Entrepreneurs Brooks Brizendine and Saurabh Chawla are excited to launch their new Pedicab venture in Ocean City, MD, because they say it will bring both a fun and environmentally conscious business to an area that has drifted from its 2001 All-American City status, in their opinions.

“I had seen pedicabs all over New York City and when one of my friends started riding in my hometown of DC, it just clicked,” Brizendine said of the creation of Ocean City, MD based Coastal CruZn, LLC. “Saurabh and I are both passionate about doing our part to contribute to the environment, so the progression into creating a pedicab business just came naturally.”

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Tags: America, brizendine, Brooks, Cabs, Coastal, conscious business, CruZn, driver, Drivers, entrepreneur, Environmentally, fun, hybrid bike, New York City, Ocean City, ocean city md, Pedicab, pedicab business, Pedicab News, pedicabs, recyclable items, recyclables, saurabh

What’s up with those bike rickshaws?

It’s a question that bears repeating. So …What’s up with those bike rickshaws?

They seemed to appear out of nowhere this winter, multiplying like bunnies during the inauguration. Tourists seemed to think they’d always been there, a la Central Park East in New York City, but locals knew better. This is DC. We sell tourists “FBI: You Don’t Know Me” T-shirts, scream at them to stand to the right, sell ‘em a half-smoke and send ‘em packing. At best, they can shell out $60 to steer a Segway for an hour while wearing a dorky-looking helmet. (more…)

Tags: adams morgan, Cabs, cadillac, central park, central park east, city, fbi, inauguration, locals, mayor adrian fenty, New York City, obama, Pedicab, Pedicab News, pedicabs, rfk stadium, rickshaw, rickshaws, segway, throwback, tourists, Transport, transportation, weekend

By Andrea Sachs
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, June 29, 2008; P06

Among the experiences that make one go “Eek!,” tooling around Manhattan in a rickshaw ranks high, falling somewhere between a cab ride during rush hour and walking through Times Square after the theaters let out. Some of the bike-drawn buggies come equipped with seat belts; others don’t. You decide your threshold of thrill.

“There’s a real rush going through traffic,” said Jacob Press, a tour guide with the Manhattan Rickshaw Co., the longest continuously operating pedicab outfit in New York City. “We can always find a way through.”

I have explored the City That Never Stops by foot, bus and bike. But on a recent trip, I wanted to sightsee in a vehicle that was intimate with the urban landscape but didn’t require any energy expenditure. So I called Manhattan Rickshaw a few days before my visit and booked Press and his quads.

Rickshaws are pervasive in Asia, where the economical bicycles with big back seats jostle for space among mopeds, cars, beasts of burden and swarms of pedestrians. In the United States, they’re more of a novelty than a necessity but are a rousing ride nonetheless. Though passengers are not as vulnerable as the biker, they’re still thrust into the chaotic street scene.

“It’s a combination of entertainment and transportation,” said Manhattan Rickshaw owner Peter Meitzler, who was instrumental in bringing pedicabs to New York. “It’s fun and environmental and fills a niche.”

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Tags: andrea sachs, bicycle, bicycles, billboard, Manhattan, manhattan rickshaw, NEW YORK, New York City, Newspaper, operator, Operators, passenger, pedestrians, Pedicab, Pedicab News, pedicabs, rickshaws, romantic streak, route, rush hour, scene, seat belts, street scene, taxis, times square, traffic, Transport, urban landscape

American Express will celebrate New York City’s Tribeca Film Festival with a host of entertainment experiences, dining promotions and event services designed to delight film buffs, Cardmembers and the merely curious who attend the lower Manhattan event, May 1 – 9, 2004. In its third year as Founding Sponsor of the Festival, American Express once again welcomes fans back to downtown New York City to enjoy the international film and cultural festival that has helped revitalize the spirit of the historic neighborhood.

