konarocky

Has anyone ever delivered newspapers using their bike? I delivered newspapers for one year (120 daily), but I used a shoulder bag and jogged the route...it was a tight city route. I did it using my bike (xtracycle) a few times, but it took longer getting on and off the bike than it did just to jog it with a shoulder bag. I was thinking about picking up a route this summer that is less dense so using my bike would be more efficient. Any newspaper delivery experiences out there?

Slow Train

I had a 80 some paper route as a kid. I delivered on foot but used my bike to pick up the papers up from the printing press on the other side of town. It was pretty foolhardy to ride a bike across town with a full bag across each shoulder. The chrome bag I have now would have been a godsend!

Nightshade

I delivered papers for 2 large city papers 40 yrs ago using my bike
and newsboys bag. I remember rolling them with rubber bands then
riding the route while pitching the paper as close to the front door I could
manage. Some customers wanted the paper inside to screen door but not
many. My route was so large it took me 2 1/2 hrs every morning to roll
and deliver them before school.

Interestingly the bike I used was a English made Raleigh 3 speed. That
bike was bombproof as no matter how much weight I hung on it with papers
it never broke or quit.

DataJunkie

I delivered papers as a kid occasionally on a bike. It was a bit of a pain and being that my house was a block from my route I usually walked it. The occasional route I substituted for usually was further and I biked to it
.
Nowdays kids can't even deliver papers in denver. It's all adults in cars. So much for the exercise. Plus the routes are so large you could never carry all the papers.

wahoonc

Delivered 70+ paper route. I used a Schwinn Heavi Duti with large front basket and rear saddle baskets. Did that for about 4 years, IIRC I broke one frame but it was replaced under warranty. Towards the end I got a high rise apartment building. I just added a shoulder bag to the top of the load in the back for that walking part. the bulk of the rest were front porch delivered by strong arm. Just a few were delivered to screen doors. Joke's all those people now. They took the bicycle delivery routes away and gave them to car carriers. No personal service now. BTW where do they still deliver by bicycle?

Aaron

gwd

I delivered papers for several years on an English Raleigh 3-speed. I used the canvas shoulder bag and a large front basket. Sometimes I used my brother's 3-speed that had a rear basket. The rear basket seemed more stable on Sunday mornings when the load was heavy but it was easier to throw the papers from the front basket. Sometimes, I'd only rubber band some papers in the canvas bag and put loose papers in the front basket. Then I'd band the loose papers as I rode along with no hands or steering with my elbows to save some time.

When I substituted for other carriers the bike would be loaded with two routes worth of papers.