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Jul 26, 2009

"The taller the bamboo grows, the lower it bends." --Chinese Proverb

From Bush to Bike: A Bamboo Revolution

"We planted this bamboo last year," he says, "and now the stems are taller than me. When it's ready we'll cut it, cure it and then turn it into frames." Mr Banda, is the caretaker for Zambikes, a company set up by two Californians and two Zambians which aimed to build bikes tough enough to handle the local terrain. Co-founder Vaughn Spethmann, 24, recalls how it all started with a game of football. "We were here on a university field trip and we organized a match against some locals. Afterwards we asked them what they did, and they said: 'Nothing'. They didn't have jobs. "So we decided to come up with a business which would be a source of employment and provide a useful product."