Closer Inspection


Driver Sarah Holzhausen, 25,


estimates she gives


10 rides a day, five days a week.


“I’m definitely in the


best shape I’ve been in my life,” she says.


Rates are flexible and at


the discretion of the driver, but generally average $5 to $10 a person. Monument tours are a flat rate of $60


an hour. Gratuity is optional, but the average tip for a ride is about $5.


Passengers can use a


removable


canvas cover to protect themselves from sun or rain.


Each cab is equipped with a


Cateye bike light, which provides visibility up to 10 meters, and a bell to alert pedestrians.


Te passenger seat liſts up to


reveal a storage space for the driver’s belongings as well as


a battery that powers the cab’s brake lights and turn signals.


Te pedicabs have fiberglass bodies, and their metal components are made of steel alloy. Te vehicles weigh about 150 pounds and can carry 600 pounds.


Drivers wipe down their pedicabs’


chains with orange peel. “It’s a natural, environmentally


friendly degreaser,” Rahmani says.


Flats happen,


but drivers carry spares and can change the 26-inch-by-


2½ -inch tires themselves.


Te average


speed is 7 mph. “No one’s getting in a pedicab


because they’re in a rush,”


Rahmani says.


Pedicab power Transport that’s slow but spunky


by Kris Coronado There’s a slight breeze and a whir of gears as a pedicab driver cruises along Adams Morgan’s 18th Street. “It’s like riding in a convertible with less wind, and you’re going a lot slower,” says Martin Rahmani, co-owner of Capitol Pedicabs in the District. “You get to look out and see the city in a different way.”


6 The WashingTon PosT Magazine | June 6, 2010 In March 2008, less than a year


after graduating from American University, Rahmani and Steven Balinsky debuted Capitol Pedicabs with a fleet of six vehicles. Today, the company’s shed houses 30 of what Rahmani jokingly calls “oversize tricycles.” The cabs, powered by a pedaling cyclist, can ferry folks around


Each cab comes with Shimano bike gears. “It’s essentially the guts of


a 21-speed mountain bike,” Rahmani says.


Cushioned bike saddles make a big difference: “You


need the extra padding for all the hours you spend sitting on these,” Rahmani says.


the Mall and to destinations such as Nationals Park or Ben’s Chili Bowl. They can also be reserved for special occasions. “Last summer, we had a wedding where a groom wanted just one pedicab,” Rahmani says. “It was an outdoor wedding, and he drove [the bride] around the property and then straight down the aisle to the altar.”


PHOTOGRAPHS BY BENJAMIN C. TANKERSLEY


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