CHUKUDU - THE WOODEN BICYCLE
Seriously – do not laugh. You are looking at a seriously well engineered, practical, low cost and environmentally friendly method of goods transport. The Chukudu is a solid wood scooter that has forked steering bars, a wide wooden platform sloping from the steering handles down and to the rear. Finally its wooden wheels have some rubber tyre tread attached to them for traction through rough roads and mud. The Chukudu originated in the Goma/Lake Kivu area. They were invented as a cheap method to transport goods and sometimes people. They do lack peddles and gears, but they do allow a man to transport hundreds of kilograms of goods to market places and return with valuable provisions like water back to the village. And if there is a hill, well then they can ride as fast as their Chukudu will take them. With 200-300 kilograms onboard I can assure you it can be very fast. Because they are...
