KFC

kfc history



9/9/1890
Harland Sanders is born just outside Henryville, Indiana.

1900-1924
Harland Sanders holds a variety of jobs including: farm hand, streetcar conductor, army private in Cuba, blacksmith's helper, railyard fireman, insurance salesman, tire salesman and service station operator for Standard Oil.

1930
In the midst of the depression, Harland Sanders opens his first restaurant in the small front room of a gas station in Corbin, Kentucky. Sanders serves as station operator, chief cook and cashier and names the dining area "Sanders Court & Café."

1936
Kentucky Governor Ruby Laffoon makes Harland Sanders an honorary Kentucky Colonel in recognition of his contributions to the state's cuisine.

1937
The Sanders Court & Café adds a motel and expands the restaurant to 142 seats.

1939
The Sanders Court & Café is first listed in Duncan Hines' "Adventures in Good Eating."

Fire destroys The Sanders Court & Café, but it is rebuilt and reopened.

The pressure cooker is introduced. Soon thereafter Colonel Sanders begins using it to fry his chicken to give customers fresh chicken, faster.

1940
Birthdate of the Original Recipe

1949
Sanders marries Claudia Price.

1952
The Colonel begins actively franchising his chicken business by traveling from town to town and cooking batches of chicken for restaurant owners and employees.

The Colonel awards Pete Harman of Salt Lake City with the first KFC franchise. A handshake agreement stipulates a payment of a nickel to Sanders for each chicken sold.

1955
An interstate highway is built to bypass Corbin, Kentucky. Sanders sells the service station on the same day that he receives his first social security check for $105. After paying debts owed, he is virtually broke. He decides to go on the road to sell his Secret Recipe to restaurants.

1957
Kentucky Fried Chicken first sold in buckets

1960
The Colonel's hard work on the road begins to pay off and there are 190 KFC franchisees and 400 franchise units in the U.S. and Canada.

1964
Kentucky Fried Chicken has more than 600 franchised outlets in the United States, Canada and the first overseas outlet, in England.

Sanders sells his interest in the U.S. company for $2 million to a group of investors headed by John Y. Brown Jr., future governor of Kentucky. The Colonel remains a public spokesman for the company.

1965
Colonel Sanders receives the Horatio Alger Award from the American Schools and Colleges Association.

1966
The Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation goes public.

1969
The Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

1971
More than 3,500 franchised and company-owned restaurants are in worldwide operation when Heublein Inc. acquires KFC Corporation.

1976
An independent survey ranks the Colonel as the world's second most recognizable celebrity.

1977
Colonel Sanders speaks before a U.S. Congressional Committee on Aging.

1979
KFC cooks up 2.7 billion pieces of chicken. There are approximately 6,000 KFC restaurants worldwide with sales of more than $2 billion.

12/16/1980
Colonel Harland Sanders, who came to symbolize quality in the food industry, dies after being stricken with leukemia. Flags on all Kentucky state buildings fly at half-staff for four days.

1982
Kentucky Fried Chicken becomes a subsidiary of R.J. Reynolds Industries, Inc. (now RJR Nabisco, Inc.) when Heublein, Inc. is acquired by Reynolds.

1986
PepsiCo, Inc. acquires KFC from RJR Nabisco, Inc.

1997
PepsiCo, Inc. announces the spin-off of its quick service restaurants - KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut - into Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc.

2002
Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc., the world's largest restaurant company, changes its corporate name to YUM! Brands, Inc. In addition to KFC, the company owns A&W® All-American Food® Restaurants, Long John Silvers®, Pizza Hut® and Taco Bell® restaurants.

2006
More than a billion of the Colonel's "finger lickin' good" chicken dinners are served annually in more than 80 countries and territories around the world.

2007
KFC proudly introduces a new recipe that keeps the Colonel's 11 herbs and spices and finger-lickin' flavor, but contains Zero Grams of Trans Fat per serving thanks to new cooking oil.

