Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 5/18/2021
SOUTH HADLEY – A South Hadley resident is bringing a new form of water recreation to the Pioneer Valley.
Nicholas Vautrin began his business, Pedal N Party, after experiencing hydro bikes while visiting another state. “So I tried them out before in a different state and had a blast on them. I hit very big waves on them and they were very stable, so I said I had to bring them back to Western Mass.,” he said.
From there, he said he purchased five hydro bikes of his own and formed a relationship with Brunelle’s Marina in South Hadley. This, Vautrin said, is where the bikes will be kept and rented out of. “I’m going to rent a dock from them, going to run it out of the docks,” he said.
However, he said that he was not able to operate his hydro bike business until late May when the docks opened for the season. Vautrin said he was hoping to be able to continue to rent out the bikes to those interested until at least the beginning of October, but “it’s all weather dependent.”
The hydro bikes, Vautrin explained, are “literally a pedal bike” but operate on the water. “When you pedal it spins a propeller. It’s low impact, very fun, you don’t have to pedal hard to get good speed,” he said.
Vautrin added that the bikes go “four to five miles per hour, no matter how hard you pedal,” have adjustable seats and are “COVID–19 friendly.”
“You’re getting out there, enjoying nature and having fun,” he said, adding that while using the bikes there had already been two separate eagle sightings.
Additionally, he said that he had formed a partnership with The Boat House restaurant also in South Hadley. He said those who rent the bikes can get $5 off any purchase of $25 or more. “It’s the perfect date. You can rent the bikes for half an hour, go get drinks or a nice meal,” he said.
Vautrin said to rent the bikes will cost $15 for half an hour or $30 for an hour. He said this was because the bikes are “expensive to run” due to the insurance costs needed. Additionally, he said while it’s not listed on his website he also has a double bike, but explained “that has weight restrictions.” The double bike, he said, was the same cost to rent as two bikes. He added that the company provides life jackets to use while on the bikes.
While currently he is limiting time slots to just an hour, Vautrin said those interested in renting the bikes for more than an hour should contact him directly via the Pedal N Party website at https://www.pedalnparty.com.
While he was open to the idea of adding more bikes in the future, he said they were “going to see how this year takes off.” However, he added that they were “looking to do a lot of water sports out of there.” He said, “We’re going to be adding to our fleet, we might look at kayaks and such.”
Vautrin said that he also owns a 15-person hydro bike that’s based out of Springfield, but was “waiting for COVID to be gone so we can get that going again.”
Ultimately, he said the hydro bikes were a great way to enjoy the Connecticut River and nature. “Come enjoy some of the beautiful Connecticut River, the people who don’t know about it are missing out,” he said. “It’s safe, we provide life jackets, it’s stable and doesn’t require too much work.”