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Cycling Safety - Would You Use This?
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 2014-09-29 10:56 PM |
 12 |  Subject: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This?Howdy, YES/NO: Would you use this service if it was available to you? Free SAG vehicle on your training rides. I started a business called Swagon last year; it's an on-demand vehicle escort for road cyclists to use on their EVERYDAY training rides. All you do is go online, schedule your vehicle, and a driver shows up at your ride to follow you for increased visibility/safety and to be there if anything happens. Riders in Texas have liked it a lot so far, and we can't keep up with demand. Would you find this useful in your area? |
| 2014-09-29 11:49 PM in reply to: Guest |
107 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Don't get me wrong it sounds like a good idea, especially if you're in a heavy urban area. But even as high a density as Boulder, CO is developing, it's not hard to escape the hustle and bustle for peaceful scenic country roads. |
| 2014-09-30 6:46 AM in reply to: Guest |
Champion 10668    Tacoma, Washington | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? The OP smacks of spam and shill. One post to "ask" about your business. Nice. Personally, I see this as contributing more to angst of drivers against cyclists than anything else. Good luck with it. |
| 2014-09-30 7:21 AM in reply to: Guest |
Extreme Veteran 1986 Cypress, TX | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Is it really a business if you provide the service for free? |
| 2014-09-30 8:38 AM in reply to: GMAN 19030 |
Alpharetta, Georgia Bronze member | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? It's free? That doesn't make any sense to me. I can't see using this for myself unless, say, it were my peak Ironman training ride in 100 degrees and I was going solo. I would also be cautious about the unknowns of having a complete stranger following me around. That gives me the heebie jeebies. |
| 2014-09-30 8:41 AM in reply to: #5055190 |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Escaping to scenic, low-traffic roads is a great idea. Swagon helps riders in this case too by being there to help prevent adverse events and in the event something unforeseen happens. There could still be many hazards like a distracted driver, loose gravel, flat tire, etc. |
| 2014-09-30 8:45 AM in reply to: briderdt |
| 5 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by briderdt The OP smacks of spam and shill. One post to "ask" about your business. Nice. Personally, I see this as contributing more to angst of drivers against cyclists than anything else. Good luck with it.
every point is spot on - this is an advertising ploy, which makes it spam, and po's even more drivers about the idiot cyclist out there with his slow moving car jamming up traffic. it's pretty narcissistic. I call b.s. on TX being so busy you can't keep up with demand. |
| 2014-09-30 8:46 AM in reply to: lisac957 |
| Alpharetta, Georgia Bronze member | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Checked it out on the handy link in the OPs signature... here's what is says about being free. But I still don't get how you will recruit and "extensively train" drivers who are willing to do all of this for free? Or are you paying the drivers out of the sponsorship money? HOW DOES SWAGON SUSTAIN BUSINESS IF IT IS FREE?Advertisements and partnerships - We primarily get our revenue from advertisement sales and partnerships with local and national businesses. These businesses benefit by reaching an attractive market (cyclists) and being associated with a service that enhances the community. Swagon Premium membership - Cyclists can pay for a monthly or annual Swagon Premium membership, which gives them premium services such as bike tune-ups, nutrition on rides, event discounts, access to partner deals, and priority scheduling of Swagon. Innovative business model that works - The drivers are "crowdsourced", so they drive their own qualified cars similar to "Uber". Drivers are extensively trained through our training and development program. This crowdsourcing technique keeps costs minimal for business while still ensuring a high quality service. Other revenue streams: Affiliate partner sales - Swagon has affiliate partners that offer additional products for sale. If you buy a product from a link on the Swagon website or at a ride, we get revenue from this as well. Organized event fees - The service is provided at select organized events, such as bike events and triathlons, and we charge a fee to the event organizers. Direct product sales - We sell products directly to riders during the service. We offer gear, nutrition, and services such as coaching, bike fitting, and bike tune-ups. Camp fees - We also organize camps where we charge a one-time fee to camp attendees. The core Swagon escort service is still free. |
| 2014-09-30 8:47 AM in reply to: #5055276 |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Briderdt, I am genuinely interested in a discussion about this solution to increasing cycling safety. Not spam and shill as you mention. Great point in the other part of your post. This was something we were very conscious of as well. Through a limited launch we did over the summer, we found that traffic actually flows the same or better with Swagon. In Texas and many other states, a car can legally follow behind a cyclist in this way. Our drivers are also trained to stay out of the way (on the shoulder) where possible so traffic can continue to flow. The service is not intended to clog traffic flow with cyclists hogging roads, but rather provide protection for small groups and "corral" the larger groups. Cars were usually able to pass small groups the same as if they were riding without Swagon, but they got the benefit of being more visible and motorists often gave them more space during passing. The riders in larger groups remained closer together in general and better obeyed traffic laws, and so cars had an easier time passing them and didn't get as outwardly mad. Cyclists better obeyed traffic rules and did things like stay single file during riding where possible. When cyclists do unsafe things, we remind them and encourage and educate them about best riding practices. This helps keep motorists happier too. |