2008
The Colonel has a new look! KFC updates one of the most recognized, respected and beloved brand icons with a new logo. The new logo depicts Colonel Sanders with his signature string tie, but for the first time, replaces his classic white, double-breasted suit with a red apron. The apron symbolizes the home-style culinary heritage of the brand and reminds customers that KFC is always in the kitchen cooking delicious, high-quality, freshly prepared chicken by hand, just the way Colonel Sanders did 50 years ago.

2009
KFC introduces Kentucky Grilled Chicken™ - a better-for-you option for health conscious consumers who love the flavor of KFC. Kentucky Grilled Chicken has less calories, fat and sodium than KFC’s Original .

sport car (ferrari)

              

HY-KERS vettura laboratorio 

Presented at the 2010 Geneva International Motor Show: the first Ferrari hybrid with the unusual opaque green livery.

The Ferrari 250 GTO Makeover

Taking Apart and Putting Back Together a $15M Ferrari

By Robert Coucher, Contributor | Published Apr 22, 2011

 Poor So-So Pretty Good Good Excellent 

A fair old debate has been going on in the world of historic cars. Should cars be restored or preserved? We profess to liking our historics careworn and with a certain degree of patina, as if they were lovely old contraptions. Ever seen a scruffy vintage Bugatti, where every grease nipple is oozing with fresh lubrication but the paint is wretched and chrome has been wantonly rubbed through to the brass?

Of course, this sort of debate intensifies when a rare and important machine like this Ferrari 250 GTO is concerned. Just like every one of the 39 Ferrari 250 GTOs built between 1962 and 1964, chassis number 3527GT's history has been detailed in various books. So when the current owner purchased it in 2005, he had to decide: leave it as is or restore it?

A tough decision, made more so when you factor in that a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO is now worth north of $15 million.

The Patina Quotient
While 3527GT had been a lovely original car, it has survived a tough racing life. It was sold new to Gottfried Koechert in May 1962 and was promptly entered in the Nürburgring 1,000 Km, but then sold right afterward — probably because the owner realized he had more car than he anticipated.

Next the car came into the hands of racer Lucien Bianchi (later a great friend of Mario Andretti), who entered it in the 1962 Tour de France. Bianchi and navigator Claude Dubois led this fierce combination of high-speed road rally and circuit-based road race until the last day, when they collided with a milk truck. The lightweight aluminium nose of the Ferrari was stove in, but the pair leaped out and cut most of the front of the car clean off and got going again, although they could only manage to finish 7th.

By 1965 the GTO had been retired from racing by its new owner, Swiss banker Armand Boller. He had raced it extensively since 1963, but when his Swiss friend Tommy Spychiger was killed in a Scuderia Filipinetti Ferrari 365P2 at the 1965 Monza 1,000 Km, Boller withdrew his GTO from the race and retired from driving

about lion

Lions once lived in southern Europe, Africa, and parts of Asia. Today, however, they are confined mainly to the game reserves of Africa. A few live in the Gir Forest of India. This Indian subspecies is highly endangered: a single disease outbreak could wipe them all out.
An adult male lion can be 3.4 m (11 ft.) long including the tail, and weigh as much as 250 kg (550 lb.). The female is about 15 to 20% smaller, and lacks the male's heavy mane.
Most lions, except non-breeding males, live in groups known as prides, which usually include 6 to 30 members. One or two mature males, or occasionally more, will reside with each pride.
Typically, lions spend 20 to 21 hours per day resting. The remaining time is spent interacting socially (playing, nursing, mating, loafing, etcetera) and hunting.
Lions prey mostly on hoofed animals, although they occasionally consume fallen fruit and carrion. They hunt co-operatively and, while the females are better hunters and do most of the work bringing down the prey, the males eat first, followed by the females, and then the cubs. The initial charge of a hunting lion only lasts about 50 to 100 m (164 to 328 ft.). If the intended prey is quick enough to keep ahead of the predator for that distance, the lion will usually abandon the attempt.
Lions are the only cats that live in groups, which are called prides. Prides are family units that may include up to three males, a dozen or so females, and their young. All of a pride's lionesses are related, and female cubs typically stay with the group as they age. Young males eventually leave and establish their own prides by taking over a group headed by another male.
Only male lions boast manes, the impressive fringe of long hair that encircles their heads. Males defend the pride's territory, which may include some 100 square miles (259 square kilometers) of grasslands, scrub, or open woodlands. These intimidating animals mark the area with urine, roar menacingly to warn intruders, and chase off animals that encroach on their turf.
Female lions are the pride's primary hunters. They often work together to prey upon antelopes, zebras, wildebeest, and other large animals of the open grasslands. Many of these animals are faster than lions, so teamwork pays off.
After the hunt, the group effort often degenerates to squabbling over the sharing of the kill, with cubs at the bottom of the pecking order. Young lions do not help to hunt until they are about a year old. Lions will hunt alone if the opportunity presents itself, and they also steal kills from hyenas or wild dogs.
Lions have been celebrated throughout history for their courage and strength. They once roamed most of Africa and parts of Asia and Europe. Today they are found only in parts of sub-Saharan Africa, except for one very small population of Asian lions that survives in India's Gir Forest

