PRIZES GALORE: Zack Woolfe, 6, who was the Shweeb's 100,000th rider yesterday. PHOTO/SUPPLIED
PRIZES GALORE: Zack Woolfe, 6, who was the Shweeb's 100,000th rider yesterday. PHOTO/SUPPLIED
Agroventures has celebrated its 100,000th Shweeb ride.
Six-year-old Zack Woolfe from Upper Hutt was the 100,000th rider winning a Shweeb t-shirt, $100 cash and two free Shweeb rides.
Zack was on holiday with his wider family, with 14 people between the three families experiencing Agroventures.
His dad Robert said Zackhadn't won a prize before. "This is cool for him, a good way to finish the school holidays."
The Shweeb is the only human powered monorail in the world with the name derived from the word "schwebe" meaning "hang" or 'suspend' in German. Riders climb into a suspended aerodynamic pod, and pedal up to 50kph in one of the planet's most efficient human-powered machines.
Riders battle it out against friends in the 600m monorail race with $1000 cash up for grabs if they beat the world record.
Currently the world record is held by a Kiwi, Alex B, with a time of 0:54:80.
Google selected the pedal powered system in 2010 as the most innovative in the world for future eco-friendly public transportation and donated US$1 million ($1.5 million) for development.
Agroventures managing director Simon Short said of the five adventure activities in the park, the Shweeb was one of the most popular. "It has that friendly competitive edge that pits dads against sons, friends versus friends and everyone from all walks of life, who have memories of riding a bike. Combine that with a global passion for cycling in many forms, Shweeb offers a bit of everything."
Mr Short's tips and tricks to master the race were to lean into the corners, keep your hands on your knees, and to push hard from the start.
