Company Profile: Capitol Pedaler

by David Bartscher

Capitol Pedaler season is quickly approaching with the onset of warmer temperatures. This year, Co-Owner Linda Besser hopes to see an increase in business due to a new law passed in Wisconsin.

“The State of Wisconsin passed a bill in December that states a quadricycle’s passengers can bring a total of three cans of beer per participant on board a quadricycle for their tour,” Besser said. “We do expect the new law to increase our business this year.”

Besser and Sandy Theune came up with the idea of Capitol Pedaler in March 2011. The two were inspired to bring the concept to Madison after seeing a similar bike in another city they were visiting.

The “Big Red Bike,” as it’s often called, was hand-crafted and painted red in honor of the Badgers by a bike company in Amsterdam. To this day, Capitol Pedaler has entertained all sorts of events including birthdays, weddings and pub-crawls.

Capitol Pedaler runs seasonally from March through November as weather permits. Outside of Capitol Pedaler, Besser works at Madison College, according to her LinkedIn profile.

The two-hour pedal tours are for groups of 8-14 people and may start at 5:30 or 8 p.m. during the week and 12:30, 3, 5:30 or 8 p.m. on weekends. The cost is $300 Sunday-Thursday and $350 Friday-Saturday.

Pick-up and drop-off occur at Buckingham’s on Regent Street.

“We can stop most anywhere on the route, but most wish to stop at taverns along the way,” Besser said.