KEY POINTS:
It's the latest fashion accessory for the modern man of action who has nowhere to put his pig carcass as he stumbles for hours out of dense bush.
It's called The Tusk and was designed by Massey University student Iain Tolladay, who noticed a niche in the market.
The 23-year-old industrial design graduate has combined his training with his passion for hunting to invent a backpack capable of carrying wild game weighing up to 100kg.
The Tusk redistributes the load from the back and shoulders to the hips, in the same way a hiking pack does.
The design has put Mr Tolladay into the finals of next week's national design awards for final year tertiary students.
Mr Tolladay said his inspiration came from personal experience.
"I remember the first time I thought of it, I was carrying out a really heavy pig. It took me and my brother four to five hours to get it out of the dense bush. I thought 'there has to be an easier way'."
Mr Tolladay said the pack was more comfortable and safer than conventional pig-toting methods.
"The Tusk has safety clips which allow a hunter to quickly release its load."
Before he had a real pig to test the Tusk on, Mr Tolladay practised on classmates.
"I had a 110kg dude on my back at one stage."
Mr Tolladay said other hunters have provided feedback and he hoped to produce the Tusk commercially.
The other three award finalists in the design awards are Kent Hodgson, who invented a drink cooling system, Alexander Wastney, who came up with a sports therapy table for professional sports teams, and Matt McKinley, who designed a mobile sheep testing station for farmers to test pregnant ewes. The winner will be announced on Thursday.
- NZPA
