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Many people in Portland use bicycles for work. Few of them are construction contractors.

Not having a car or truck does have disadvantages, said Chris Sanderson 鈥� but not the obvious ones.

Hauling big loads is not a problem. Sanderson has a trailer behind his bike for that. Besides, he said, large suppliers are usually willing to deliver for free if the order is large enough. Clients also provide their own materials from time to time.

In fact, he said, the only major problem being the owner and peddler of is the one he encountered Nov. 26 when he rolled up to a metal recycling business in North Portland. The company refused to receive an old basketball backboard he hauled away for a client. The person he dealt with said it was because he didn鈥檛 have a car.

Sanderson was flabbergasted and contacted his state legislators, Rep. Jules Bailey, D-Portland, and Sen. Diane Rosenbaum, D-Portland. An aide in Bailey鈥檚 office said the legislator just returned from out of town and is still reviewing the situation. Phone calls made to Rosenbaum鈥檚 office were not returned by deadline.

The owner of the recycling business refused to comment, and referred all questions to the Portland Police Bureau.

Sanderson said he can still hardly believe he was turned away just for being on a bicycle.

鈥淭hey wanted nothing to do with me,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey told me the law is the law. This is the first time I鈥檝e ever had a problem. If anything, recyclers turn material away because it has lead-based paint.鈥�

The law cited to Sanderson is Senate Bill 570, a metal theft bill passed by the Oregon Legislature in 2009. Among its many provisions designed to curb metal theft, it stipulates that people buying scrap metal must do what they can to keep a record of the transaction.

That includes 鈥渁 photocopy of a current, valid driver鈥檚 license, passport or state identification card鈥� and 鈥渁 description of any motor vehicle and its license number used in the delivery of the property.鈥�

Sanderson said 鈥渙f any motor vehicle鈥� suggests there may not be one at all. It certainly doesn’t seem to be a requirement, he said.

鈥淚 should read into it a little further, or they should read into it a little further,鈥� he added.

Metal recyclers were reluctant to discuss the issue. A Rivergate Metals representative, who refused to be identified, said anyone bringing in metal would need a valid Oregon driver鈥檚 license.

Gary Bachman of Bachman and Son said they take metal only from large and recognized companies.

鈥淒on鈥檛 come to my yard to sell anything because I don鈥檛 want to deal with stolen material,鈥� Bachman said.

Mike Marshman, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau, said the situation 鈥� at least at first blush 鈥� appears perplexing.

鈥淚 could see some forms of metal being more questionable than others, but a basketball (backboard)?鈥� he said.

He recalled how he and his wife assisted a scrap metal drive for charity. He had to fill out a lot of paperwork, he said, but there was no problem getting the metal recycled.

Of course, he said, this case might involve unknown circumstances.

鈥淚 would have to talk to the contractor, but I can鈥檛 see any possible issue with the metal itself,鈥� Marshman said.

Sanderson said he just wants to keep his carbon footprint light.

鈥淚 started this business in 2011 with the intention of going without a car,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 want be as ecologically minded as possible.鈥�

He rarely deals with recyclers, he added. In this case, a client was removing a basketball court and putting in a garden. She asked him to get rid of the backboard because the recycler was a five-minute ride away. Sanderson obliged.

鈥淎pparently tweakers will use a bike when they鈥檙e stealing metal,鈥� Sanderson said. 鈥淚t can be perceived as sketchy, but I鈥檓 just trying to run an honest business.鈥�

Sanderson worked for a marketing agency in San Francisco before starting Builder By Bike LLC in Portland in February 2011. He knows of at least one other builder, in London, who conducts business on bicycle.

鈥淚 am not inventing the wheel here,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 probably some guy in Bangkok who鈥檚 been doing it for 30 years, and his father did it before him.

鈥淵ou just have a trailer and pedal it around. Before bicycles, people probably used horses. They would just crack a whip and get going. It鈥檚 not hard if you have a good bike, a big trailer and a strong pair of legs.鈥�

A ride to the Kenton neighborhood in Northeast Portland once took Sanderson an hour and a half. Another time, to reach the Skyline neighborhood, he dragged his trailer full of tools up West Burnside Avenue. He has since discovered more efficient routes.

Sanderson uses a Yuba Mundo Cargo bike capable of pulling 450 pounds, or a standard bike that pulls a trailer. He recently used the trailer to haul 450 lineal feet of tongue-and-groove boards from North Mississippi Avenue to Kenton.

He confessed that it has been a long road since selling his truck in California five years and becoming Portland鈥檚 biking builder.

鈥淚 never thought I鈥檇 be doing this in my life,鈥� he said.