| 2014-09-30 8:50 AM in reply to: GMAN 19030 |
| 754 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by GMAN 19030 Is it really a business if you provide the service for free? Yeah, we aren't being told the whole story. I have heard of services that you can call if you are stranded, but this doesn't make any sense to me. I have plenty of people that I can ride with if I don't want to be alone, and if I want to be alone, then I want to be alone. |
| 2014-09-30 8:54 AM in reply to: #5055281 |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Hi lisac957, great points. Drivers are paid competitve rates, they don't work for free  We are also working on having a rating system/profile for each driver similar to Uber so people can be more comfortable with who is helping them on their ride. |
| 2014-09-30 11:57 AM in reply to: happyscientist |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by happyscientist Originally posted by GMAN 19030 Is it really a business if you provide the service for free? Yeah, we aren't being told the whole story. I have heard of services that you can call if you are stranded, but this doesn't make any sense to me. I have plenty of people that I can ride with if I don't want to be alone, and if I want to be alone, then I want to be alone. Hi GMAN 19030, thanks for the feedback. Instead of using one of those services where you call and have to wait for them to come when you're stranded, Swagon is meant to be there continuously during a ride and offer very rapid help if needed. Personal story: on one of the first rides we did, a rider crashed on loose dirt in the road and busted up her knee pretty bad. We drove her to a nearby emergency room and she got the help she needed. Ride safe out there! |
| 2014-09-30 12:43 PM in reply to: Swagon |
| 297 Arden, North Carolina | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Why not, if it's actually free? I could see other cars getting annoyed, but it's not like that's not an issue already. Cars are a lot less likely to do something stupid when there's another vehicle around that can report them. Does the vehicle follow or lead? I don't see the need in slamming the guy asking about this service. He's trying to start out a new business, simply saying "no I wouldn't be interested" would probably suffice. He's not asked for a penny of anyone's money, just doing market research to determine demand. I highly doubt your service would ever launch where I am since it's a small city and probably not nearly enough demand, but it's an interesting idea, and if doable, why not have a free SAG vehicle. My wife would certainly be happier knowing I had more protection. |
| 2014-09-30 1:48 PM in reply to: TriDadinAsheville |
| Alpharetta, Georgia Bronze member | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? After watching the video and thinking on this a bit more, I agree, I might actually use this if it were truly available and as easy and free as it sounds. Probably not for rides under 2 or 3 hours long, but definitely for those longer ones as I am often in no-mans land and it could be a long time before help arrived. Will the SAG vehicle carry a cooler and ice so I can keep my water cold? |
| 2014-09-30 2:09 PM in reply to: 0 |
Master 1402 Cumming, Georgia | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by lisac957 Checked it out on the handy link in the OPs signature... here's what is says about being free. But I still don't get how you will recruit and "extensively train" drivers who are willing to do all of this for free? Or are you paying the drivers out of the sponsorship money? HOW DOES SWAGON SUSTAIN BUSINESS IF IT IS FREE?Advertisements and partnerships - We primarily get our revenue from advertisement sales and partnerships with local and national businesses. These businesses benefit by reaching an attractive market (cyclists) and being associated with a service that enhances the community. This seems like a ploy to get people to click the link to drive up false traffic for advertising. With that said, no I would not use this service. It would make me feel strange with a car following me and I needed to stop an pee :) Edited by csharp1171 2014-09-30 2:13 PM |
| 2014-09-30 2:25 PM in reply to: lisac957 |
| 297 Arden, North Carolina | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? I was thinking the same thing. When I was IM training this summer, it would've been nice to have had all my nutrition needed with me, instead of having to stop at gas stations to buy more water 2-3x. I'd have probably drank more if I didn't have to do that. Again, with the caveat of it being as simple and free as is being implied. |
| 2014-09-30 2:52 PM in reply to: Guest |
Pro 4578 Vancouver, BC | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? No. One of the reasons I ride is to enjoy the feeling of one less car on the road. This would defeat that. I don't see any benefits for me. |
| 2014-09-30 3:32 PM in reply to: 5IMsin2014 |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by 5IMsin2014 Originally posted by briderdt The OP smacks of spam and shill. One post to "ask" about your business. Nice. Personally, I see this as contributing more to angst of drivers against cyclists than anything else. Good luck with it.
