Zimbabwe trip - Carolina Wilderness.

I used to farm 10 minutes away from my friend Glen who has this amazing game farm called Carolina Wilderness. We used to meet up on motorbikes and ride around the farm in the most amazing bush filled with spectacular animals. I often used to stop off on the way home at another of my neighbours who had a large cheese factory and fill my back pack with delicacies such as parmezan and unpasteurised ricotta. The deal with the ricoota was that I had to promise the Danish cheesemaster that we would use the cheese immediately!

I hope that these pictures give you all an idea of the lush vegetation and the fun of growing up in the tropics!

This is with my Dad and my son in a field of Virginia tobacco. We used to grow a bit of this stuff before the political situation got the better of us!















This is a typical scene at this time of year. This is a field that would have had tobacco or maize in last year and now it has got a newly germinated pasture. These mushrooms (large root mushroom) are delicious and fairly common. For kids they are great as you can imagine the stories about where the fairies live and dance etc!







This farm is right on the outskirts of the capital city. This is a herd of impala. These are some of my favourite antelope.

We spent a few days there walking in the bush and driving around looking at the animals.
























There is a great range of wildlife here. There are 7 giraffe that have done fairly well. The Wildebeest (Gnu's) in the pic here should really be part of a commercial farming business as they are better suited than cattle to convert grass and other forage into protein.
We were lucky enough to see most species. We did not see Leopard or any Eland (the largest antelope). What a great place to chill out!

Trip to Zimbabwe - Eastern Highlands

Zimbabwe has the country of Mozambique on its Eastern border. This region is known as the Eastern Highlands, as the altitide is between 1500 and 2500 metres above sea level. There are stiking similarities in some of the countryside here and in parts of Ireland. The wether can also be surprisingly similar!

This area used to supply the bulk of the fruit consumed in the country. The scenery is amazing. There is a mountain range that runs along the border. There are spectacular rivers that have wild trout in them and the hiking is awesome. This part of the country is also a haven for adventure motoring. There is a big motor rally held here annually and the trail biking is superb. There is no recorded evidence of scooters being used yet!

We had a small fruit farm up there that overlooked the mountains in Mozambique. It was a great escape from the hustle and bustle of growing tobacco!

Mike has also spent a deal of time in the area and spent a lot of time in his youth on his uncle's farm in the lowlands nearby. This is where he developed his abilities as a trail bike rider!

Incase you are wondering how this fits in here, then you need to know that I am trying to let you all know a little bit about us. Who we are and where we come from.

Pumpabike in Mens Health Magazine (USA)

We got a call a few months ago fromt he team at Mens Health asking if they could use the Pumpabike in their December edition. As we know that this machine is just plain awesome and especially good for cardio-vascular excercise we were stoked.

The magazine is out and we are part of the cool tech stuff that they highlight.

Thanks to the vision and faith of the editorial team. You have managed far more than we could have in your keen market-place.

To all the folks buying this revolutionary machine. Thank you for your share of wallet. We know you will get great excercise and as a bonus you will be on a cool machine. You will probably be able to say to your kids that you were one of the first folks to see the potential of this technology!!

Prototypes

I read a few brilliant blogs when I get a moment and one of them is written by Seth Godin.

Now we are in the development business and so prototypes are a vital part of the game. Seth has a post that certainly rings true for us. I can not paraphrase his ideas and so I have lifted the whole post from his blog at http://sethgodin.typepad.com/

The problem with prototypes

"This is just a sketch."

"...a rough draft..."

"...something we threw together..."

I'm a huge fan of prototyping. Prototyping just about anything is faster and more effective than ever before. It makes hypothetical questions go away and surfaces real issues. It gets things moving. And most important of all, prototyping eliminates fear.

BUT

If you use a prototype to try to persuade someone of an idea, be careful. Most people you know are not as conceptual as you are, especially about stuff you really care about. The first prototypes for an iPod or a book cover or a Starbucks or a six-year public works construction project certainly did not impress the outsiders who saw them.

Too many times, I've gotten excited about an idea and created a conceptual prototype. And almost every time, people, smart people, didn't get it.

Here's my new prototype rule of thumb: your prototype has to be better (better build quality, faster interface, better lighting, whatever) than the finished product is going to be. That's what people expect anyway--they see your prototype and take off 20% for reality.

2006

I am back in Cape Town and so it is back to the desk!

There is a lot on the go at the moment in the workshop of Mike Puzey and a few brilliant folks helping him.

There are clear signs that electric powered vehicles are going to play large roles in getting folks from A to B. No rocket science here, but what will require more that rocket science will be the development of electric vehicles that deliver a kilojoule of power more efficiently than conventional engines can deliver the same kilojoule.

We may be mad enough, or idealistic or whatever but we are trying. We do it because there is a need.

The hydrofoil technology is also under the lens at the moment and there will be a new look pumpabike out soon in prototype.

Lets all give 2006 a really big go!