“American Express is a proud sponsor of the Tribeca Film Festival, and we’re committed to helping generate the energy and commerce that has helped revitalize lower Manhattan – our home since 1850,” said John Hayes, chief marketing officer of American Express. “Last year’s Festival drew more than 325,000 visitors, many of whom attended the events, shopped in downtown stores and dined with neighborhood merchants, making Tribeca a tremendous success.”

“We are delighted that American Express is returning for its third year as Founding Sponsor of the Tribeca Film Festival,” said Festival co-founder Jane Rosenthal. “With its commitment to lower Manhattan as strong as ever, American Express truly exemplifies the power of corporate citizenship. The Festival could not happen without their support, and we are deeply grateful for this wonderful collaborative partnership.”

Festival venues, activities and participating restaurants are situated throughout lower Manhattan, and, beginning May 1, American Express will provide complimentary double-decker bus service to downtown screening houses and special event locations. In addition, a fleet of three-wheeled, chauffeur-driven bicycles known as “pedicabs” will circulate throughout the neighborhood and pedal attendees to downtown stops, free of charge. The double-deckers and pedicabs will be fully wrapped in familiar American Express green tones.

The Tribeca Film Festival was founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff to celebrate New York City as a major filmmaking capital, and to contribute to the long-term recovery of lower Manhattan after the attacks of September 11, 2001.

American Express is the Founding Sponsor of the Tribeca Film Festival. Part of a multi-year relationship, the Festival is one of a series of events – large and small – that American Express is sponsoring to draw people to lower Manhattan and help restore a sense of excitement in the neighborhood. American Express is a diversified worldwide travel, network, and financial services provider founded in 1850. It is a leader in charge and credit cards, Travelers Cheques, travel, financial planning, investment products, insurance and international banking.

For more information on the Tribeca Film Festival, call the Festival box office at 1-866-941-FEST (3378), or visit the Tribeca Film Festival website at tribecafilmfestival.org.

Content provided courtesy americanexpress.com.

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Tags: american express, bicycles, collaborative partnership, Craig Hatkoff, festival venues, international film, Jane Rosenthal, John Hayes, lower manhattan, Manhattan, marketing, neighborhood merchants, New York City, Pedicab News, pedicabs, proud sponsor, robert de niro, Tribeca, tribeca film festival, tribecafilmfestival

Axe, the men’s bodyspray, put together a clever college campus campaign that launched simultaneously nationwide, visiting in total 15 campuses during the famous ’04 Axe roadtrip. The East Coast division, coached by Manhattan Rickshaw, included wrapping three pedicabs in shiny black vinyl, overlayed with stylish, sharply contrasting decals, and transporting them to Penn State, Ohio State and the University of Michigan to coincide with important college football games. Each pedicab driver sported an attractive Axe black fleece jacket and carried a sound-equipped backpack playing famous soul hits by Marvin Gaye and Barry White. These Axe cabs circled college campuses giving away rides to Axe-friendly passengers.

The perfect advertising platform for the modern metropolitan area is a Pedicab. Main Street Pedicabs is the only company offering national level marketing on pedicabs. We will customize a campaign that will put you in front of your customers. Visit Pedicabvertising to learn more.

Main Street Pedicabs is the market leader and the largest manufacturer of pedicabs in North America and has ownership in operations in San Francisco, Austin, San Antonio and New York City.  We offer advertising opportunities in these and other cities by working with operators who have purchased from Main Street.

We also manufacture the Billboard Bike. Having the billboard in such close proximity to people on foot makes it a unique “point-of-sale” type of media. The same places where pedicabs are the most successful are the places where your business advertising will be most effective. Now you can have the exposure you need by advertising on a Main Street Pedicab!

Content provided courtesy manhattanrickshaw.com.

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Tags: advertising opportunities, Austin, axe body spray, billboard, black vinyl, bodyspray, business advertising, campus campaign, close proximity, college campuses, college football games, East Coast, exposure, level marketing, Main Street, Main Street Pedicabs, Manhattan, manhattan rickshaw, market leader, New York City, North America, Ohio, overlayed, pedicab driver, Pedicabvertising, point of sale, Press Releases, San Antonio, San Francisco