Divvy First Ride Reports

As many of us take our first Divvy rides over the next few days, jot down your experiences, impressions or any tips you may have for using Divvy.

I'll start:

I got to Daley Plaza a little past five this evening, for the Pre-Launch Divvy Ride.  My first impression was: man, that's a lot of bikes sitting there!  I checked in at the Divvy tent--and was pleased to find out I didn't need to activate my key fob yet: my paper invitation was all I needed.  Each bike was tagged with one of our names; there was literally a bike with my name on it on the plaza.

Many recognizable faces on the plaza.  I caught up briefly with Anne Alt & Julie Hochstadter, saw John Greenfield scoping things out, chatted with Elliot Greenberger (Divvy's PR guy) and Eddie Imlow (Divvy's General Manager) who was managing to be everywhere even while being hobbled by crutches.

It began to drizzle.  Then it began to rain.  Then it began to REALLY RAIN.  My free cup of gelato from the nearby gelato truck began to melt in the warm raindrops.  An amazing number of people squeezed under the three little tents.  And lots of folks plastered themselves up against the front of the Daley Center, against the windows, trying to stay dry.  I didn't hear much of Gabe Klein's speech, as the windy storm was howling at its height right about then.

Only a few Divvy cyclists had left the plaza when I found my Divvy bike and headed north, first on Dearborn, then up Clark to Fullerton, then up Orchard to Diversey and finally to Wilton.  Diversey & Wilton was the furthest north operational station tonight, which is why I picked it.

Locking up was a little tricky.  I tried several times, but couldn't make the green light come on or the lock activate. Shortly after, four more Divvy riders arrived to lock up.  One had used the Washington, DC bike share, and slammed--really slammed--the front wheel into the lock tower and the green light came right on.  I tested the lock by lifting the rear wheel and tugging the bike backwards, but the lock held.  We all tried the same thing and successfully locked all five bikes.  **TIP** Don't be gentle when locking up, it seems you need to really slam the front wheel forward into the slot. And don't walk away from the bike until you're sure it's locked--you're re$pon$ible for it until it's secured.

Oddly, even now, after three hours, the Diversey/Wilton station still reports zero bikes and fifteen open docks on the CycleFinder app, even though I know at least five bikes are locked there, possibly more.  Perhaps that station isn't communicating properly with the mainframe computer?

Other impressions from my ride: the bike is big, heavy, comfy & cushy.  It absorbed potholes and bumps beautifully, but you had to really work at moving off the line at a green light.  The three speeds seemed kind of close together, and didn't really provide much difference from first to third.  The front rack with integrated bungee cord held my bag and water bottle securely.

Be prepared to be the center of attention during the next week, while Divvy is still new.  I had other cyclists stop to ask me how I liked the Divvy.  Pedestrians and motorists gawked and stared at the bike.  I got one "Whohoo!  You got the first ride!  I chickened out in the rain..." from a pedestrian I passed.

**Tip** Spend a little time experimenting with the saddle height.  The post is helpfully marked off in inches, so you can replicate the height quickly each time.  I stopped and changed it three times during my ride: I've decided 4-and-a-half-inches height seems right for me.

I have no experience checking out a bike yet.  One of the guys who was locking alongside me had an activated key fob, but it didn't release the bike.  That may have to wait until the system is officially open tomorrow.

Have fun!  I look forward to hearing about your first Divvy rides.


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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by prof.gfr on July 11, 2013 at 10:41am

I tried that as well. I leave it in and wait for it to switch from yellow to green, which only works half the time. Maybe I have a defective key. Bummer. 

BruceBikes said:

At first I was putting my key in and pulling it right back out, like you'd swipe a debit card in and out at an ATM.  I was getting a red light maybe more than 50% of the time.

Lately though, I've been putting my key in and leaving it there until I get a green light.  It sometimes sits on yellow for a while, but it's eventually gone to green every time so far.

Give this last method a shot if you're not already, and let us know how it works.

prof.gfr said:

Nope, but thanks for clarification. it happened again yesterday (July 10).  All 6 bikes at State and Harrison looked available (i.e., no static red light), but none of them would accept my key (yellow for a few seconds then red). I called DIVVY and they checked my key # and said it was fine (no missing bikes, no problems) and told me to try another station. I did and it worked fine at State and Van Buren. Has anyone else had this problem? it could be a real headache if I were in a rush and relying upon DIVVY. 

Anne Alt said:

If the repair button was hit, the red light would be on and stay on.  Is that what happened?

prof.gfr said:

Check-in/out: my keyfob worked great the first and last ride, but the second ride it took me several attempts in different corals to get a green light. Perhaps the other two locked bikes were unavailable bc the repair button had been hit and they were out of commission?