history of adidas

     

aDidas ag is a German sports apparel manufacturer and part of the Adidas Group, which consists of Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-adidas golf company, and Rockport. Besides sports footwear, the company also produces other products such as bags, shirts, watches, eyewear and other sports and clothing related goods. The company is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe and the second biggest sportswear manufacturer in the world, to its US rival Nike
The company’s clothing and shoe designs typically feature three parallel bars, and the same motif is incorporated into Adidas’s current official logo. The company revenue for 2008 was listed at €10.799 billion and the 2007 figure was listed at €10.299 billion, or about US$15.6 billion.
Founded 1924 (registered in 1949)
Founder(s) Adolf Dassler
Headquarters Herzogenaurach, Germany
Key people Herbert Hainer (CEO), Erich Stamminger (CEO, Adidas Brand), Igor Landau (Chairman of the supervisory board) (2009-)
Industry Designing and Manufacturing
Products Footwear, Sportswear, Sports equipment and Toiletries
Revenue €10.799 billion (2008)[2]
Operating income ▲ €1.070 billion (2008)
Profit ▲ €642 million (2008)
Employees 38,980 (2008)
Website www.adidas-group.com
History
A retail store in Tel Aviv, Israel.Adolf (“Adi”) Dassler started to produce his own sports shoes in his mother’s wash kitchen in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, after his return from World War I. In 1924, his brother Rudolf (Rudi) Dassler joined the business which became Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory) and prospered.
At the 1928 Olympics, Dassler equipped several athletes, laying the foundation for the international expansion of the company. During the 1936 Summer Olympics on Berlin, Dassler equipped quadruple gold medal winner Jesse Owens of the U.S. with his shoes.
Late in World War II, the shoe factory shifted to production of the Panzerschreck anti-tank weapon.
The brothers split up in 1947,[5] with Rudi forming Puma, and Adi forming adidas.
The company formally registered as adidas AG (with lower case lettering) on 18 August 1949. The phrase All Day I Dream About Sports, although sometimes considered the origin of the adidas name, was applied retroactively. The name is actually a portmanteau from “Adi” (a nickname for Adolf) and “Das” (from “Dassler”).
The Tapie affair
After a period of trouble following the death of Adolf Dassler’s son Horst Dassler in 1987, the company was bought in 1989 by French industrialist Bernard Tapie, for 1.6 billion French francs (now €243.918 million), which Tapie borrowed. Tapie was at the time a famous specialist of rescuing bankrupt companies, an expertise on which he built his fortune.
Tapie decided to move production offshore to Asia. He also hired Madonna for promotion. He sent, from Christchurch, New Zealand, a shoe sales representative, to Germany and met Adolf Dassler’s descendants (Amelia Randall Dassler and Bella Beck Dassler) and was sent back with a few items to promote the company there.
A pair of Adidas “Samba” football trainers.In 1992, Tapie was unable to pay the interest from his loan. He mandated the Crédit Lyonnais bank to sell Adidas, and the bank subsequently converted the outstanding debt owed into equity of the enterprise, which was unusual as per the prevalent French banking practice. Apparently, the state-owned bank had tried to get Tapie out of dire financial straits as a personal favour to Tapie, reportedly because Tapie was Minister of Urban Affairs (ministre de la Ville) in the French government at the time.
In February 1993, Crédit Lyonnais sold Adidas to Robert Louis-Dreyfus, a friend of Bernard Tapie for a much higher amount of money than what Tapie owed, 4.485 billion (€683.514 million) francs rather than 2.85 billion (€434.479 million). Tapie later sued the bank, because he felt “spoiled” by the indirect sale.
