Disc golfing in Finland

There are over 10 000 disc golfers and over 150 disc golf courses in Finland. Both figures are still rising annually.

Finnish Westside Golf Discs is the third company ever to produce frisbee golf discs in Europe. Westside's products have unique hotstamps from Finland's national epic Kalevala from the north European iron age.

Do you know a disc golf course in Finland which is not listed in here?
Please, let them know.

More info:
www.pdga.com

Team ERA - Electric raceabout

Finnish contender compete in the X PRIZE competition for super efficient cars. Besides fame and the respect of other competitors, the winner will take home USD 10m.

Arcticstartup.com reported about the ERA (Electric Raceabout), a Finnish contender in the X PRIZE: "I just heard that the ERA team finished the second shakedown week in Michigan - in which the different cars needed to pass on-the-ground challenges - and they did it in style: The team passed all mandatory and optional tests with the first try, and were the only team to do so!".

Read more: www.raceabout.fi/era/

Finnish Wooden Boat Center

The Finnish Wooden Boat Center is an integrated 1.5 hectare area in Kotka’s Cultural Harbor, near the Maritime Centre Vellamo. The Boat Center’s appearance is dominated by the copper, arch-shaped roof of the boatyard (designed by architects Lahdelma & Mahlamäki). However, the Center also has a lot more to offer.

What makes the new building unique even on international terms is the fact that it was purpose-built for a wooden boat yard. Modern technology ensures temperature and humidity control as well as sawdust and dust removal. Another unique feature is the idea of a boatyard that is open for the public at no cost. The workshop is encircled by a Visitors’ Bridge at the second floor level, where the public can watch the boatwrights at work and observe the fascinating progress of boat-building. At the moment, the boatyard’s most notable attraction is the 21-meter-long classic wooden racing yacht Blue Marlin.

Don't miss the Wooden boat marina either. There you might see "Smuggler's boat (Pirtuvene)" and other rarities.

Kupe bicycles

Kupe is a new Finnish Bicycle brand est. 2010.

On their website they say: "We wish to give our customers good feeling and and nostalgic driving experience. We want our bike to stand out from mass- production bicycles with its delicate Finnish design and craftsmanship. You will find its specially designed, extra rigid frame and superb balance to match your driving needs whether you drive in a city or on the country roads... All frames, carriers and chainguards are handmade in Finland."

Kupe is manufactured by Eskolan konepaja and price is starting from 670 euros.

Another good news: Manufacture of the Finnish Jopo bicycles will be transferred back to Finland from Taiwan. Earlier only a fraction of the Jopo's were really made in Finland.

Do you remember Pelago bicycles?

Come to Finland

Come to Finland is all about Finnish travel posters and travel history.

It all started with an idea, ten years ago, outside an Antiquarian Book-shop in Helsinki. Today it is a succesful cultural and commercial project.

More info: www.cometofinland.fi

Music video directors - ready, steady, go!

Miikka Lommi - Finnish wonder, indie music video director and so on presents:
Pepe Deluxe - Pussycat rock
Kississings - Anything U want
Husky Rescue - City lights

Here you may check out more of his music videos:
www.vimeo.com/miikkalommi/videos

And here you may see some ads directed by Lommi and his mates from FilmMagica:
www.youtube.com/user/FilmMagica

Great stuff!

Viral campaign: Hectorcam

WOW! Very nice viral campaign from Samsung:

...Hector lives in a warehouse.

His job is to dance and receive your sms and check if you are entitled to win some cooliest things by Samsung...

Check it out: SAMSUNG.FI/HECTOR

SMS messages probably work with Finnish SIM cards only, but I tested it and it gives an unique SMS code to each viewer and Hector reacts to your SMS. Good job!!

Metamorphosis of the Menu

Curiosities among menus in the collections of the Hotel and Restaurant Museum
23.2.2010-10.10.2010

The menu collection of the Hotel and Restaurant Museum contains tens of thousands of menu cards from the 1860s until today. In the table setting, the menu card forms a part of the entertainment at formal lunches and dinners. The menu content, i.e. the food items, drinks, their serving order, and the appearance of the menu, are an indication of the nature of the event.

The menu is often a unique production designed for one event only. It may be a card, but it may also be an object. The Metamorphosis of the Menu exhibition presents curiosities from the menu collection, from a deodorant bottle to a reindeer hide, from a high-heeled shoe to a wallet.

Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 11-18
Venue: Cable Factory, Tallberginkatu 1 G, Helsinki
www: Metamorphosis of the Menu

Pori Jazz 2010

On the stage are seen for example Massive Attack, N.E.R.D and Gotan Project.

More info: porijazz.fi

Flow Festival 2010 program released

The Flow Festival weekend program will include M.I.A., the French duo Air planning an audiovisual spectacle at Flow, the Icelandic vocalist Jónsi also known from Sigur Rós, and the British indie sensation The xx, which ranks among the most requested acts for this year’s festival.

The British indie pop newcomer Marina And The Diamonds, the highly-regarded producer Four Tet, and the Swedish indie favorite The Radio Dept, each come to Flow hot on the heels of their new albums. As a very special additions to the Flow Festival lineup, the Finnish funk eccentric Jimi Tenor and the Nigerian afrobeat legend Tony Allen make the live debut of their “Inspiration/Information” album concept, and the American jazz vocal great José James sits in with the Finnish saxophone player Timo Lassy’s extended ensemble.

The new wave of indie rock from the US is well featured at Flow this time around. The Drums, Beach House, Surfer Blood and Girls offer a good peek at the hottest new sounds coming from across the Atlantic. The Syrian vocalist Omar Souleyman is one of the potential surprise hits of Flow Festival, whereas the Berlin-based RotFront comes strong with their Balkan-infused party sounds. As a new feature, Flow Festival 2010 will feature a series of partially seated concerts held at the Voimala club venue during the early evenings of the festival weekend. The three concerts will feature the Norwegian Ulver, showcasing their highly evolved dark sound aesthetics, and the Malian master of the kora instrument, Ballaké Sissoko. The rest of the Voimala concert billing will be announced later.

Flow Festival has been known to have a strong club roster and this year’s event is no exception. The clubs will feature hard-hitters in minimalist techno pioneer Ricardo Villalobos, disco legend DJ Harvey, Diplo, performing a DJ set and also with his Major Lazer project, the rising young gun of dubstep, Joker, and the US-based acts Sleigh Bells and Rye Rye.

New Finnish music is also well represented at Flow. This time around, the festival bill includes Husky Rescue, Villa Nah, Ricky-Tick Big Band, Clouds, Bongo Rock, Kiki Pau and Yona & Liikkuvat Pilvet, with many more domestic acts to be added. The concept of experimental music and visual arts presented at Flow will continue expanding as the Finnish artist duo Grönlund-Nisunen displays a unique installation at the Tiivistämö venue. The musical programming heard at the venue will be released later.

More info: flowfestival.com