Paul Smith Is The Twitchiker, Crossing World With Twitter
PAUL Berger, Anorak’s man in NY, writes on Paul Smith, a British freelance journalist who will see how far he can get away from Newcastle by using the power of Twitter.
Paul Smith, the “Twitchhiker,” will only accept lifts, lodging and food from fellow Twitterers in his bid to get from Newcastle to New Zealand in 30 days. (What’s Twitter?) With more than 4,000 Twitterers following him already I’d say he has a pretty good chance of making it. He also has a wry, self-deprecating manner (as evidenced in the video interview with Web User, above) which should make his on-the-road reports even more entertaining. The following are his self-imposed rules:
The are five rules I have to follow throughout the 30 days. Obviously I’m at liberty to bend them if certain death or amputation will otherwise occur, but I’ll do my best to stick to them:
I can only accept offers of travel and accommodation on Twitter, from users who are following @twitchhiker
This means if a Twitterer’s sister’s boyfriend’s father has a spare train ticket, I can’t use it; the help has to come directly from the person using Twitter. This may be too restrictive, but I want to draw on the support of the Twitter community, not to use Twitter as a search engine to find third party services.
I can’t make any plans further than three days in advance
It’s entirely possible that before I begin this challenge, I could have my entire route pre-determined and that would be no fun at all. So unless an offer of transport or accommodation is made within 72 hours of it being applicable, I can’t accept it. Damn.
I can only spend money on food, drink and anything that might fit in my suitcase
All travel and accommodation must be offered to me through Twitter. If I can’t, then I’m sleeping rough.
If there’s more than one offer on the table, I get to choose which I take. If there’s only one, I have to take it within 48 hours.
I’m not entirely happy about this bit. If any part of this challenge is going to see me dead in a ditch or under a patio, it’s this part.
If I’m unable to find a way to move on from a location within 48 hours, the challenge is over and I go home.
I hope my fellow Twitterers won’t let that happen.
– PB
Posted: 4th, March 2009 | In: Strange But True Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
