Publicity dodge proves to be a real rib-tickler

By THERESA GARNER

An argy-bargy with the police and officials of the American Express NZ Cup Village turned a publicity stunt by inventor Denis Stewart into a painful experience.

In fact, the bad day out has convinced the creator of the foldable barge that he should pack up and leave New Zealand.

"We're out of here," he said after a rib-crushing encounter with a wharf added to the misery of his encounter with officialdom.

He and business partner Stephen Snedden have been unable to attract an investor to support their Onehunga firm, Myark.

The pair took to the water on Sunday to show off their newest prototype, a 9.6m-long motorised floating platform, onto which they loaded a new campervan.

The bobbing barge got plenty of attention.

"Everyone wants to know us. We've been called 'brilliant,' people have said, 'Good on ya.'

"People on the big boats are waving at us," he said afterwards.

But officials at the Cup village disagreed, ordering the pair out and telling them that commercial advertising was not allowed in the Viaduct Harbour.

"I'm an inventor and I'm trying to create an industry in this country," said an enraged Mr Stewart.

The water police, who escorted the barge from the village and out into the Waitemata Harbour, infuriated him further by refusing to let him pick up passengers from a jetty by the village.

While he was arguing with them, the barge motored its way backwards towards the wharf, resulting in a distraught Mr Stewart throwing himself between it and the steel railings to save his prize from damage.

"I just about cracked my ribcage open."

Police said they had concerns about the way Mr Stewart was operating his craft - a claim he has dismissed, saying the campervan's hand brake was on and it did not need to be tied down in calm water.

He said he was planning to take the barge across Cook Strait and would tie it down then.

Inspiration for the barge, which folds up in the middle and can be towed by a vehicle, came in 1991.

The company now makes its money from renting out the barges to groups such as film crews.

"We're not worried about New Zealand; it's a pathetic place as a market," Mr Stewart said.

"And this is how they treat us in this country."

He said he and Mr Snedden would give up trying to attract interest in New Zealand, and over the next few days would use their barge as a viewing platform for the America's Cup racing.

Village spokeswoman Sue Foley said sponsors had paid huge amounts of money to have their names seen in the village and it was reasonable to bar access to people who "conflicted" with sponsors.

However, she said, officials had been happy for the barge to be in the village, until it tied up in a fishing area.