NEELS’ RALLY TENT
How will the camping industry be doing in 30 years’ time? Neels van Heerden plays fortune teller.
There has been a significant increase in information spread on social media – true or fake – in recent years, and you have to think carefully about what to believe and what not to trust. Think, for example, of all the rumours, opinions, fights and divisions about the origin and spread of COVID-19. By the end of October, strong rumours were circulating that the government would tighten the country’s locldown measures again. I’m sure you are, just like me, pretty fed up with the virus. I recently wandered around the internet trying to determine what steps the camping industry in other countries is taking to ensure their survival after the pandemic and an interesting prediction caught my eye. In 2017, the sales manager of a company (one that manufactures castor oil, among other things) decided to predict the future and said the internal combustion engine would soon be extinct. This view has since been repeated word for word and without foundation on a multitude of Facebook pages and websites. The castoroil salesman also claimed that kids born in 2017 would one day only be able to see fuel-powered vehicles in museums next to fossils of dinosaurs. He further speculated that cars as we know them would go the way of the oxwagon – and I involuntarily wonder what that would mean for motorhomes and towing vehicles. Finally, the prophet claimed that in the future it would be very impractical to own your own vehicle, even if it’s an electric one. He reckoned you’d be able to order an autonomous vehicle that will pick you up at home and drop you off at your destination without anyone driving. If this ever happens, it would at least solve the headache of code EB driving licenses and nobody will ever have to take a day off again to stand in a queue to renew your driving license.
THIS IS INDEED
an interesting view of the future, and I began to wonder how this would affect the camping industry. And just like the castor-oil dude, I also took a flight of imagination. Join me... In the year 2050, you order a towing vehicle to tow your caravan to your favourite campsite. Or is that already too old-fashioned? What about the following: you order a vehicle that’s already loaded with provisions, refreshments and all the latest camping technology. Upon arrival, the vehicle adjusts itself so it’s level, directs a dish at the nearest satellite for
In the year 2050, you order a towing vehicle to tow your caravan to your favourite campsite
WiFi and Netflix, deploys a rally tent, and serves a pre-programmed snack and drink. In fact, the entire weekend’s menu has already been planned so that carnivores, vegetarians and vegans can enjoy their own pre-made food and drink. Each campsite offers a large variety of virtual experiences – also booked in advance and included in the camping fee. Everyone gets his or her own virtual headset and armchair. Should you want to go for a walk in nature to watch plants, birds and animals, there’s a program loaded onto your virtual device. That’s how you walk in the veld while actually relaxing in your armchair. The same goes for the kids. John Jnr “chases” around the track in a go-kart, while Little Suzy goes horse riding on a beach somewhere.
THE FAMOUS PHYSICIST
Albert Einstein once said that imagination is more important than knowledge, because knowledge is limited. Imagination can go right around the world. Imagine someone advising Louis Pasteur against using his imagination… then he would not have been able to prove that people can be protected against diseases by vaccinating them with weakened versions of the germs that make us ill. Suddenly I think again of the current battle to develop a vaccine for COVID-19… and that thought brings me back to earth with a hard jolt.