Robert Louis-Dreyfus became the new CEO of the company. He is also the president of the Olympique de Marseille football team, a team Tapie owned until 1993.
Tapie filed for personal bankruptcy in 1994. He was the object of several lawsuits, notably related to match fixing at the soccer club. During 1997, he served 6 months of an 18 month prison sentence in La Santé prison in Paris.
In 2005, French courts awarded Tapie a €135 million compensation (about 886 million francs).
Post-Tapie era
In 1994, combined with FIFA Youth Group, SOS Children’s Villages became the main beneficiary.
In 1997, Adidas AG acquired the Salomon Group who specialized in ski wear, and its official corporate name was changed to Adidas-Salomon AG because with this acquisition Adidas also acquired the Taylormade Golf company and Maxfli which allowed them to compete with Nike Golf.
In 1998, Adidas sued the NCAA over their rules limiting the size and number of commercial logos on team uniforms and apparel. Adidas withdrew the suit, and the two groups established guidelines as to what three-stripe designs would be considered uses of the Adidas trademark.
In 2003, Adidas filed a lawsuit in a British court challenging Fitness World Trading’s use of a two-stripe motif similar to Adidas’s three stripes. The court ruled that despite the simplicity of the mark, Fitness World ‘s use was infringing because the public could establish a link between that use and Adidas’s mark.
In September 2004, top English fashion designer Stella McCartney launched a joint-venture line with Adidas, establishing a long-term partnership with the corporation. This line is a sports performance collection for women called “Adidas by Stella McCartney”,[7] and it has been critically acclaimed.
Also in 2005, on 3 May, Adidas told the public that they sold their partner company Salomon Group for €485m to Amer Sports of Finland.
In August 2005, Adidas declared its intention to buy British rival Reebok for $3.8 billion (US). This takeover was completed with partnership in January 2006[1] and meant that the company will have business sales closer to those of Nike in North America. The acquisition of Reebok will also allow Adidas to compete with Nike worldwide as the number two athletic shoemaker in the world.
Adidas has corporate headquarters in Germany, and many other business locations around the world such as Hong Kong, Toronto, Taiwan, England, Japan, Australia and Spain. Mainly sold in the U.S., Adidas makes lots of assets from these countries and is expanding to more oversea countries.
In 2005, Adidas introduced the Adidas 1, the first ever production shoe to utilize a microprocessor. Dubbed by the company “The World’s First Intelligent Shoe”, it features a microprocessor capable of performing 5 million calculations per second that automatically adjusts the shoe’s level of cushioning to suit its environment. The shoe requires a small, user-replaceable battery that lasts for approximately 100 hours of running. On 25 November, 2005, Adidas released a new version of the Adidas 1 with an increased range of cushioning, allowing the shoe to become softer or firmer, and a new motor with 153 percent more torque.
On 11 April 2006, Adidas announced an 11-year deal to become the official NBA apparel provider. They will make NBA, NBDL, and WNBA jerseys and products as well as team-coloured versions of the “Superstar” basketball shoe. This deal (worth over $400 million) takes the place of the previous 10-year Reebok deal that was put in place in 2001.
Products
Running
Adidas currently manufactures several running shoes, including the adiStar Control 5, the adiStar Ride (the replacement for the adiStar Cushion 6), the Supernova Sequence (the replacement for the Supernova Control 10), and the Supernova Cushion 7 (which will soon be replaced by the Supernova Glide), among others. In addition, their performance apparel is widely used by runners. Adidas also uses kangaroo leather to make their more expensive shoes.
Association football
