In this week’s Panorama: meet the European champions in electric boogie, ever thought of living in a house made from Tetra pack cartons? And, a bus that does more than drive you to work.
Hybrids Crew
A year ago no one recognized their names, but now they have more fans than they can count – two lads from Ostrava have just become Europe’s new electric boogie champions. Patrik Ulman and Zdenek Kremláček have both been dancing since they were four but it was only two years ago they decided to form a duo called the Hybrids Crew and try their luck at the 2010 Czechoslovak talent contest Talentmania. They won hands down wowing both the jury and the public with their electric boogie dance. Patrik and Zdeněk became overnight celebrities sparking a huge interest in electric boogie. At the request of thousands of young fans they recently put a step-by-step instruction video on You Tube advising beginners on how to get the moves right.
At the beginning of July they competed at the Hip Hop, Electric Boogie and Break Dance Championships in Denmark, and - at their first international event - they came out top in the Electric Boogie duo category, beating experienced dancers from Russia, Germany, Norway and Britain.
Zdeněk: “The most important thing is to be perfectly synchronized and we are good at achieving that –we have the same technique, we train together and we try to create a mirror image.
Hybrids Crew at the Championship in Denmark
Patrik: “We were lucky to get together. We hit it off immediately and we are well matched. We dance the same way, have a very similar technique and we put a lot of effort into getting really synchronized. Of course there are some tricks that Zdeněk knows and I don’t and vice versa in which case we do a few turns solo.”
Ever since they won the Talentmania contest girls have been falling over themselves to get close to their two new idols. Patrik says the admiration feels good.
“Well, you know girls like it and I am a guy, right, so of course it’s a good feeling. It’s not like I abuse the situation, but sure it is good to show off to all these good looking girls. The wave of admiration is a big bonus and it is also a big motivation and inspiration for us to dance to an audience of good-looking girls.”
The next big challenge ahead of them is the world championship in electric boogie in Austria due to take place in September and they are spending the summer training hard for the event.
Tetra Pack house, photo: CT24
Houses made of Tetra pack cartons are the latest novelty on the Czech housing scene. The first was developed four years ago on a student initiative and there are now around 100 of them mostly on the outskirts of Prague and Brno. The Tetra Pack houses are cheap and easy to build and the material used conserves heat and keeps out dampness. The first one of its kind was constructed by the firm Flexibuild in 2007. The firm’s real estate agent Jan Baran says these homes have a lot of benefits and are far more sturdy than people think.
“These houses are really built from the Tetra pack cartons we buy our milk or juice in. The material is shredded, processed and compressed into solid grey boards. It takes a lot of cartons to build a house. For one board –which is about 1,5 cm wide – you need 1,800 Tetra pack cartons. The cartons produced are a standard shape such as you get when assembling pre-fabricated wooden houses and with a steel or wooden construction you can safely build up to a height of seven storeys.“
Photo: CT24
The main problem here is actually getting to the Tetra pack cartons because they are not sorted specially, since up until a few years ago there was no specific use for them. Plans are afoot to introduce carton sorting as of next year. Houses made of Tetra pack are better at retaining heat than brick houses and are 30 percent cheaper to build. Jan Baran again:
“Constriction work is facilitated by the fact that we are working with so-called dry technologies which do not require special weather conditions, meaning that construction can take place in the winter months as well, regardless of rain snow or sub zero temperatures. The construction of a family house takes approximately three months. It could be done faster of course, but three months is the norm.”
Tetra Pack house, photo: CT24
Anyone considering a Tetra pack dwelling would naturally think about the combustibility of the material used and its durability. Flexibuild has good news on both counts. Due to impregnation the houses meet all fire safety standards and you can expect to live out your life in them –unless your family has a history of longevity. Jan Baran explains:
“Regular houses made from standard materials such as bricks have a longevity of about 100 years. In the case of Tetra Pack houses we are assuming a 20 percent lower longevity at around eighty years. Then again, there are many brick houses that have been standing for 200 years –so I think our buildings are also likely to survive a hundred and more years.”
Photo: Leoš Kučera, HZS Praha 2011
And finally, on a lighter note a true-life story: an intercity bus from Mladá Boleslav to Prague caught fire just as it entered the suburbs of the Czech capital last week. All fifty passengers and the bus driver escaped safely, though the bus was gutted by the time firemen had extinguished the blaze. The news made headlines and one paper could not resist noting the wording of an add printed in large letters across the front of the bus. It read “Experience more”.
