木制自行车，本文主要内容关键词为：自行车论文，此文献不代表本站观点，内容供学术参考，文章仅供参考阅读下载。
[1] In the West,it would be marketed as the world's only bio-degradable bicycle.To 19-year-old Thomas Habanabakize and his friends,the bicycle made of hardwood,the "igicugutu" is nothing special--it is just the most practical bicycle and vehicle for the job.Known by some people as the Gisenyi bicycle the igicugutu ("that which rattles" in Rwandan language,or kinyarwanda the official universal Bantu vernacular) is ubiquitous（注：
比比皆是的；同时到处存在的。） in hilly northwestern Rwanda.
[2] Here,everyone seems to be ★ on the move（注：在走动；在奔波。）-on foot,on conventional bicycles,or piled onto passing vehicles.The igicugutu,whose frame,wheels and handlebars are made of wood,is used for a range of chores-from taking maize tothe market to transporting cement to the site of a new home,designated as part of the government's controversial "umudugudu" (villageisation) programme.
[3] Posing（注：pose（为拍照等）摆姿势。） behind handlebars which are as imposing as the horns of an African bull,Mr Habanabakize explains that 'nothing can beat the igicugutu bicycle for manoeuvrability,speed and strength."I am just carrying corn cobs today but I can transport goods weighing 300 kgs on my crossbar.Obviously it is heavy going uphill,because you have to push.Rolling downhill,though,is easy and fun," he said.
[4] The igicugutu is only for the fearless.When,fully laden,it ★ picks up speed（注：pick up speed 加速。） on the sheer,twisting slopes of the "country of a thousand hills".Then this innocent-looking contraption（注：怪异的东西；新发明的玩意儿。）turns into a high velocity bicycle monster with a mind of its own.Mr Habanabakize points out that he does have a brake-a 10-centimetre square of rubber,cut from a tyre,and fixed on top of the rear wheel."I just need to press on it with my foot and Ican slow down at will," he says confidently.
[5]It is pretty clear,though,that it would be ★ out of the question（注：根本不可能。） to expect to bring to a suddenhalt an igicugutu if it was careering down a hill at 30 kilometres an hour.His colleague,28-year-old Alphonse Hakizimana,who on the day we meet has been hired by a farmer to carry out a sweetpotato run（注：（跑）一趟。） to Gisenyi market,explains that there are different grades of the wooden bicycle,which in reality is a scooter since it has neither pedals nor a chain.
[6]"The fastest one is Thomas's because it has metal ball bearings at the front and back.Slower models,like mine,have bearings only on the front.wheel," he says.Isaac Maniragaba,20,★ rolls up（注：roll up 出现；到场。）to us with his cargo of cabbages,★ stops dead（注：stop dead突然停止。）and cocks his handlebars to reveal a very large black spring,mounted above his front wheel."A shock absorber," he says coolly."Oh yeah," says Mr Hakizimana dismissively,"it's just there to impress the girls.We've got strips of tyre cushioning our steering（注：=steering gear（车）转向机构；（船）操舵装置。） and they are much more effective."
[7] The igicugutu is an essential part of courtship traditions here.The father of a Rwandan bride will not give away his daughter for the price of a mere cow or camel,as is common in much of Africa.In Rwanda and in neighbouring Burundi,the groom must also own-or prove that he has the means（注：财力；收入。） to buy-two igicugutus."They are not cheap," says Mr Habanabakize,who charges 700 francs (14 yuan) per 200 kg run and has travelled25km on the day we meet near Gisenyi market.
[8] "A new bike costs 12,000 francs (240 yuan) and we have to pay an annual road tax of 1,200 francs (24 yuan) .But you can run one of these for years,as long as you care for the shockabsorbers and change the rubber wheel covering."Mr Maniragaba points out that he has "racing tyres"-no tread（注：tread和下句中的ruts都指轮胎上的防滑纹。） on his rubber.Mr Hakizimana,however,argues that he is happy with the deep ruts on his wheel covering."More control," he says.
[9]These are busy times for the men and young boys who keep Rwanda on the move.As part of the military government's current programme to reorganise the rural areas where 90 per cent of the population live,thousands of families have been relocated from the hills where they have lived for generations and practised subsistence farming in terraced fields.Both ★ Hutus and Tutsis（注：胡图人在卢旺达约占82%，图西族约占16%，但后者长期占统治地位。20世纪70年代卢旺达发生内战，死伤惨重，并波及有以上两族的邻国布隆迪。近年经联合国及非洲统一组织多方调解，形势才好转。） are being moved to designated sites,in valleys.The reason given for the removals is that the government wants to reorganise the agriculture of this crowded country,to increase the scale of production.
[10] But some human rights activists claim the forced removals are principally an anti-guerrilla tactic-a means by which people will be made to live in close proximity,watched and encouraged to★ inform on（注：告发；揭发。） one another.Hill villagers will thus be less likely to collaborate with Interahamwe (the Hutumilitias who carried out the 1994 genocide) re-entering the country from abroad,they say.
