on March 22, 2016 / by Downtown Dallas Inc. / in Blog Posts, Clean and Safe
Full post here. With Local Hub being located in Deep Ellum, Downtown is our gateway to Oak Cliff, Design District, Uptown and The Cedars. Downtown Dallas, Inc. had made great strides in building a vibrant community of residents and businesses in the downtown corridor. That includes hiring a team of safety patrol officers on bikes who make sure people are safe, give directions to the best places to eat and drink in downtown, escort office workers to their cars who may be working late, and occasionally race another cyclist to the next red light. These are the good guys who make sure Downtown is a nice place to live and visit. Our next rider profile is safety patrol officer Corbin Phillips. DSP Phillips was kind enough to let us hang out with him during one of his shifts and answer a few questions. Check out his profile and give him a thumbs up next time you roll through downtown. Q. How long have you been riding bikes? A. Since I started working with Downtown Safety Patrol in March of 2014. Before that it had been over 10 years since I had been on a bike. It took a few weeks to get over being SORE from the extensive training course, provided to us by Dallas Police Department, but after that its very rare that I am not on bike. I even sold my car and bought a fixed gear as my main transportation for outside of work. Q. How many miles a day do you ride while on duty? A. On average, I will clock 20 miles in a ten hour shift. If the day is slow, I will hit upwards of 30 miles. It all depends on what’s going in Downtown. Q. There are a lot of people who would love to have a job where they ride bikes every day. Why did you become a safety patrol officer? A. I tried the 9-5 behind the desk job for a while, but couldn’t stand being stuck inside on a sunny day. I have been in Downtown Dallas for 6 years and started calling Downtown home, so I wanted to find a job where I was active and also making a difference in the community. Safety Patrol gave me just that. I ride all day, meet people from all of the world, gain relationships with the core working groups in the CBD, and help make Downtown a safer place. Couldn’t ask for more! Q. Downtown is one of our favorite places to ride our bikes because there are a lot of stop lights and traffic is slower. What is your favorite part of Dallas to ride your bike? A. Downtown is a great place to ride, weather you’re riding on Main Street or in front of City Hall weaving in and out of their pillars. My favorite spots are the areas that challenge me, whether it be climbing the dirt walking trail by the Running Bulls(Pioneer Plaza – 1428 Young), riding up the abandon garage by the Convention Center(323 Hotel St) or the giant hill leading to Klyde Warren Park (near 1616 Woodall Rodgers Fwy). If it makes my legs burn than I enjoy it. But outside of work, I enjoy riding through Deep Ellum, Katy Trail, or over to Trinity Groves. But, nothing beats just getting on the fixie and finding your own routes. Q. Since your job is outdoors and year round, how do you prepare for riding in the heat and the cold? A. Being born and raised Texan, the heat doesn’t bother me too much. I primarily wear dry fit shirts and drink as much water as I can during my shift. For the cold- being born and raised Texan- I can’t STAND the cold. So for those days were its 40 degrees(that doesn’t included the wind chill from being on the bike) I layer as much as possible. I use Under Armor’s cold gear leggings and top, a wool face mask, glove liners under my work gloves and two or more pairs of wool socks (at the same time). On top off all that I have my duty jacket and liner with my thick pair of BDU uniform pants. Like I said- I hate the cold. Q. What is your favorite restaurant or hidden gem in Downtown Dallas? A.La Popular Tamale House in the Farmers Market(1010 Pearl St.), you will almost always find me there on Saturday morning with two chorizo and egg tacos(it’s an addiction!!). My favorite hidden gem is Vertigo 12(211 N Ervay) Nolan and his team there are some of the most awesome Dallasites I have ever met. Go there get a beer, a haircut, and attempt to beat a high score on their old school Galaga Arcade machine. For more information on Downtown Dallas, Inc. and all there is to see and do in Downtown Dallas, visit www.downtowndallas.com.
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