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on July 11, 2013 at 12:54pm

I took a Divvy trip at lunchtime today. The first bike seemed like the brakes were dragging, so I pushed the wrench button when I docked it.  The red light lit up and stayed lit, indicating that the bike was locked in place until serviced.  

When I checked out another bike for the return trip, I inserted the key fob for a few seconds, watched the yellow light up, then green - same as I've been doing.  That's worked reliably for me. 

Permalink Reply by Jeff Blumenthal on July 12, 2013 at 12:28am

I had a chance to ride one for a recent photo/promotional shoot.  It took a bit of getting used to as my present ride has been my only ride for 15 years (and more).  I would never have a Divvy as my ride, but the design is appropriate for its intended use by business people needing to go a few blocks or so.  I won't go into the details.  It's what I am observing, however, that's interesting.  I was not impressed by the pricing -- pay more after 30 minutes, get soaked after 60 minutes.  This is not a bike rental proposition by any means, and I surmise that is the intention, yet I see more tourists (?) riding along the lakefront at a leisurely pace and a mental meter in my head going $8/hour.  By the way, although I live in the loop, there's no set of stations near me to make this a convenience.  I'll stick to the old Fuji Suncrest my mother bought me way back when with the smooth, hard kelvar tires and tubes.

One last comment, the number of Divvy Trucks shuffling bikes around is impressive (and expensive).  I'm not convinced this is going to work.

Permalink Reply by Christine (5.0) on July 12, 2013 at 2:45am

I'm perfectly alright with tourists paying more, if it helps keep my yearly fees down.


Jeff B said:

I was not impressed by the pricing -- pay more after 30 minutes, get soaked after 60 minutes.  This is not a bike rental proposition by any means, and I surmise that is the intention, yet I see more tourists (?) riding along the lakefront at a leisurely pace and a mental meter in my head going $8/hour.

Permalink Reply by yaj 7.4 on July 12, 2013 at 3:06am

I Divvyed a bike during lunch yesterday and rode down to the Daley Center farmer's market.  The seat was cushy, the ride was smooth but the speed was non-existant.  So I docked while shopping then took the same bike back out for the return trip.  I had a slight problem with the key at first, like some other users, I was trying to swipe like an ATM.  Then I left the key in too long as a fiddled with securing my bag to the rack, and watched the lite go from yellow to green to off before I got the bike out.   

Permalink Reply by Adam Herstein on July 12, 2013 at 3:13am

They're not meant to be fast.

yaj 7.4 said:

the speed was non-existant.  

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on July 12, 2013 at 3:23am

Just put the key in for a couple of seconds, wait a couple of seconds, and you'll get a green light.

yaj 7.4 said:

I Divvyed a bike during lunch yesterday and rode down to the Daley Center farmer's market.  ...I had a slight problem with the key at first, like some other users, I was trying to swipe like an ATM.  Then I left the key in too long as a fiddled with securing my bag to the rack, and watched the lite go from yellow to green to off before I got the bike out.   

Permalink Reply by millenial removing Bernie tattoo on July 12, 2013 at 3:28am

I found that I could not adjust the Divvy bike to get into a proper aerodynmically-efficient position, and the cornering was terrible.   What is the point, I may as well have just walked.

Permalink Reply by daWillinChi on July 12, 2013 at 3:38am

I wonder that myself. How long will that last?

Jeff B said:

One last comment, the number of Divvy Trucks shuffling bikes around is impressive (and expensive).  I'm not convinced this is going to work.

Permalink Reply by Adam Herstein on July 12, 2013 at 3:43am

Ask Washington DC. They've been at it for a few years now.

J.A.W. said:

I wonder that myself. How long will that last?

Jeff B said:

One last comment, the number of Divvy Trucks shuffling bikes around is impressive (and expensive).  I'm not convinced this is going to work.

Permalink Reply by BruceBikes on July 12, 2013 at 3:56am

Very similar systems have been operating in DC & London for 3 years, in Montreal for 4, in Paris for 5, and in Lyon for 8 years, so hopefully we'll have at least that much time before the whole system tanks.  We'll also be in very good company, internationally speaking, when the whole bike share concept goes down the tubes.

J.A.W. said:

I wonder that myself. How long will that last?

Jeff B said:

One last comment, the number of Divvy Trucks shuffling bikes around is impressive (and expensive).  I'm not convinced this is going to work.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on July 12, 2013 at 4:53am

This is a joke, right?

envane (69 furlongs) said:

I found that I could not adjust the Divvy bike to get into a proper aerodynmically-efficient position, and the cornering was terrible.   What is the point, I may as well have just walked.

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