One of the main focuses of Adidas is football kit and associated equipment. Adidas also provides apparel and equipment for all teams in Major League Soccer. Adidas remain a major company in the supply of team kits for international football teams. Current examples include Russia, France, Germany, Greece, Romania, Argentina, Spain, Mexico, Japan and Nigeria. The company has been an innovator in the area of footwear for the sport with notable examples including development of the Copa Mondial moulded boot used for matches on firm dry pitches for almost forty years. The studded equivalent was named World Cup follow in celebration of the 1978 tournament won by Argentina, one of the nations it supplied at the time. Adidas became renowned for advancing the “Predator” boot design developed by ex-Liverpool and Australian international player Craig Johnston. This design featured a ribbed rubber structure for the upper leather of the shoe, used to accent the movement of the ball when struck; highly skilled players claimed they were able to curve the flight of the ball more easily when wearing this new contoured design.The Predator also features the Craig Johnston invented “Traxion” sole. As the development and popularity of Football continued Adidas played a leading role in shaping the style of the play itself. FIFA, the sports governing body, commissioned specially designed footballs for use in its own World Cup tournaments to favour more attacking play. The balls supplied for the 2006 Germany World Cup were particular noteworthy for their ability to travel further than previous types when struck, leading to longer range goal strikes that were intended to increase the number of goals scores and increase spectator enjoyment. Goalkeepers were believed to be less comfortable with the design claiming it would move significantly and unpredictably in flight.
Tennis
Adidas has sponsored tennis players and recently introduced a new line of tennis racquets. While the Feather is made for the “regular player”, and the Response for the “club player”, Adidas targets the “tournament player” with the 12.2 oz Barricade tour model[12]. Adidas sponsors the following professional players: Marat Safin, Dinara Safina, Ana Ivanović, Fernando Verdasco, Novak Djokovic, Gilles Simon, Marcos Baghdatis and doubles team Bob and Mike Bryan. Adidas tennis apparel contains the ClimaCool technology found in other athletic jerseys and shoes.
Golf
In 1997, Adidas purchased TaylorMade. The image and focus of TaylorMade was redirected shortly after the acquisition to take over the driver market. The company succeeded in achieving this goal in late 2004 when it officially became the No. 1 driver in golf. On 14 October 2008, Adidas, through its subsidiary TaylorMade, acquired Ashworth for $72 million, assuming $46.3 million in debt.
Cricket
In the 1990s Adidas signed the former world No. 1 batsman Sachin Tendulkar and made shoes for him.He is still wearing Adidas shoes when he plays matches.
In 2008, Adidas made their move into English cricket market by sponsoring English batting star Kevin Pietersen after the cancellation of his lifetime deal with Woodworm, when they ran into financial difficulties. The following year they signed up fellow England player Ian Bell. Their products are available in the Incurza, Pellara and Libro ranges.
Adidas also also sponsors the England Cricket Team and the Australian Cricket Team
In 2008, in the first edition of the Indian premier league(IPL)it took up the sponsorship of two teams Mumbai Indians and Delhi Daredevils.
Basketball
Adidas has been a longtime basketball shoe manufacturer. They are most famous for the Superstar and Pro Model twins, affectionately known as “shelltoes” for their stylized hard rubber toe cap. These were made very popular in the 1980s Hip-Hop streetwear scene alongside Adidas’ stripe-sided polyester suits.
Adidas also sponsors players past and present like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Tracy McGrady, as well as Dwight Howard, Chauncey Billups, Desmond Mason, Kevin Garnett, and Tim Duncan.
