Duane~

Very cool ~ doing work out of passion, rather than for the paycheck, is a rare occurrence in these daze ~ I applaud you ~ this will make you more of a "road warrior"...

~Edward/ Mo'PoB~

----- Original Message -----
From: "Duane Browning"
Date: Sun, 18 Apr 2004 04:19:32 -0000
To: hawaiibicyclists@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [hawaiibicyclists] My First Week As A Bike Messenger...

Ever since I saw the movie "Quicksilver", I've been curious about
bike messengers. I never really thought about doing the job myself,
until recently.

I called Crosstown Couriers in January, asking about a job there and
spoke to Chris. At the time, they were short of riders and let me
know when to come in for an interview. I told him that my working
there would be dependant upon my current work schedule, as my
employer seemed about to start cutting my hours down to the bone. I
needed to make extra money to keep my bills paid, I enjoy bicycling,
and I wanted to have a job I liked, rather than just one that I
worked for the money. I wanted to have a job that I enjoyed, for a
change.

Well, my boss didnt cut my hours, he increased them! It seems all the
stuff I heard about hours getting cut was just a rumor. I called
Chris to let him know.

Weeks passed and I decided to to give Crosstown another shot. I have
plenty of hours at my job and make enough to live on, but I needed a
change. I wanted to have some fun, while still making some money. I
figured that Crosstown would be a good part-time job, after all.

I called Chris and went in for an interview on Thursday. We chatted
for a bit and then he sent me on my first delivery run. No short
trip, though. I was to make a pick-up in town and take the package
all the way to the airport! Not a bad workout.

Fighting traffic, potholes, stop signals and assorted other stuff may
not seem like the most fun you can have on your first day on the job,
but I really enjoyed the ride. I made a second delivery in the Kalihi
area, too.

When I got back, strangely enough, I was actually in a good mood from
it all. I can honestly say that I had a real good time on it. Sure,
it was difficult and I nearly lost it on some gravel a few times, but
it was the most fun I've had in a long time. I did the same run the
next day and it was still fun the second time around.

Chris told me they give that run to new riders too see how serious
they are about working there. If they come back to work the next day,
they'll probably last awhile.

I still have to learn the city better than I do, the shortest routes
to take from Point A to Point B, but Chris says I may good time on
the runs he's given me, so I guess I'm not doing too badly for my
first two days.

So, still much to learn, but its going pretty well, I think.
Eventually, I'll get more deliveries to make and I'll make more money.

So far, so good.



Please join and support the Hawai'i Bi cycling League.

You can visit their website at http://www.hbl.org

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