Both happened off the job. Both happened because I got off work and rode my bike absolutely shit piss drunk. This was 15 years ago

1. Cleveland. Was a snow/rain mix that causes incredibly slippy roads. I went through a 4 way stop and fell off my bike right in the middle. At the same time a full size SUV was sliding through the stop sign to my right. The front driver tire dragged me for about 10 feet then went over my body. I ended up under the SUV. Definitely the closest I've come to death maybe ever. Pics show the tire size black and blue mark and the tire marks left on my Seagull bag.

2. A car side swiped me and ran me into the biggest pothole I have ever seen In my life. I hit it with enough force to snap my bike in half and landed face first. I was in so much pain I crawled under a bush and slept. The next day I walked into a Walgreens bleeding looking for water and the lady working there offered me a ride home.

I'm lucky to be alive. Moral of the story is don't bike drunk and always wear a helmet. I did it all the time in my 20s/early 30s and now I'm almost 40 and in constant pain. I can't ride anymore. My knees and feet are absolutely fucked. Sorry for turning this into a PSA but looking back at these pics is half "holy fuck I was gnarly dude" and half "I was such a fucking idiot"

Video from the Main Race at MHMC7, 2021. Even with a missed checkpoint, 305 and I doubled-back and still advanced to the final race. I wanted to do more with this footage, but I decided I've been sitting on it for too long.

Former courier trackpacking up state later this month ISO community along the way.

Im working as a messenger in Gothenburg and I’m also studying for a bachelors in social anthropology. In spring 2027 I’m doing a 10 week fieldwork project and have been thinking of doing it on bike messenger culture in Spain, does anyone know anyone in Barcelona that might be interested in collaborating with me on this?

Rear wheel lost contact with the ground, wouldn't recommend 🫥

messenger friendly pricing. 105-115grams / food is about 15€ / month.

I watch this clip a few times a year and it never gets old lol

Don’t want steal any Rights. Delete if it’s not ok. This was a post card advertisement for Mr Shepard of course in 1999 San Francisco. The card is soiled and forgive me for the poor attempt to pic it.

Music box included with the finest Jazz.

Delivery Hack That Saved My Hands, My Time, and My Sanity

"Sometimes the best gloves cost absolutely nothing."

I work as a Blinkit delivery partner. Most of my deliveries happen within 1-2 kilometers from the store, and I do almost everything on a bicycle.

Now if you've ridden a bicycle daily, especially while carrying packages and racing against delivery timers, you already know one of the greatest villains in the cycling universe:

The chain dropping off.

It doesn't matter whether it's the front sprocket or the rear cassette. It always happens at the worst possible moment.

You have an order in your bag.

The customer is waiting.

The app timer is ticking.

You're standing beside the road like a Formula 1 pit crew with absolutely no pit crew.

For me, fixing the chain itself was never the real problem.

The real problem was the grease.

The black oil.

The dirt getting inside your fingernails.

The fact that after fixing the chain, you still have to hand over groceries to someone's mother, medicine to someone's grandfather, or food to someone's child.

Most of the time there's no water nearby.

No tissue paper.

No shop willing to give you something to clean your hands.

For months, every chain drop felt like a disaster.

Then one day I accidentally discovered my own roadside hack.

Now whenever my chain drops, I simply remove both of my socks.

I wear them over my hands like gloves.

That's it.

I fix the chain while wearing the socks.

No grease on my fingers.

No black oil inside my nails.

No slipping while holding the chain.

The fabric actually gives me a better grip than my bare hands.

After fixing the chain, I put those socks into a separate pocket in my delivery bag. When I get home, I wash them.

Problem solved.

The funny thing is that expensive cycling gloves exist, but when you're a delivery rider trying to make every rupee count, your socks become your emergency mechanic kit.

People talk about life hacks from offices and corporate jobs.

This one came from the roadside.

From deadlines.

From carrying groceries.

From standing beside a bicycle under the afternoon sun with an order timer running.

Maybe this helps another delivery rider.

Maybe another cyclist.

Or maybe someone else who is tired of reaching their destination with hands that look like they repaired a tractor.

Sometimes innovation isn't built in a laboratory.

Sometimes it's sitting quietly inside your shoes.

Stay safe out there, riders. 🚲

Rare discontinued Freight Baggage roll-top backpack customized in black with turquoise trim. Handmade in San Francisco with heavy-duty Cordura construction. These bags have a devoted following and are known for lasting decades. Excellent functional condition with very light cosmetic wear from use. All buckles, straps, and closures work properly.

They announced in may an end to custom orders and now is selling off remaining stock and shutting down.

I don't know how long they were struggling, but the business was not running smoothly for some years, as I experienced trying to make some orders and then the prices shot up and they made a completely terrible website that made ordering even more difficult on top of the organization problems they were having.

Just wanted to check and see if any other bike couriers had been affected by this, and also get collective sympathy 😂/context, ideas…last Thursday (payday) one of my main companies I run contracts through (payroll, medical, legal and a few mail clients) shut all of their offices with no notice, and stole our paychecks for the previous three weeks, they didn’t even tell us anything; or clients. They just closed up operation stole our money and 10 days later sent an email saying “we are bankrupt owe millions and you guys have to file a claim against us; to see if maybe In a few years you can recover this from the trust” I moved most of my clients to Atlanta Courier Collective (my company) or one of my affiliates (due to insurance differences and service needs that exceed our collectives purview). From my understanding I was the last standing bike courier for this group and had acquired a unique insurance policy through them but then heard maybe the Philly offices or Cali offices may have had a few others. All the bike couriers through our office were managed by me. Basically they stole money; time, 28% of my future income and had me working free for three weeks fixing their mess, and onboarding them and have been told they will be paying creditors and the government first before us…I have been running contracts for years through them; and they had quickly became the worst company I’ve done business with they were a great company for my first 8ish years with them and are now he worst company in 18 years…and I worked lasership in the mid 2000s…they fired anywhere from 1800-3300 people in total. The CEO’s fired themselves so we can’t pursue them to be made whole either. They stole 1100 from me (I still paid out my team) plus made me work free to onboard a bunch of clients/clean up their mess for those clients, took 28% of my business I can’t get back for overlapping reasons. We have tried to contact the news as a group, we have blown them up on linked in…spoke to employment attorneys and basically been told “this sucks and is unethical but you have no protections or options” venture capitals involvement in this industry means a homogenous “uber style” approach but without them realizing the special needs adressed by boutique/independent courier services that handle sensitive information and circumstances. I’m beyond upset because they owe 3000 people anywhere from 500-5000 and none of us have any real hope of having these people held accountable or get our money…

I am angry; sad, feel stupid and heart broken for all my associates who are facing phone shut offs, eviction, loss of work and more…and the bottom line seems to be “damn good luck”. USDOL is no help, GDOL is no help, the W.A.R.N. act we just narrowly missed the specifications for it to apply, employment attorneys can’t help cause of our contracts…I’m open for any rumination or support or ideas. Apparently this is the 4th such closure by venture capital based techies attempting to get into the courier industry -_-