Remember that one time back in the mid-90s when Portland had Yellow bikes that anyone could ride? I thought I saw one recently.
And, here’s an update and more history on the program.
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PDX’s mid-90s yellow bikeshare program
Remember that one time back in the mid-90s when Portland had Yellow bikes that anyone could ride?
Lost Oregon 
4 replies on “PDX’s mid-90s yellow bikeshare program”
So charming, in its relentlessly naïve way. I think those bikes lasted about two weeks before I never saw another one. Or did they actually try it twice? Memory fails.
I wish you’d shot a photo!
It really spread, even back then. Idaho Falls, 1997: http://www.postregister.com/story.php?accnum=00309-04171997&today=1997-04-17
I volunteered during the second iteration of YB. I had a wonderful time, and met great people and had fun times. It was not sustainable. It had all sorts of weird issues. It was a LOT of fun. At the end of the program, the Community Cycling Center, our fiscal sponsor, yanked all support and resources. I was annoyed at the time, but realize YB was an annoying distraction from the real work. Kind of like a buffoon uncle at a family reunion..
YB should not be the model for anything. Except fun.
John,
Although we now live in the NE my grown sons and I return to Oregon for the occasional climb in the Cascades. I grew up in Milwaukie in the 50’s & 60’s, a time when Portland and Milwaukie could easily have been the models used for *American Graffiti, *with all of those iconic (and now somewhat cliché) aspects and characters, like: 55-58 Chevies; cruising the loop of 6th & Broadway; drive-in restaurants; “greasers”, “nerds”, “jocks” (there were, unfortunately, 1-dimensional labels for everything and everyone).
It seemed like an innocent time; but, of course, we grew up fast, like every generation, with the seemingly endless and repeated themes: war (Vietnam in this case); political assassinations; and racism. Still, as an old man’s indulgence, I have fond recollections of playing football for MHS in ’61–when it seemed like the whole town showed up for a brief respite from the serious stuff.
Enjoy the day-
Ken Ledoux Kicking Horse Farm
On Mon, Jun 23, 2014 at 11:56 AM, LOST OREGON wrote:
> John Chilson posted: “Remember that one time back in the mid-90s when > Portland had Yellow bikes that anyone could ride? I thought I saw one > recently. “