every point is spot on - this is an advertising ploy, which makes it spam, and po's even more drivers about the idiot cyclist out there with his slow moving car jamming up traffic. it's pretty narcissistic. I call b.s. on TX being so busy you can't keep up with demand. Hi 5IMsin2014, to address your (good) point about BS with TX demand: The service is free for basic use, so demand is naturally pretty high vs. if it cost money. We did this on purpose for several reasons. While demand really is high here in San Antonio (I'm not BS-ing that one), it might be artificially or temporarily high as many people are "trying out" the service for the first time to see if they like it. Time will tell if demand is stable, and that is one reason I asked the question on this forum. I care about the cycling community and want to help, not hinder, riders and motorists alike. |
| 2014-09-30 3:35 PM in reply to: Guest |
Veteran 2297 Great White North | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Not bloody likely. Maybe for a training camp with a large group to spread the costs out. |
| 2014-09-30 8:09 PM in reply to: simpsonbo |
Extreme Veteran 1190 Silicon Valley | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Having been hit by a car while riding and left in the middle of the street as the car drove off, I can clearly see the value. While I live in what is a likely considered a small town (pop about 39k) it is also the HQ for Specialized. Lots of bikes on the road all the time. Unfortunately there are those cyclists that don't like to follow the rules that lead some drivers to not like ALL cyclists very much. Personally I think the service would get a lot of use here. Just my 2 cents and for all the skeptics, no I don't know this guy and have never heard of this before today. |
| 2014-09-30 8:39 PM in reply to: csharp1171 |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by csharp1171 Originally posted by lisac957 Checked it out on the handy link in the OPs signature... here's what is says about being free. But I still don't get how you will recruit and "extensively train" drivers who are willing to do all of this for free? Or are you paying the drivers out of the sponsorship money? HOW DOES SWAGON SUSTAIN BUSINESS IF IT IS FREE?Advertisements and partnerships - We primarily get our revenue from advertisement sales and partnerships with local and national businesses. These businesses benefit by reaching an attractive market (cyclists) and being associated with a service that enhances the community. This seems like a ploy to get people to click the link to drive up false traffic for advertising. With that said, no I would not use this service. It would make me feel strange with a car following me and I needed to stop an pee Hello csharp1171, thanks for the feedback. To address your ad comment: this is not a ploy to get ad traffic. The link in my signature is to a page that does not have any ads on it (it's a Kickstarter page). It is not an essential part of the discussion, and you don't have to click on it. My aim is to talk about the topic on this forum and get peoples' input here. Be safe in Cumming, I used to live there. Do you ride with the Reality Bikes guys at all? |
| 2014-09-30 8:51 PM in reply to: Stuartap |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by Stuartap Having been hit by a car while riding and left in the middle of the street as the car drove off, I can clearly see the value. While I live in what is a likely considered a small town (pop about 39k) it is also the HQ for Specialized. Lots of bikes on the road all the time. Unfortunately there are those cyclists that don't like to follow the rules that lead some drivers to not like ALL cyclists very much. Personally I think the service would get a lot of use here. Just my 2 cents and for all the skeptics, no I don't know this guy and have never heard of this before today. Hi Stuartap, thanks for the feedback. It is actually very possible we could have service in your town in the future because of how we hire drivers. They are "crowdsourced" from the community, and after being trained, they drive their own (qualified) car. So our biggest potential expense is minimized to low overhead and lets us rapidly expand. We are planning geographic expansion, and after researching a bit about your town, I would like to put it on our potential list. I think its size and # of businesses would be able to sustain Swagon, especially since you are in SV. |
| 2014-09-30 8:55 PM in reply to: simpsonbo |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by simpsonbo Not bloody likely. Maybe for a training camp with a large group to spread the costs out. Hi simpsonbo, thanks for the feedback. Not sure if you saw, but just wanted to let you know that the service is free for cyclists to use. |
| 2014-09-30 8:56 PM in reply to: TriDadinAsheville |
| 12 | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? Originally posted by TriDadinAsheville I was thinking the same thing. When I was IM training this summer, it would've been nice to have had all my nutrition needed with me, instead of having to stop at gas stations to buy more water 2-3x. I'd have probably drank more if I didn't have to do that. Again, with the caveat of it being as simple and free as is being implied. Hi TriDadinAsheville, thanks for the feedback. |
| 2014-10-01 7:15 AM in reply to: Swagon |
Veteran 495 Calgary | Subject: RE: Cycling Safety - Would You Use This? No I wouldn't use this service. In addition to cycling for sport I commute by bicycle and I'm interested in bicycle advocacy and the promotion of cycling as a healthy, convenient and environmentally friendly transportation option. I don't like the message this sends . if I believed that a vehicle escort were necessary it would be time for me to give up cycling. Don |
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