Fastest way to get around Vegas at CES? Bicycle

While the big suits of the electronics industry waited in traffic in their limos, taxis and rented cars last week, analyst Roger Kay found the easiest way to get around Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show was by bike.

The first thing Kay did when he landed in Las Vegas was rent a Cannondale mountain bike, which he used to speed from his hotel to meetings or to the convention floor.

CES is spread out between two convention sites (including the Sands Expo Center, home of Interbike) and dozens of hotels where industry gurus take meetings. Instead of spending up to an hour waiting for buses, taxies or just plain walking, Kay made the rounds on his bicycle.

Best choice

Kay is the president of Endpoint Technologies Associates in Wayland, Mass. Five years ago he discovered he could rent the bicycle and get around town much quicker than other folks.

Writing about his unconventional convention transport, the LA Times says:

“The bike shortens most of his commutes to less than 15 minutes, which lets him pack into one day more than a dozen 50-minute meetings — many of them miles apart. … This year, Kay kept 39 appointments between Monday and Wednesday.”

You can see from the picture in the LA Times, above, that all Kay has to do is lose the helmet, shades and gloves and he looks like any other casually dressed participant at CES.

Use a bike?

It sounds like Kay chose this set of wheels not only because it makes for good exercise and doesn't burn gasoline, but because  it's the most efficient way to get around town and use his time most effectively. That's a good question for anyone on a business trip — Would it be easier to get around on a bike?

He told the Times that he used to use rent a car, but it got expensive and he could never find a place to park. Now he locks his bicycle at the employees' entrance or tips a hotel doorman to keep an eye on it.

It's no surprise that Kay hit up on the bike solution. The Times says he quit his job at Motorola in his mid-20s, sold his house and bicycled around Europe.

If you're thinking you might to try this mode of  transport next year, the LA Times has a video posted on the story that shows Kay winding through traffic.