Gearfuse

If you’re like Vince and I, competitive bikers and participators in the Tour de France, then you’ll be happy to know that the bike company Trek is pioneering the forefront in vending machines for bikes called “Trek Stop.” It’s the cycling convenience center that provides nearby stranded bikers all the needs (without the know-how) for bike repair.

At the moment, there is only this test unit, which will be set up for a month outside of Machinery Row Bicycles in Madison, Wisconsin. So, if you just so happen to be in the area and get a flat or need a spare water bottle, stop by the vending machine and take care of it. If you’re no where near Madison, Wisconsin, you’re shit out of luck, brahski.

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Neatorama has done a great job at rounding up some wacky and unique vending machines. While we’ve all reached for that 5-year-old bag of Party Mix before, these machines offer everything from marijuana to hot dogs to iPods. Though iPods aren’t anything new, I was surprised to find you can get a delicious (and kosher) Nathan’s hot dog from a machine.

My personal favorite is the live bait machine. Something about it just seems – wrong? I’ll stop blabbing and let you check it out for yourself. And yes, there is a porno vending machine.

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A Japanese company called Fujitaka has introduced a “Child Check System” for cigarette vending machines that uses facial recognition. It then compares the face with 100,000 faces in the vending machines database after taking a digital photograph of the consumer.

The legal smoking age in Japan is 20, so if you just so happen to be a 13-year old looking 20 year-old man, you’re shit out of luck. And if you’re a 20-year old who looks like a 13-year old, you get to cheat the system.

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