I read on the Facebook yesterday that Seattle’s bike share program – Pronto – was shutting down in a few months. 

I’m not surprised…between Williams-Sonoma and Martha Stewart, they’re probably being sued out of existence for that (awful) color choice.  Less frivolous people cited the hills and Seattle weather as the reasons they were not surprised.

Whatever.

What rankled me was some of the reasons I love not living in Seattle jumping in and claiming Portland’s very own bike sharing – Biketown – couldn’t be far behind.

Ok, Buddy, let’s just pause there a sec, shall we?

As a S.N.O.B. I have long taken exception to the notion that Portland is somehow less than Seattle.  I think time has begun to make that argument for me, and there are likely countless posts in my humble blog supporting equal standing between the two cities, if not even proving Portland a much better city…unless income potential is your sole metric for declaring one superior to the other.

I mean, Max vs Link in the light rail department is basically a game over situation.  C’mon.

Oh, S.N.O.B…

Society of

Native

Oregonian

Born

Also known as:  ME!

But this isn’t a Seattle bashing post.  It’s more a matter of chuckling at the fact that someone thinks that just because Seattle’s bike share system broke that Portland’s will fail as well.  There are many reasons to support that the two cities are similar but not identical.

Nike, for one.  

That name is pronounced bik-E-town, not bik-town.  It’s not accidental, nor is the theme color.  Nike is a major funding partner in the biz.  Outside of Lance Armstrong, they don’t usually back iffy propositions.