How Peloton Sweeping got its name

Peloton Sweeping Service was founded by industry professionals with some very passionate ideas about how a street sweeping company could and should operate.  Actually, how any company should operate.  We laugh when we tell people we created a startup staffed with almost 50 years of experience on day one.

With that much industry knowledge and a clean slate, it was fun designing the infrastructure, systems, and processes that would create a unique experience for not only our customers but vendors, employees, and the community.

As you might have guessed “Peloton” is a cycling term.  It is a French word meaning “platoon” that describes a large group or pack of riders.  However, there is a function and a spirit to a peloton.

Functionally riding together with other cyclists (drafting) will allow the rider to be about 30% more efficient than riding alone.  Most riders will take their turn at the front where the work is hardest; then when they tire, someone will move up and take their place.

Sometimes this 30% optimization will allow the peloton to maintain an increased speed well beyond what a single rider could sustain.

As in business, the pros take this to an unbelievable level.  Consider the Tour de France, probably the most famous bike race.  The 2018 tour started with 176 riders.  Inside that peloton, there were 13 teams of up to nine riders each. No one rider has or ever will win “The Tour” on their own.

Inside those teams, there are many role players, some on bikes, some in the follow cars, the sprinters, mountain climbers, coaches, mechanics, medics, nutritionists and my favorite the “domestiques.”  While there is one winner of the Tour, it is very much a team sport, just like a company.  Inside each well-run company, there are many roles to play and they all interact.  Sales needs Accounts Receivable which needs Operations, which needs Human Recourses and so on.  They are all interdependent, have different skill sets and depend on each other for success. Inside the peloton leaders (teams and individuals) naturally emerge to set the pace and strategy.

A cycling team runs very much like a company. How that company interacts with its vendors, customers, lenders, risk partners, employees, and the community is the Spirit of the Peloton.

Inside a speeding peloton of 100+ riders, if one cyclist falls dozens more will be hurt. This includes broken bones, cuts and road rash that can be race, season or career ending.  Even though the teams are competing, they are still cooperating.  In our business, even though we want the best price on brooms, fuel or uniforms, we also want our vendors to make a profit.  To take it deeper our insurance company and lenders are sharing the risk with us.  They have a vested interest in our success as we do in theirs.

In a long bike race (as in business) lone riders will break away.  They make a sudden jump in speed and pull away.  Sometimes it is a single rider, part of a team or several teams that separate and take the lead.  However, as in business, with the wind drag advantage ten teams or 100 riders enjoy, they will almost always catch them, and because of the extra effort they expended to race ahead, leave them dragging or in the dust.

The Peloton is a place for cooperation, respect, hard work, shared risk, and shared rewards.  Don’t mistake it is also about winning, creating a legacy and a reputation, both individually and as a team.

This is the spirit of the peloton and the foundation for Peloton Sweeping.

 

Extra:  The Domestique.

The duties of a team rider (or “domestique”) include:

- Riding in front or to the side of the team leader to protect him/her from the wind.

- Dropping back to bring food or water from the team car.

- If the leader gets a flat, a domestique can give him/her their tire or entire bike if the follow car is slow to catch up.

- If the leader of the team falls back for a mechanical problem, the domestique will expend huge amounts of energy to lead and break the wind so the leader can rejoin the peloton.

- Unselfish, team player, workhorse are all qualities of a domestique

A domestique also shares in the team win and glory. They may be “paying their dues” as a young rider but can also be put in the spotlight if the leader goes down via accident or illness.

In business, the domestique may work as an assistant manager, be in charge of training or be the vendor with a new idea.  All are vital and essential parts of a winning team.