Wild rides: Pinoy innovations in mobility

Pinoys are improvisers extraordinaire. After all, nothing gets their juices flowing as effectively as limited resources and a sense of whimsy. Last week, “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho” listed a number of innovative Pinoy-made vehicles, including the world’s first biodegradable car and a bike that’s over seven feet high. The world's first biodegradable car, designed by Pinoy furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue. Photo Credit: Kenneth Cobonpue The Phoenix, the world’s first biodegradable car made of rattan, bamboo and carbon fiber, was designed by the world-famous Pinoy furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue, in collaboration with German designer Albrecht Birkner. The Phoenix, which went on display at a furniture fair in Milan, Italy last year, promises a more sustainable future for cars. Its exterior is made from renewable and biodegradable materials, and is designed to last no longer than the average number of years that most owners keep their cars. Inhabitat.com, a website on sustainable design, described the Phoenix as “a small and elegant solution to a big and ugly problem: the waste created by old cars that outlive their purpose.”

Another award-winning Filipino furniture designer, Clayton Tugonon, created the Una Cebu Car, the exterior of which is made of rattan and coconut twigs.  Modeled after the 1959 Porsche 365, Tugonon’s took nine months to finish and cost over a million pesos. Last year, the car was displayed at Manila FAME (Furnishings and Apparel Manufacturers’ Exchange) exhibit, a trade event for Pinoy-made design exports. In Paoay, Ilocos Norte, biking enthusiast Alvin Nenor created a one-of-a-kind bicycle that stands almost eight feet tall. He paid just P3500 to have the frame of a regular bicycle modified.  But why ride such a tall bike? Just for fun, says Alvin. “Mas masaya po kasi may mga tumitingin na tao, tapos ngumingiti sila,” he said. It takes a little more practice to ride this bike, though.  One can't mount the bike unless another person is holding it steady first. The bike is also too tall to pass under some of the arches on Paoay’s roads.  Other than that, it makes for an amazing ride.