[11]The igicugutu men of Gisenyi know only the business aspect of "umudugudu" .Both they and the old carpenters turning out their ingenious vehicles are busy these days.Mr Hakizimana said:"Our bicycles are not just used in Rwanda and Burundi.They are ★ catching on（注：catch on流行起来。） in Goma (Democratic Republic of Congo) even though the terrain is flatter there.People are beginning to realise that the igicugutu are much more solid than metal bicycles."
在西方，它可以作为世界上唯一的可降解自行车推向市场。对于19岁的托马斯·哈巴纳巴基泽和他的朋友们来说，这种用硬木做成的自行车，即“伊吉库古图”，则毫无特别之处——它只是最实用的自行车和工作用车。伊吉库古图（在卢旺达语或官方通用的班图方言金亚旺达语中意为“嘎嘎作响的东西”）在多山的卢旺达西北部地区随处可见，有些人称其为基塞尼（卢旺达的一个省名）自行车。
[2]在这里，似乎人人都在奔波——步行的，骑着常规自行车的，或者挤上过往车辆的。车架、车轮和车把都是木制的伊吉库古图自行车可用于很多日常琐事——将玉米驮到市场上，把水泥运送到新家所在地，等等，它还被指定为政府的颇有争议的“乌穆杜古杜”（村庄化）计划的一部分。
[3]哈巴纳巴基泽先生在非洲公牛角般不凡的车把后面摆好了姿势，解释说这种自行车在机动性、速度和强度方面是无可比拟的。他说：“今天我只驮了点玉米棒子，但实际上我可以在车的横梁上运送300千克重的货物呢。上坡时当然很吃力，因为你得推车。不过，下坡时就非常轻松有趣了。”
[4]伊吉库古图自行车只属于无畏者。当它驮满了东西，在“千丘之国”陡峭、婉蜒的山坡上加速的时候，这个看似模样鲁钝的玩意儿就变成了转速极快又自作主张的自行车怪物。哈巴纳巴基泽先生指出，他确实有个闸——块10厘米见方的胶皮，从轮胎上剪下来的，装在了后轮的顶部。他自信地说：“我只需用脚踩住它，就能随意慢下来。”
[5]然而，要一辆以30公里时速从山上往下冲的伊吉库古图自行车一下子停住是根本不可能的，这一点是明摆着的。28岁的阿尔冯塞·哈基齐马纳是哈巴纳巴基泽的同事，碰见我们的那天，他正好受雇于一位农场主往基塞尼市场送一趟甘薯。他跟我们解释说，木制自行车有几种不同规格，由于既无脚蹬又无链条，实际上这种车是一种滑板车。
[6]他说：“最快的一种是托马斯的，因为那种车前后（轮）都有金属滚珠轴承。像我的这种较慢型号的只在前轮有轴承。”20岁的伊萨克·马尼拉加巴车上驮着白菜来到我们跟前，猛地将车停住，扳起车把露出车前轮上方的一个很大的黑色弹簧。他很酷地说；“这是个减震器。”哈基齐马纳则不屑地说；“啊，是的，安这个东西不过是为了吸引女孩子的。我们用几条轮胎垫在车的转向机构下，效果要好得多。”
[7]伊吉库古图自行车是当地求婚习俗很重要的一部分。与非洲大部分地区一样，卢旺达新娘的父亲不会只收到一头牛或一头骆驼就把女儿拱手相送。在卢旺达和相邻的布隆迪，新郎还必须拥有或者证明他有财力购买两辆伊吉库古图车。“它们可不便宜，”哈巴纳巴基泽先生说。他运送200千克的东西每趟收费700卢旺达法郎（合14元人民币），我们在基塞尼市场附近遇见他的那天他已经跑了25公里。
[8]“一辆新自行车要花1.2万卢旺达法郎（合240元人民币），每年还要交1200卢旺达法郎（合24元人民币）的养路税。但是只要你注意保养减震装置，更换车轮橡胶外皮，一辆车可以使用很多年。”马尼拉加巴先生指出他有“赛车轮胎”——橡胶上没有防滑纹。可是哈基齐马纳先生争辩说，他更喜欢自己车轮橡胶外皮上深深的辙纹，他说：“那更好控制。”
[9]对于使卢旺达充满活力的男人和少年们来说，现在是忙碌的时候。对90%人口居住的农村进行重整是军政府当前规划的一部分，数以千计的家庭已经从他们祖祖辈辈生活并在那里的梯田上从事农耕为生的山区迁出。胡图人和图西人都在被迁往位于山谷中的指定居住点。迁移的原因是该国拥挤不堪，政府意欲重整农业，扩大生产规模。
[10]但是有些人权活动家声称这些强制性迁移主要是一种反游击战术—通过这种措施，让人们生活在彼此邻近的状态中，易于监视，怂恿他们互相告发。他们说，这样山区的村民们就不大可能与境外再度回来的Interahamwe（1994年实施种族灭绝政策的胡图族民兵组织）相配合。
[11]基塞尼的伊吉库古图车族只知道“村庄化”带来的商业利益。他们和打造这种巧妙运输工具的老木匠们这些日子都很忙碌。哈基齐马纳先生说：“我们（生产）的自行车不仅在卢旺达和布隆迪使用，在戈马（刚果民主共和国）也流行起来了，尽管那里的地势较为平坦。人们开始意识到，这种自行车比金属自行车结实得多。”
标签：自行车论文;