Halloween, Part I

Date: 30 October 2010
Day of Chronicles: 8
Hours: 10:00pm-2:00am
Rides Given: 6

Halloween 2009 was a bonanza for pedicab drivers: Since Halloween fell on a Saturday, both the parade and the serious drinking and partying occurred on the same night - which created a significant demand for late-night transportation. This year, the demand seems to be split between Saturday (serious drinking and partying) and Sunday (parade). Which means that last night no one flagged me down until about 1:30am (when, it seemed, taxi-seeking party goers were reaching critical, now-we'll-take-any-available-conveyance, mass). But by that time I was utterly exhausted - not in my leg muscles, but in my eyes, which were loathe to stay open. So I quit at 2:00am. I suspect if my circadian rhythms had been better calibrated I could have made a good chunk between 2 and 4 in the morning.

It was nice to ride around, late, in Midtown (where I found myself after driving two European ladies from West 11th & 7th, in the Village, to the Regency Hotel, at 61st & Park), amidst not a lot of traffic. It glittered with peace - I wish I could experience it in that state more often. (Alas, my ideal bedtime is about 10pm.)

Costumes? I didn't pay all that much attention. My best-costumed passenger was a fellow dressed up as a pinata, with sticky notes in all the colors of the pastel rainbow hot-glued to some invisible (because totally covered) underlayer.

Pricing: Geez, I am having a hard time with this! I can't seem to get out of the bargain basement. This afternoon I was comparing a few of the fares I quoted last night to what I should have charged, according to my posted (zone-based) rate card. The ride from the West Village to the Regency should have been about $60; I charged $35 (and the ladies, being European, did not tip, though they did have quite a good time and spent their first five or ten minutes in the pedicab giggling non-stop). Generally, I seem to be charging between half and a third of what the rate card says. The two rides on which the rate card and I came close to agreeing were a very short one (6th & West 4th to 14th between 6th & 7th) and one on which I teamed with Gregg (he set the price). Damn! I need to start charging more. Maybe I'll work on that tonight.