Weaving through downtown Honolulu’s rush-hour traffic carrying loads of files or even something as fragile as an embryo is what Kendall Sexton has become accustomed to in his small bike messenger business, which recently drew attention after the release of the film "Premium Rush."
The local professional mountain biker, whose passion for the sport drove him to take over Crosstown Couriers in 2008, is nonchalant in his tasks despite often having to make deliveries from Kahala to Honolulu Airport in record speed.
"The only thing that’s faster is a helicopter, and you don’t have one," the company, originally established in 1997, states on its website.
Sexton’s three-member band of bikers has been asked to deliver as much as 300 pounds, or nine full Xerox boxes, via cargo bike with a crate attached to the back, putting themselves in danger on the bustling roads while remaining professional and getting a delivery from point A to point B sometimes in minutes.
He recently biked five miles from Bishop Street to the airport in just 13 minutes to deliver an architectural project proposal to the state Department of Transportation before a bid deadline.
"They handed it to me at 4:17 p.m., and I made it to the airport by 4:30 p.m. (the deadline)," said the 30-year-old owner of Crosstown Couriers, who works as a dispatcher and rider. "When they gave it to me, they were almost sending me on a suicide mission. It was down to the minute."
Rates are as low as $5.50 for a delivery from Ward Avenue to Aala Park within an hour and $26.95 for a rush delivery in the same time period from Kaimuki to the airport.
"I’ve used Crosstown for the past two years for our projects, and I was never let down once," said Ashlynn "Ka‘ula" Kalawa, project coordinator at Swinerton Builders. "They play a critical part in time-sensitive projects."
Crosstown’s bikers exude enthusiasm for the job, despite the risks they take on a daily basis dodging cars, buses and, often, angry drivers.
Rice Chinen, 30, has worked at Crosstown Couriers for nearly a decade, despite being hit by vehicles seven times, including once by a bus that left her with a broken collarbone in 2007.
"I’ve been hit a lot by a lot of different vehicles," she said. "It is dangerous, but I think that’s something that we as a society need to work on. I don’t want to be deterred from biking, because you can’t live in fear. I just love the freedom of it. I go to work happy every morning that I’m able to get paid to ride my bike."
She discovered her passion for the job while living in New York City and delivering food on a bicycle for two years beginning in 2000. It was the cheapest mode of transportation.
"We are crazy," Chinen added. "This job just attracts people who aren’t necessarily interested in the traditional version of success and just love to ride."
Crosstown’s messengers get 60 percent of the total delivery price and make about $100 on a typical day, Sexton said. They most often deliver graphics, architectural drawings and building samples, including tiles, glass and wood.
Deliveries average 25 a day, with two riders biking around 80 miles between the two of them. Regular delivery times range from one to three hours.
"The hardest thing for us is to get people to realize we can pretty much do anything for them," said Sexton, who is training for a 24-hour mountain bike race this week. "We’re out there, we know what we’re doing. We’re not just a bunch of hacks on bikes."
That includes delivering beer for a birthday and an embryo flown in to Honolulu en route to a medical facility.
"We’ve picked up an empty growler and then gone to Sam Choy’s, filled it up with beer and delivered it to someone else," he said. "Most of the stuff, we don’t even know what we’re carrying."
Kevin Becker is a manager at Legal Express, which is Crosstown’s main competitor. Legal Express has delivered legal documents in downtown Honolulu for the past 10 years.
Becker said he had just half an hour to get to seven buildings at the end of the day on Friday.
"It is exciting but it is also work," with bikers under constant deadline pressure, said Becker, a former Honolulu Star-Bulletin pressman. "It’s enjoyable. It’s much better than being in a hot room with the press running. I’m pretty much my own boss. When you have a huge amount of deliveries to do every day, (you’re always) wondering whether or not you’re going to get everything done. It always gets done."
