Darryl Baker Jr. built the bike from discarded materials and uses it to collect scrap metal from around Hamilton. He said it was stolen once, but found only a block away at the bottom of a hill.
“They were so glad they were still alive that they just left it there,” he said.
Roommate Steve Cupp dubbed the bike the “ReCycle.” He said Baker is one of the most honest and hard-working people he has met, and has a beautiful mind, constantly tinkering with the bike.
“If there’s a way to fix it, to make it work, he’ll find it,” he said. “His mind is very, very creative.”
Baker said the contraption has been an evolution over about four years. He’ll add a bigger trailer, but then the wheels will give out. So he’ll add heftier wheels, but then it needs shocks to keep from wobbling too much.
Baker said his father, an engineer for General Motors, taught him to think like an engineer.
But living downtown and not having a car, Baker, 37, said he has had a hard time finding work. He has been an unexpected source of inspiration for some, including Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones.
Jones recently snapped a photo of Baker’s bike and posted it to his Twitter page with the caption: “And they say Americans will not work. Sure this guy halls 50 pounds of scrap everyday on this bike.”
Jones said Monday, Aug. 2, that he often sees Baker pedaling around town. It infuriates him when someone behind him in their air-conditioned car honks their horn at him as he struggles to pedal hundreds of pounds uphill.
“They should be getting out and helping him push that bike up a hill,” Jones said. “There’s somebody who doesn’t have a lot but he still works...and at the same time he does a service.”
Cupp said Baker’s room is frequently littered with electronics and small machines. He is currently combining parts from a leaf blower, lawn mower and electric wheelchair to build a mobile generator he can use for power tools to take large items apart to fit on the bike.
These are work-arounds; creations of necessity to circumvent what Baker calls “unnecessary bureaucracy.” Baker said he has been levied hefty fines by the city because of keeping piles of scrap metal in his yard. He can’t get a truck to pick up scrap metal because he can’t afford the insurance.
Baker said he has looked into getting the Rube Goldberg-esque bike patented.
“They say, ‘I like the idea. It’s real nice, but we’ll need $3,000 to get a patent search,’” he said. “It’s just not right.”
So for now, Baker is just saving up money to buy winter tires.
Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2175 or jsweigart@coxohio.com.
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