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First some news about Segway in Singapore

Original link: http://motoring.asiaone.com/Motoring/Owners/Story/A1Story20090727-157442.html

Zip and zoom, they draw odd looks
By Shree Ann Mathavan

FIRST there are the stares, then out come the camera phones.

Slovenian Bojan Tercon, 36, is no celebrity - it is his mode of transport, a two-wheeled battery-powered Segway, that makes heads turn.

He uses it daily to run errands in town.

Mr Tercon, an artiste manager, is among a growing number of Segway users here, who are drawn to the two-wheeler because of its eco-friendly nature and ease of use.

The Segway, which starts at around $12,800 here, is self-balancing and has zero emissions.

It was first introduced in the US in 2001 and started selling here in 2003.

But two years ago, a different distributor, HT Advanced Mobility (HTAM) took over and collaborated with action superstar Jackie Chan, to form GoGreen Holdings.

The transporter consequently saw a sharp upswing in sales this year.

Mr Tom Navasero, managing director of GoGreen Holdings attributed the spike in interest to the setting up of a Segway rental service in Sentosa earlier this year by his company, which provides guided tours of the island on the transporter.

Jackie Chan was in town to help launch the service.

The Segway tours, he said, helped create more awareness of the transporter, which can travel distances of about 38km when fully charged.

The vehicle's battery needs to be charged for several hours, preferably overnight.

Mr Navasero declined to provide figures of the rise in demand, but said that around 300 Segways have been sold to both individuals and organisations since its launch here.

Currently the profile of his clientele in Singapore are working professionals - evenly split between expatriates and locals.

Nevertheless, seeing someone zip by using the Segway in town is still fairly rare.

Drawing attention

When The New Paper on Sunday caught up with Mr Tercon and his business partner, Mr Robin Lokerman, 46, who run an events company, the duo certainly attracted a fair bit of attention even early on a Thursday morning.

Gliding along the pavement in front of Ion Orchard, the duo, both already standing over 1.8m, literally dwarfed the milling pedestrians when perched on their respective Segways.

Said Mr Lokerman, a Dane: 'People ask us questions about it, they wave and I've even had taxi drivers giving me the thumbs-up sign.'

Seeing the duo navigate, turn, and circle effortlessly using their i2 models, one would think they've had the personal transporters for years.

But their models, each priced at $12,800, are both new acquisitions, which were delivered to them only last week.

Mr Lokerman had first found out about the personal transporter three months ago in Washington when he went on a Segway city tour with a relative.

He recalled: 'I found it so mobile and easy to use.'

Intrigued, he did some research online and found that Segways were available here.

But before taking the plunge, he and Mr Tercon first did a test drive at Segway hub on Sentosa. This was followed by a trial for four days to see if the Segway could fit in with their daily lives.

Mr Lokerman now uses his Segway every day during his daily commute from his apartment along Grange Road to his office in Bukit Timah, and back.

Cheaper in long run

This 4.5km journey typically takes him 20minutes, which is about the same as taking a cab in peak-hour traffic, he points out.

This saves him money, he said.

'It gets me from my apartment straight to my office desk thanks to good sidewalks and slopes along the way.'

However that isn't to say that navigating the Segway doesn't come with its own set of challenges.

While Segway users are allowed to trundle along on roads with certain speed limits in the US, the European Union, China and Korea, the machine is only allowed on public sidewalks, private roads and private compounds in Singapore, said Mr Navasero.

Hence, navigating narrow paths with plants, steep steps or curbs can be tricky, said the pair.

There are also Singaporeans like Ms Grace Ler, 29, an account manager, who remain skeptical of the Segway's viability in Singapore.

She said: 'I would think the Segway is a hazard for pedestrians in crowded areas like Orchard Road.

And because I like knowing where Jackie has been and what he has been up to:

Original Link: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/business/story/0,28124,25846902-5018055,00.html

Cinema treasures for sale

Fred Pawle | July 28, 2009
Article from: The Australian

EVER wanted to own Howard Hughes' desk, as used in the film The Aviator? Or a circular burgundy lounge from Moulin Rouge? Or a round bed from Austin Powers?

These and 97,549 other movie props will be auctioned by 20th Century Props, the company that has been hiring gear to Hollywood film studios since 1932, over the next three days.

A slowdown in Hollywood film production has forced the props company to close its doors and sell its collection of unique, curious, historic, kitsch and sometimes priceless furniture, objects, curios and equipment.

Auctions not being one of the company’s core operations, the sell-off is more shambolic than other sales of potentially irreplaceable memorabilia. But that just means a little bit of digging through its website and a few online bids could snare an eagle-eyed prospector some nuggets of Hollywood gold.

Company president Harvey Schwartz told The Australian he could not estimate the selling price of anything in the auction.

The Howard Hughes desk, he said, had arrived at his warehouse decades ago with a brass plate in the centre draw declaring it had once been owned by the reclusive millionaire. The draw had since been stolen.

“We had a very crowded preview today, and I’ve been on radio and television all day,” Schwartz said. “We’ve had a few stars through. Robert Downey Jnr came through looking for furniture for his new house. And Jackie Chan was here. He wanted to buy the company, but it was too big for him.”

Schwartz said the auction included a spaceship from 1960s TV series the Twilight Zone and Austin Powers space pod. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” he said.

You can see pics from Jackie's visit to the Props warehouse in his diary here: http://www.jackiechan.com/blog/699269--My-Time-in-America--Opera-School-Reunion