I'm in Paris, full of marvelous things to see and do. Treasures and history are on every corner. I'm with a group of people and a man turns to me and says, with his eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas, "This is the coolest thing I have ever done!" What was he talking about? Walking down the Champ-Elysées? Looking at Paris spread out at his feet from the highest level of the Eiffel Tower? Maybe a meal at Tour d'Argent? He probably had done all of those, but none of the above was what he was talking about. So what was it?
It was a ride on a Segway, a new-fangled mode of transportation that had people stopping and staring, pointing and smiling. It is a human transporter allowing people to go up to speeds of 12 miles an hour in any pedestrian environment. I suspect it was first invented to help people with limited mobility, but it is so much fun that everyone wants to hop on and try it.
The only place in Paris that you can rent a Segway is at Fat Bike Tours, an American owned and run operation, owned by David Mebane. He has the exclusive contract with Segway as the only tour operator to have these machines.
I joined a group one day for a trial run. A quick orientation is needed before you set off. There are three keys for starting a Segway, each producing a different speed. The red key, being the fastest, is no longer available to tourists after two couples left a guide in the dust speeding for the fun of it, not as tourists getting a look at Paris. Our great guide, Brittany, had to hold on to our Segway when we first stepped on because at first you wobble back and forth, then suddenly you are balancing-- some sort of gyroscope system underneath the machine keeps you balanced. Then you just lean forward and pull back on the handles to stop or to reverse if already stopped. The turning device is on the left handle. This is the part I enjoyed most, as you turn very quickly and easily and maneuver like something out of Star Wars. The Segway was easy to ride and great fun.
Then we were off on our tour, seeing the Eiffel Tower, Invalides, the Louvre, Ecole Militaire, Alexander III bridge, Place de la Concorde and more. We were covering ground 2 to 3 times faster than the pedestrians we whizzed by on the sidewalks. We could go up or down small curbs easily and quickly come to a stop. I imagine that those who have a little trouble with mobility would love the Segway. All that is necessary physically is being able to step up and down. Plus, you must weigh at least 70 pounds.
Part of the fun of the tour on the Segway is the attention we attracted. As we drove by, people stared either with a smile, because they could see how much fun it was, or with a frown, wondering what in the heck this new-fangled contraption was (however you say that in French). Bikes aren't allowed in parks, and we saw security men and policemen trying to decide if we should be made to dismount and walk our Segways. We found that as long as we didn't go right up to the Pyramid at the Louvre they would let us continue to ride.
When we stopped there to take a look at the Pyramid from a distance, people surrounded us and asked, "Where can you rent these?," "How do these work?," "What are these?," "Can you buy them here in Paris?," and on and on. I have a feeling that Madonna gets this kind of attention when she goes out for a walk. For just a few hours on one day, it was a rather heady feeling. We saw a bike tour go by us and I saw the riders look at us with envy.
David, the owner, told me that after a Prince of Saudi Arabia tried the latest Segway, he immediately went and ordered 30 of them for his use back home, as well as for his family and employees. Plaza Athenée has struck a deal with David to put carrying bags with their name on them for groups coming from this prestigious hotel to do the Segway Tour.
I asked David why this tour has become so wildly popular and he said he thought it was because it was so new--the latest rage. Maybe in a year or so the fad will pass, but it sure is a draw at the present time.
Is it potentially dangerous? I guess it could be. The Segway stops so quickly and easily that I don't think it would be easy to run into a pedestrian. It is possible to fall off, and I'm sure a few people will run into a wall or get a wheel caught in some gravel. No one in my group had any problems once we became familiar with our Segways. All I know is that it was a really fun thing to do and, possibly, "the coolest thing I have ever done."
These tours are very quickly booked. Call or email ahead of time to book.
Fat Bike Tours-Paris
Dates : Every day March 1st-October 15th
Times: Day tour at 10:30am, night tour at 6:30pm
Prices: Day tour 70 Euro, night tour 70 Euro, both tours 125 Euros
Meeting Point: Both tours meet in the area under the Eiffel Tower
Phone : 01 56 58 10 54
Web site :http://www.fattirebiketoursparis.com/
email: info@FatTireBikeToursParis.com
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