A former soldier in the Israeli Defense Force, Roee Magdassi knows how bulky and unsteady camping grills can be. Now a student at the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, he created Stakes – an awesome new grill that makes standard iterations look like dinosaurs.
“During my military service I experienced walking long trails while carrying heavy loads,” Magdassi told Wired. “Therefore, I understood the importance of designing light weight equipment.”
The 27-year-old Industrial designer conceived of Stakes as an alternative. It has a 13-inch by 10-inch cooking surface and – as Wired puts it – “folds up to the size of a paper towel tube when not in use.”
Stakes is comprised of three titanium stakes that are easily punched into the ground with a rock. But instead of having a fixed plate, Magdassi incorporates steel wires that thread through holes in the stakes.
This flexible setup not only takes the bulk and clank out of camping gear, but it also makes it very easy to create a steady plate even in places where the ground is hard since the wires have enough play that the stakes can be pulled in different directions until placement can be made.
Whereas the aluminum cooking pots and gas canisters that most people use on camping trips are typically wobbly on uneven ground, the triangular shaped wire grid establishes a brilliantly stable surface, and more of it, making it easy to cook up kebabs, fish, veggie burgers, and other camping goodness.
Albeit a brilliant idea for army forces, one that is likely to be exceptionally popular among future Israelis, Stakes is also perfect for backpackers – especially since it eliminates the gas canister, which is often troublesome for those who fly from their homes to their backpacking destinations.
:: Wired
Author: Tafline Laylin
As a tour leader who led “eco-friendly” camping trips throughout North America, Tafline soon realized that she was instead leaving behind a trail of gas fumes, plastic bottles and Pringles. In fact, wherever she traveled – whether it was Viet Nam or South Africa or England – it became clear how inefficiently the mandate to re-think our consumer culture is reaching the general public. Born in Iran, raised in South Africa and the United States, she currently splits her time between Africa and the Middle East. Tafline can be reached at tafline (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