Patrick Ewing once had an extremely popular Adidas signature model in the late 1980s, now known as the Attitude since Ewing is no longer under contract (he parted to start his own shoe line under Next Sports in the early 1990s). Kobe Bryant entered the NBA under contract with Adidas, but elected not to renew in 2002 after lukewarm critical and market responses to the KOBETWO shoe. He has since signed with Nike.
Lacrosse
In 2007, Adidas announced the future production of lacrosse equipment, and will sponsor the Adidas National Lacrosse Classic in July 2008 for the top 600 high school underclassmen lacrosse players in the United States.
Rugby
Adidas make Rugby balls and other rugby gear. They are the current Kit and ball supplier to the number 1 ranked New Zealand national Rugby team, the All Blacks and also the Argintinean Rugby team.
Accessories
Adidas also designs and makes watches, eyewear, bags, caps and socks
Toiletries
Adidas also have a range of Deodorants, perfumes, Aftershave lotions.
Marketing
Adidas has developed unique and dynamic marketing initiatives in traditional and emerging mediums. They are stalwarts of innovative, out-of-the-box campaigns that extend beyond their products to an entire philosophy, thinking, and way of life. Here are several campaigns that speak not only about Adidas products, but the lifestyle they create:
Urban Art Guide—Adidas embodies rebellion, independence and creative expression, particularly in an urban setting. Their street-art locator application for Apple’s iPhone, bolstered urban street artists exposure and branded the outfitter as a “for-the-people” company.
Mi Adidas—Permits users to customize their footwear.
Adicolor Viral Video–This cerebral, abstract video campaign symbolizes Adidas’ commitment to expression, no matter how strange or weird.
Sponsorship
Main article: List of Adidas sponsorships
Adidas are the main sponsor and kit supplier of the highly successful New Zealand national rugby team, the All Blacks. Adidas also are the kit supplier to the Argentina national rugby team Los Pumas, to Stade Francais and Munster.
Adidas are the main sponsors and kit sponsors of the successful Australian Cricket Team and the England Cricket Team. They are also the main sponsors of the Indian cricketers Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag and English cricketers Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell. Adidas are the main sponsors of Australian Domestic Cricket Competitions – Pura Cup, KFC Twenty20 Big Bash, Ford Ranger One Day Cup. They are sponsors of the Indian Premier League Teams Delhi Daredevils and Mumbai Indians.
Adidas also sponsors the Gold Coast Titans and St George Illawarra Dragons rugby league clubs in the Australian National Rugby League (NRL) competition.
Adidas is the longstanding kit provider to the Germany national football team, a sponsorship that began in 1954 and is contracted to continue until at least 2018.
Adidas are very active at sponsoring top football clubs such as IFK Göteborg, A.C. Milan, Olympique de Marseille, Ajax Amsterdam, Bayern Munich, FC Schalke 04, Fluminense FC, Benfica, Chelsea F.C., Liverpool F.C., Newcastle United F.C., Al-Ahly, Beşiktaş J.K., Galatasaray SK, Fenerbahçe SK, UANL Tigres, Panathinaikos, Real Madrid, Club Atletico River Plate, SE Palmeiras, Club de Fútbol Universidad de Chile, and the Colombian football teams Club Deportivo Los Millonarios, Deportivo Cali and Atletico Nacional.
Adidas and Major League Soccer announced a 10-year sponsorship agreement in November 2004 to make Adidas the official athletic sponsor and licensed product supplier for the league, and to work together to create a developmental league for MLS.
Adidas also sponsors events such as The London Marathon.
For the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, Adidas spent €70 million sponsoring the event amid criticisms.
Adidas has also been marketing in Nascar, sponsoring big name drivers like Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart

