michel gauthier's Page
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- Are you interested in becoming an organizer in your area?
- Maybe--But Not Sure What to Organize
- Tell us about your experience with alternative energy:
- Ex-Acting Chairman of the International OTEC/DOWA Association-IOA.
Presently member of : www.clubdesargonautes.org
Retired from IFREMER, French National Institute for Marine Research.
- What excites you about this campaign?
- To see you are still promoting OTEC 8
- What do you want to do to help?
- I'm really busy with my " www.clubdesargonautes.org". We'll evaluate how to cooperate.....
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Walking down Rue des Plantes with my father and son on a sunny morning in Paris was an experience made more surreal by the clacking cadence of my father's cane. My father has always been a man that walks with determination that results in a pace that requires a boy to jog. On occasion, I would be that boy jogging with my brother to keep up with my fathers pace towards the Frankfurt Auto Show. Now, the three generations of Schneider's took a leisurely 15 minute stroll down the street to catch the tram. We paid a few Eurodollars to obtain tickets from an automated machine near the tram station and were soon whisked off to the Paris Auto Exposition.
Upon our arrival, we used the official magazine of the exposition to determine which buildings housed the special reasons that we were making this journey. First, we located the facilities that housed the Honda Clarity – hydrogen powered fuel cell, the all-new Honda Insight Hybrid and the Honda CR-Z Hybrid prototype. The crowds reminded me of the efforts we would make to get a glimpse of the new offerings at the Frankfurt Auto Show. This time it was my opportunity to encourage my son to take advantage of a crease in the crowd to wedge our way to a full picture opportunity along with my father.
Surprisingly, the next special reason for this journey was in a neighboring booth where we spent time with the Aixam MEGA, City, Roadline, Crossline and Scouty. The Aixam MEGA is available as a diesel or full electric vehicle in Europe and the cab and chassis are imported to America where Columbia ParCar electrifies and completes the glider as a Neighborhood Electric Vehicle (NEV) in Reedsburg, Wisconsin. My understanding of the Aixam complete line up was supplemented by a couple additional electric vehicle manufactures that were represented in this hall. Mitsubishi was offering a test drive of their prototype – MiEV and the three of us experienced it with a host as I got to drive it. Since I have been driving a full electric Columbia Summit or MEGA for nearly two years, it was not as surreal as it would have been for most. But it was an experience that I was grateful for, none the less.
My father has been associated with Volkswagen since 1954 and that was the main reason for our having visited the Frankfurt Auto Show in the past.
So it was our next stop in Paris. The model of particular interest for me was Volkswagen’s Blue Motion Diesel. It is a new engine that uses low sulfur diesel and therefore will be made available in America. Honda has made a similar announcement and we did get information as well as the opportunity to see the four models that they offer the clean diesel option. Mercedes Benz was also showing their Blue Hybrid in the exposition. We were intrigued by the Nissan Solar concept but disappointed that the Nissan Cube Electric was not shown.
All in all, the show was beyond expectations and the journey back to the hotel included the walk past a restaurant that we choose that evening. And the clack of my father’s cane sounded the determination in his walk to enjoy genuine French Cuisine.
This is a general overview of the Paris Auto Exposition and more detailed experiences will follow-so stay tuned!
Chris Schneider
La Crosse, Wi