WEIRD, WEIRD

Skateboard made from blood of legend

A company has created skateboards using the blood of Tony Hawk. The skateboarding legend has teamed up with the drinks manufacturer Liquid Death to make some limited edition boards and the company drew blood from him to make the equipment.

Only 100 of the boards were made at a price of US$500, with the money going towards "killing plastic pollution and building skate parks in underserved communities".

Hawk said: "I am deeply thankful to have a connection with my fans, and I appreciate how Liquid Death connects with theirs.

"This collaboration is taking those connections to a new level, as I have literally put my blood (and soul) into these decks.

"I take pride in knowing that organisations fighting plastic pollution and creating skate parks worldwide will be supported through our efforts."

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Dolphins may have save swimmer

A swimmer that was rescued two and a half miles out at sea could have been helped by dolphins.

The male swimmer was located in the water off County Kerry in Ireland surrounded by a pod of the creatures after spending 12 hours struggling at sea.

The unnamed man was saved by a Fenit RNLI lifeboat on Sunday and his rescue was described as a "miracle" by RNLI volunteer Jackie Murphy.

RNLI coxswain Finbarr O'Connell calculated where the man was likely to be and noted that there were "a lot of dolphins around".

He told the Irish Independent newspaper: "Maybe they helped him in some way or another: who knows?"

O'Connell added that it was miraculous that the man survived the ordeal and suggested that he would have been killed if he had been discovered any later.

He said: "He was very, very lucky. There is no doubt about it. Another half an hour, and he was a goner. None of us or the medics can believe he survived it."

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Woman has 'affair' with chimp

A zoo in Belgium has banned a woman due to her "affair" with one of the chimpanzees.

Adie Timmermans has been visiting a primate called Chita at the zoo in Antwerp every week for the past four years and has forged a strong bond with the animal.

She said: "I love that animal, and he loves me. I haven't got anything else. Why do they want to take that away? We're having an affair, I'll just say."

The "affair" involves Timmermans and the chimp waving and blowing kisses at each other but the zoo is concerned about the pair's relationship as it is having a negative impact on the animal's bond with other chimpanzees.

A zoo spokesperson said: "When Chita is constantly busy with visitors, the other monkeys ignore him and don't consider him part of the group, even though that is important. He then sits on his own outside of visiting hours.

"An animal that is too focused on people is less respected by its peers. We want Chita to be a chimpanzee as much as possible."

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