A Frenchman and a Beetle

World in Slow Motion is always happy to welcome other contributors and we’re delighted to post this entry by Hugo, a jolly nice French chap who’s pootling across the length of the Americas in a VW Beetle in a quest to promote greener, cleaner fuels.

We bumped into him back in San Cristobal de las Casas, Mexico, and he had some interesting things to tell us about his trip, the H2 project.

I’ll leave it to the man himself to explain it in his own words…over to you Hugo:

“The H2 project is the result of a bit of craziness, the desire to fulfil a childhood dream and barely disguised ambition.

The project aims to drive a VW Beetle all the way from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Sacramento, California in a in search of adventure of the least-polluting kind.

I’ve decided to travel across Latin America because it is a unique opportunity for me to discover a part of the world that I’ve always wanted to know better, especially its music, its colours and its people.

Even better, I’m doing it in a fun way, my arse comfortably (?) set in the seat of a Volkswagen beetle.

Besides having fun en route the H2 Project has a serious purpose, the main goal being to raise public awareness about cleaner and greener alternative fuels for cars and to persuade governments of the urgent need to develop them for the mainstream market.

The H2 Project derives its name from the chemical formula of hydrogen, now widely accepted to be the clean fuel of the future. Hugo and his team, like many others firmly believe hydrogen holds the key to a brighter, cleaner future energy would be free, clean and 100% renewable.

In line with this the H2 Project is a quest for the best clean, renewable and economical fuel available.

With my own car, I initially intended to convert the car engine to work with hydrogen, however experiences have led him to change his mind and seek to acquire an electric engine.

I now aim, through the H2 project, to share my experiences and proposed solutions with whoever cares for the earth and wishes to do something about it.

For any out there who are still sat on the sofa, have a read of "To breathe and die " by Mema, a member of our team.

Follow me in my adventures and don’t hesitate to take part in them yourselves by letting me know your own experiences of using hydrogen/electricity-fuelled vehicles or travelling across Latin America, whether it be from in front of a computer screen or behind a steering wheel.”

Read more about Hugo and the H2 project on their fantastic website here.