After spending many of my underage years watching groups of people riding

around on a giant bar on wheels in downtown Indy, taking my first ride on

the Handlebar was a long-anticipated event. I desperately wanted to do it for
my 21st birthday, and once I got that chance, it did not disappoint. After
researching which of these bike bars I wanted to use, I went with the
Handlebar over the Pickle Pedaler or other services, because it held up to 16
people and my friends under 21 could come along for the ride (drinking soda,
of course).

The Handlebar is set up as a rectangle bar and each seat is equipped with a
bike seat, pedals and a driver at the front to steer. Guests can opt for a pedal
assist so they don’t have to pedal as hard or even at all, so my group took that
option. Guests are allowed to bring pre-packaged drinks in aluminum
containers such as beer, but no premade mixed drinks or hard alcohol is
allowed. At first, I was slightly annoyed by this, but after spending two hours
on the pedaler, I was thankful that restraint was in place.

When we first arrived, everyone hopped onto their bike seat and I was able to
take the AUX cord with no protest from the driver and play whatever music I
chose. During rides, the driver will stop at two bars of choice. For our party, he
suggested St. Joe’s Brewery and Bakersfield, and being newly legal and not
knowing much about the bar scene, I went with it, and I ultimately enjoyed
having the breaks to relax and have a drink. At the end of the ride, the driver
was even nice enough to drop us off at Brothers to end our afternoon.

After paying for the ride itself, drinks for the ride, at the bar and Ubers there
and back, it ended up being a very expensive day. It would be much less
expensive, though, if everyone paid for their own seat on the ride and shared
the cost.

Overall, I had an amazing time on the Handlebar and I cannot wait to go back
for another ride.