MEET OUR RIDERS, PAST AND PRESENT

Friedel Schroder

Director of Bugbugs
Friedel has finally found his place in life. He’s been a Bugbugs rider, trainer, manager, mechanic, office boy and all-round dogsbody, and has loved it so much that he now owns the company. Friedel is dedicated to providing fun, friendly, emission-free transport for London, and is equally passionate about the employment opportunities that Bugbugs offers its riders. There’s nothing in the world he’d rather be doing.

Michael Linke

Michael was a Bugbugs rider, manager and mechanic on and off for five years. He chose the job because he loved cycling, but soon found that the best thing about it was the fascinating people he met each day, from his workmates to his passengers. Now, with his wife Clarisse, he runs Bicycling Empowerment Network Namibia (BENN), an organisation that aims to help relieve poverty by empowering Namibians to run their own bicycle businesses. Michael believes there’s a real connection between Bugbugs and BENN, in that they both aim to enable people to make a living in a very open and inclusive way. BENN has created ninety full-time jobs in Namibia, half for women, and imported over 17,000 bicycles.

Eleanor Meecham

Eleanor started riding a Bugbugs rickshaw after realising that she wasn’t cut out for the usual Kiwi-in-London pastime of bartending. Finding it was much more fun to work outside the bars, ferrying tipsy patrons between venues, she swiftly became addicted to the hustle and bustle of weekend evenings in Soho. Rickshaw riding was the perfect way to stay in shape for her cycle-touring jaunts to far-flung locations, and an easy job to step back into on her return. Eleanor is the author of Llamas and Empanadas, a book about cycling in South America, and is the editor of Spoke, a New Zealand mountain biking magazine.

Dominik

Dominik is a free spirit. He chose rickshaw riding as an occupation because it allows him to be his own boss and work the hours he chooses. The rickshaw life has made him more disciplined, self confident and extremely streetwise. He has also discovered that he is a talented salesman. He truly loves being a part of London’s nightlife, and even writes a blog about the things he sees. Dominik has been working for Bugbugs for several years, both as a rider and a rider manager, and has no plans to change career anytime soon.

Bilintx Knörr Rekondo

Bilintx began working for Bugbugs as a fun and easy way to improve his English. He enjoyed his passengers, his workmates and the unusual lifestyle so much that within a year he had bought his own rickshaw, which he rode to fund his studies at Edinburgh University. These days, he manages his own rickshaw, cargo bike and advertising business, Adbikers, in the Basque Country (his homeland) and Spain. Bilintx is an avid bicycle recycler and pedal-power advocate, who dreams of one day cycling around the world. The thing he enjoys most about his current job is running a home-delivery grocery service.