SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

Seattle driver’s ‘Uber conversation menu’ goes viral

Mar 8, 2019, 5:32 AM | Updated: 12:32 pm

uber, rideshare, sexual assaults, Uber menu...

Rideshare giant Uber continues its push for congestion tolling in Seattle. (AP)

(AP)

You’ll get more than just a ride if you end up in George Ure’s Uber — you may find yourself with a free comedy show, a therapy session, or even an encounter with your high school nemesis.

Ure created his own ‘Uber menu’ so that passengers can hand-pick what they want him to talk about, how much they want him to talk, or even if they want him to talk at all during the ride. If you’ve ever been that chatty person who is disappointed to find a quiet Uber driver, or an introvert annoyed by a driver’s attempts to talk, Ure’s Uber menu is your chance to design your own custom rideshare experience.

“I had the idea, and it was a joke, it started out as a complete joke, to just kind of break the ice, make passengers laugh,” Ure told KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson.

RELATED: Meet the Edmonds mom who went viral with snowy twist on Lady Gaga’s ‘Shallow’

Finding himself with some downtime during the Seattle Snowpocalypse, Ure — who coincidentally once ended up on the same skydiving plane as Dori — made the menus just for the heck of it.

He gave Dori a quick rundown of the selections he offers his riders:

The Stand-Up Ride: “If people want to be entertained and laugh, I definitely can provide that option for them.”

The Silent Ride: “It’s just silence.”

The Therapy Ride: “If you’ve got something on your mind, I want to help take it off.”

The Creepy Ride: “I say things like, ‘You smell so much different when you’re awake,’ and [give] weird looks in the rear-view mirror.”

The Rude Ride: “It’s kind of an assessment process to identify past traumas and bullying from high school, and then you just pretty much become their drunk bad stepfather and really just crush their soul.”

Luis, a rider from Kirkland, was so amused by the Uber menu that he posted it on Twitter, where it exploded.

There are now over half a million likes and 120,000 retweets on Luis’s original Twitter post. It was also “tearing it up on Instagram,” according to Ure, and making the rounds on Facebook.

“It’s weird being internet-famous,” Ure said. “I don’t think there’s been one passenger I’ve had since who hasn’t recognized me … this is like, whoa man, this is crazy.”

While he looks forward to “get[ting] back to [his] usual grind,” he is enjoying the chance to bring some joy to people’s lives while on a routine rideshare drive.

“It’s definitely fun for now,” he said. “What I do love about it is, I’ve made so many people laugh.”

cooper kupp dodo coffee arkansas...

Frank Sumrall

Seahawks WR Cooper Kupp opens new flagship store for family coffee brand in Arkansas

Seattle Seahawks Wide Receiver Cooper Kupp opened a new flagship store for a coffee brand he created with his wife and family.

6 minutes ago

burien multi-car theft scheme...

KIRO 7 News Staff

Burien man arrested for multi-car theft scheme

A 28-year-old Burien man was arrested Friday by Redmond Police in connection with multiple vehicle thefts across the Puget Sound.

36 minutes ago

Mayor Katie Wilson bite of seattle shooting security cameras...

Charlie Harger

Harger: Housing, the Bite of Seattle shooting, security cameras. Mayor Katie Wilson keeps finding new ways to postpone hard decisions

About 46,000 Seattle renter households spend more than half their income on housing. Half. Rent gets paid. Groceries get squeezed.

41 minutes ago

Fred Meyer tacoma...

MyNorthwest Staff

Fred Meyer to close second Tacoma store within a year

Fred Meyer announced it is closing another store in Tacoma, the James Center location at 6901 S 19th Street.

1 hour ago

Associated Press

Metropolitan Museum of Art cancels planned Met Gala exhibit on fashion designer John Galliano

NEW YORK (AP) — The Metropolitan Museum of Art is canceling its planned Met Gala exhibit centered on John Galliano, the museum and fashion designer said in a joint statement Monday. Galliano was the pinnacle of the fashion world for years before he made a series of antisemitic and racist comments in 2010 and 2011 […]

2 hours ago

washington state employees walk out monday...

Frank Sumrall

Thousands of Washington state employees to walk out Monday over stalled contract talks

Thousands of Washington state employees are expected to protest stalled contract negotiations with the state by walking out of work Monday.

2 hours ago

Seattle driver’s ‘Uber conversation menu’ goes viral