Ok, so if you need more than eight beers to get you around the course you probably have no use for a pull cart. A golf cart that has a built-in cooler on the back, maybe, but a pull cart? That would definitely be a no. But some of us, specifically the I-need-a-little-exercise-every-now-and-then-so-I-can-still-fit-on-the-couch type, choose to walk the golf course from time to time. But, as most of us can concur, packing around fourteen clubs, a couple hundred golf balls, a few cans of bug juice, rain gear, and an extra sweater tends to be a tad burdensome. Enter the concept of assistance. Enter the pull cart. And enter, drum roll please, “The Riksha.”
The Riksha, a big-wheeled push cart invented in 1993 by a fellow in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, is finding its way into more and more golf clubs around the world. Courses such as Bandon Dunes, Banff Springs, Nantucket Golf Club, Sahalee Golf Club, Punta Cana Resort, and hundreds more and using The Riksha. It has become a regular site on the golf course and something that golfers are starting to look for whenever they visit a course.
Basically, The Riksha uses the age-old philosophy that’s used in the rikshas found on the streets of India and wherever else you happen to see one. That is, using big-ass wheels requires less effort than using small, clunky wheels - which have traditionally been the norm on pull carts.
The success behind Jim Young’s product is very simple: it’s a superior product. Traditional pull carts cannot match the smooth, easy glide that The Riksha offers. The physics just aren’t there. Personally, I nab a Riksha whenever I can. It’s a pleasure to use and beats packing any day. But best of all, especially if you’re a beer drinker, it now comes with a drink holder attachment. Check out www.theriksha.com.
Andrew Penner is a 12-year member of the Canadian PGA. He has won five professional golf tournaments in Canada and narrowly, I mean narrowly, missed qualifying for the US Open last year. Well, OK, it was a few shots. Andrew writes for a number of golf magazines in Canada, the US, and Europe. His new book, titled "One Flew Over The Caddyshack," can be ordered at www.falconpress.ca. He can be reached at andpenner@shaw.ca.
