling-friendly community was a good thing. Here, cyclist interests and needs barely register on the political radar.

Cynicism is easy; it releaves you of the obligation to even try to change things.

the bicycle advocacy groups, handing out coffee at 7 in the morning on the broadway bridge, but then i would just be another idiot getting in everybody else's way who is trying to commute to work.

People are standing in the middle of a bridge, blocking traffic, so a bicyclist can be handed a cup of coffee?
Do the bicyclists spill coffee on themselves as they pedal away, or do the cups have those little sippy lids on them?
Portland is so exotic.

losingsight

You should come to Baton Rouge, Louisiana and see if you like Portland more. I've only visited Portland, but what little I've seen, it's much better than my city as far as cycling goes. If I ever see another cyclist on my way to or from work I'm surprised. On the rare occurrence that I do see someone on a bike, they are in ninja mode and may not last anyway.

Trust ME, you are better off in Portland if you are into cycling.

see the thing is, i am not into cycling. i want nothing to do with the cycling community. i could care less. i don't own a car, my bike is my only means of transportation and i feel like i am the only person that doesn't think thats a big deal. oooh. you ride a bike. you're really doing your part to save the world. you want a cookie? yea, biking in portland is easy, but that doesn't i wouldn't bike if i lived in any of the ****ty places you do. get over yourselves.

You realize, don't you, that you have contradicted yourself half a dozen times. You say you are not into cycling--then you say that your bicycle is your only means of transportation. That is about as 'into' it as you can get. And if you 'want nothing to do with the cycling community', why are you posting here? Or are you just here to stir up trouble? There's a word for that sort of person on the Internet, and it isn't a nice one.

You may now return to under your bridge.

some of the stupidest logic ever, itt. really. is it fair to say that every person that drives a car, is really into cars. you use a computer every day. does that mean you cream your pants and nerd it up every weekend at frys. it's a tool, you jackass. i can ride a bike, without being into cycling. i came here to sell some random bikes parts and cause i like to waste my time on the internet.

Elkhound - back to the topic of the post. It was pretty cool seeing the UPS cyclist. I can see how it could work in the suburbs.

Elkhound - back to the topic of the post. It was pretty cool seeing the UPS cyclist. I can see how it could work in the suburbs.

And downtown; no big truck to block the streets.

They should consider using these: http://cyclesmaximus.com/postaltrikes.htm

Those could work nicely. They would keep the packages safe while the UPS person delivers to the door. However $7000 maybe a little high for UPS. Since I think they are trying this to save $$.

Those could work nicely. They would keep the packages safe while the UPS person delivers to the door. However $7000 maybe a little high for UPS. Since I think they are trying this to save $$.


It would be an investment, but by reducing the amount of gasoline the company uses, they would in the long run save money. I can see though why for this pilot program they might want to go with the less expensive option.

see the thing is, i am not into cycling. i want nothing to do with the cycling community. i could care less. i don't own a car, my bike is my only means of transportation and i feel like i am the only person that doesn't think thats a big deal. oooh. you ride a bike. you're really doing your part to save the world. you want a cookie? yea, biking in portland is easy, but that doesn't i wouldn't bike if i lived in any of the ****ty places you do. get over yourselves.

But think of all the free coffee!!!

But think of all the free coffee!!!

Thanks to the Mods, I do not think you are going to get answer from losingsight soon. Rightfully so.
Personally half of my rides are to get coffee.

But think of all the free coffee!!!

i don't want that trash. portland is supposed to have some of the best coffee and it still is ****ty.

Thanks to the Mods I do not think you are answer from losingsight soon.

I have tried to diagram and parse this utterance and I can't make any sense of it.

Could you rephrase it in something bearing a tenuous relation to the Queen's English?

someone deleted my post. that's wack.

oh that's very clever mod. what good is posting if no one else can see it. very clever indeed.

I have tried to diagram and parse this utterance and I can't make any sense of it.

Could you rephrase it in something bearing a tenuous relation to the Queen's English?

he had too much caffeine