A month or so, I mentioned catching up with the designer of the FX bike, an ultralight-weight motorcycle that in addition to being a great fun tool, also has considerable potential for military and security work – certainly in any environment where there are obstacles that would defeat a normal size bike like a KLR, and/or where there may be a required for mobility within tight space/weight limits, for example, on small boats or light aircraft.

Since then, I have had a number of chats with Mike @ FX Bikes as he prepares to shift offshore to the more commercially viable US market…it’s not so much the size of the Kiwi market that’s the big issue but the lack of commercial production facilities down here… Mike is also preparing FX Bikes as an investment opportunity and is seeking professional investors to take FX Bikes to the next level. Professional investors are those types you see lined up on Dragon’s Den, grilling potential entrepreneurs til they are well done…

Having seen the FX Bike and as a former rider who struggled to negotiate logs, ditches, fences etc with his Army-issue XL250, I think it is a damn fine example of Kiwi ingenuity and one worthy of further development and investment…

The Renovations

The big job over the last week or so has been walling into the study so that we can secure it over those periods when we lease the Lodge out…really just converting it from a mezzanine to a room proper…it’s a pretty simple job but I’ve just spent most of today removing the first attempt at Gib-stopping as the seam paper has lifted in a  number of areas and to guarantee the seam from future cracks, it’s better to do it again. That means tons of sanding and oodles of dust all through the living area; between sanding and cleaning, I’ve not had much time for blogging and am not likely to for most of the week. Updates will be short and sharp until normal services are resumed…

The Pacific

Part Two starts in a  few minutes. I like it, although it’s not yet offering Band Of Brothers any competition in this family, and will be interested to see how it develops. My standard for tales of the Marines in the Pacific remains Leon Uris’ Battle Cry and I’m about to lend my latest copy (have worn out at least two previous copies) to #1 daughter to read…