By Sam Elliott
A fun atmosphere and unique mode of transportation for visiting a collection of the city’s new bars and breweries?
Chris and Lilia Hutchinson will drink to that.
The Fishers couple is celebrating the summer of 2016 with the launch of their new business endeavor, The Pint Cycle. With a custom-built 16-passenger bicycle driven solely by guests’ pedal power, The Pint Cycle offers a fun and unique way for area beer and wine enthusiasts to tour and experience local breweries, bars and restaurants.
“We went on one in downtown Indianapolis last year with a bunch of friends from the Fishers and Carmel area and we had a blast,” Chris said. “We just started thinking, ‘Gosh, this would be really cool to do in Fishers or closer to home.’ Most of the people we were with were all from the suburbs. I just kept thinking about it, started looking at numbers and research and due diligence. We just decided to figure out how we were going to make it work. We had a number of conversations with the City of Fishers and explained our concept and the city was fantastic. They loved the idea, they loved how it kind of fit in with their overall theme of an entrepreneurial city and we specifically built our bike with no motor on it at all … It is all pedal-powered, so it kind of fits in with the healthy lifestyle initiative — I mean, you’re having beers, but hey, you’re burning the calories.”
Fishers’ recent developments, including an influx of new bars and breweries and a commitment to a walkable and bicycle-friendly downtown environment, made the area a perfect hub for the Hutchinsons’ vision — and gives Hamilton County drinkers an alternative to traveling all the way to downtown Indianapolis for a similar experience.
“This whole area is growing and will continue to grow and they’re adding more bars and restaurants. When you live in Hamilton County, getting downtown, although it’s fun, is a haul,” Lilia said. “You’re driving downtown and drinking for two hours straight, then you’ve got a $50 Uber to come back to Hamilton County and you’ve got to get your car back the next day — it’s just a hassle, and nobody wants to be the sober driver … If I’m here living in Fishers, Geist or Carmel or wherever in Hamilton County and I do this, it’s a $5-10 ride home and it’s much easier to get my car the next day.”
The Pint Cycle’s two-hour tours begin at the corner of Technology Lane and Visionary Way near Launch Fishers, and take Lantern Road to the Municipal Drive loop and then stops at tour partners Brixx Pizza, Nickel Plate Bar and Grill and Four Day Ray once the city’s latest brewery opens in August.
“Lilia came here for lunch a lot and just loved eating here and as Chris was putting this all together they asked if we wanted to do a partnership, so we made this a stop on their tour,” Brixx Pizza General Manager Rob Yeley said. “They’re big fans of the beer product we put out, especially how we try to focus on Indiana and Indianapolis breweries. We’re excited to get things going with them this summer.”
Participants will be able to spend approximately 25 minutes at each tour stop, can call food orders in ahead of time and then take food and drinks to go for enjoying on The Pint Cycle. Guests can bring their own food, beer and wine, too, for enjoying during the ride from a complimentary The Pint Cycle cup — ready for plenty of cheers-ing as groups cruise around the city’s beer and wine offerings in style.
Cycle in style
In addition to its standard bar and brewery tour visiting Four Day Ray, Brixx Pizza and Nickel Plate Bar and Grill, The Pint Cycle is offering specialized tours this summer for a fun twist on experiencing Fishers events.
“We’ll do tours around the Tuesday and Friday night concerts downtown, we’ll do a Wine Wednesday event where our partner is Tasteful Times over on Olio Road and then we’re doing a farmer’s market and mimosa tour on Saturday mornings for folks who are looking to visit the city’s farmer’s market in a little different way.”
The Pint Cycle also will offer holiday-themed tours this winter, during which guests can try winter brews from tour partners while bundled up and cycling amongst the city’s lights listening to holiday tunes.
“So even if people do a tour in the summer, it’ll be fun for people to come out and do it in the winter for an entirely different experience,” Chris said.
Prices for 16-person tours range from $315 to $415, with individual tickets available for those without a full group for $30 each. For more, including booking, visit ThePintCycle.com.
