The sno-cone bike

Everyone listens out for the sound of it's horn. During the heat of summer it is the most welcome sound of the day

— Old City market vendor

During the sweltering summers in the city many entrepeneurs take advantage of the heat by selling a variety of cool refreshments. The sno-cone bike is probably the most famous, known for it's icy cold beverages and sweet fruity flavours. It is a simple affair consisting of a clockwork bicycle with an insulated wooden box on the front. The box is filled with shaved ice, and there are several bottles of flavoured syrups in a long thin basket attached to the front. Sno-cones are simply a cup of shaved ice with fruit syrup poured onto it. These syrups come in quite an array of flavours and customers can mix and match them as they please. Some sno cone sellers also have a thick and sweet condensed milk that they drizzle on the top if the customer desires.

A growing business

There are several of these bikes now which travel around the streets of the Old City bringing mobile refreshment to shoppers and workers alike. Each is fitted with a horn which has a distinctive sound, notifying people when a bike is nearby. Some of the bike owners have set routes and stopping points, while others simply ride around seeking groups of hot looking people. The introduction of the bikes has greatly reduced the number of newcomers passing out in the streets and the horns have become a most welcome sound.

Sno-cones are simply a cup of shaved ice with fruit syrup poured onto it. These syrups come in quite an array of flavours and customers can mix and match them as they please.

Length

5ft

Height

3ft

Speed

4mph

Complement / Crew

One

Cargo & Passenger Capacity

Large box of shaved ice and various syrups

A Smart Idea

The first sno-cone bike appeared 72 years ago and was created by an enterprising young woman named Rosalinde Harticor. After observing several tourists pass out due to dehydration, she realised that many of them were vastly underestimating how hot it could get in the city during summer, and seeking refreshment too late. She figured if she could make hydration mobile it would encourage people to drink more, and thus the sno-cone bike was born.