about nike

It began in 1964 with a casual agreement and a handshake between University of Oregon track coach Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight, a middle-distance runner. The pair formed Blue Ribbon Sports and began importing Japanese brand Onitsuka Tiger running shoes, known today as ASICs, for sale in the U.S.

In 1967, Knight and Bowerman made the handshake deal formal and incorporated as BRS Inc. Jeff Johnson signed on in 1965 as the company's first full-time salesperson and opened Blue Ribbon Sports' first retail outlet the following year. In 1971, Johnson made an incalculable contribution to the company: One night, he dreamed of Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, and suggested the name to his bosses. The company used the moniker for its first footwear product to feature the "Swoosh" mark -- a soccer cleat called the Nike, whose name beat out Knight's suggestion that they call it the Dimension 6.

The Swoosh trademark was created by a graphic-design student from Portland State University named Carolyn Davidson. She got $35 for her creation.

In 1977, former aerospace engineer Frank Rudy teamed with Nike to create the first Air-Sole units -- durable bags filled with pressurized gas that compressed under impact, then sprang back. The result was Nike Air cushioning, which hit stores in 1979.

In 1980, Nike went public.

The year 1984 saw the signing of basketball megastar Michael Jordan to an endorsement contract, followed by the 1985 release of his signature shoe, the Air Jordan. Originally, the NBA banned this new shoe because it didn't match the league's dress code, but the ban simply served to give the design a higher profile and extensive publicity.

Superstar Follow-Up

Nike followed up on its footwear fame by dressing athletes from head to toe, introducing apparel collections for tennis and basketball, which were popularized respectively by superstars John McEnroe and Michael Jordan. In 1988, Nike's "Just Do It" slogan was introduced, and it remains one of the most recognizable and successful commercial taglines. In 1990, the first NikeTown store opened in Portland, Ore. The company signed golfing phenom Tiger Woods in 1996.

In 1999, Bill Bowerman, Nike's co-founder, died at age 88. The company bought bankrupt rival Converse for $305 million in 2003. In 2004, Phil Knight stepped down as CEO and president of Nike, but he continues as chairman. Headquartered in Beaverton, Ore., Nike remains one of the largest and most successful companies operating today.

The concept of drums are as old as mankind. A drum is called a membranophone, or an instrument that creates sound by striking a stretched membrane with some type of object, usually a rounded stick. Drums consist of a hollowed-out piece(called the body), a membrane stretched over the end of the drum, and tuning keys or pegs which tighten or loosen the membrane to achieve different tones. While most may think that the body of the drum produces the sound, it is in fact actually the membrane and its vibration that creates the sound when struck.

Drums first appeared as far back as 6000 BC. Mesopotamian excavations unearthed small cylindrical drums dated 3000 BC. Several wall markings found in caves in Peru show drums used in various aspects of societal life. The American Indians used gourd and wooden constructed drums for their rituals and ceremonies. Drums have always been used for more than merely creating music. Civil uses, messaging, and religious uses are but a few.

Drum kits, a grouping of various toned drums, originated in marching bands and parade bands in New Orleans. It was found that one drummer could play more than one drum simultaneously. This is known as double drumming. Cymbals and Tom Toms, which were invented in China, were added to drum kits. Percussion additives such as cowbells, wooden blocks, and chimes were incorporated as well. By the 1930's the standard drum kit had taken shape. The Kit consisted of a bass drum and foot pedal, snare, tom toms, hi-hat cymbal, and large hanging cymbals.

Origins of the Drum Kit

In the 1960's rock drummers began the expansion of drum kits that are the norm today. More toms and cymbals, as well as the addition of another bass drum to increase speed were added. Electronic drums were also developed to create sounds that traditional drums were unable to produce. These brought about the synthesized drum sounds used in many modern styles of music.

What new creations will be incorporated into future drum kits is anyone's guess. They will only be limited by the imaginations and creativity of musicians and manufacturers. The future of drumming should be an interesting one then

MOUNTAIN KINABALU GOLF

Mount Kinabalu Golf Club

For a high country sporting challenge, this 18 hole golf course is perched 2,000 metres above sea level at the base of Mount Kinabalu.

Spectacular views of the mountain offer a welcome distraction to your game as well as a dramatic backdrop to every hole.

Similar route just like if you are heading to KUNDASANG DAIRY FARM. Except at the entrance to the farm, don't turn left. Instead, go further up the dirt mountain road until you see THE GOLF RESORT.

On a side note, Mt Kinabalu is best viewed early in the morning. The hot and humid lowlands will bring enough moisture clouds to totally cover up the breathtaking mountain peaks as early as 10:00am in the morning. So, do start your journey early