Huang Guoxue in his self-designed working costume, Jan 11. [Photo/Chengdu Business Daily] |
Meet the incredible beehive man
Looking at this costume might remind you of chemical or biological hazard suits or those well-armed super heroes in movies.
But the daredevil wearing it is making money out of encountering what most people are too terrified to touch or even get close to: bees and honeycombs.
Huang Guoxue, 41, from Sichuan province, learned to pick up honeycombs since he was around 10. Because the honey and comb are good fat-free protein and are hard to get, he has been making good money out of this dangerous occupation.
Through the years he designed a hermetic costume, an outfit connected to gloves and headgear, and a breathing channel made out of a plastic bottle. He also attached some sharp iron teeth to the bottom of his shoes so he could climb trees better.
Another indispensible tool in his 'career' is a secret antidote medicine that his father, a rural doctor, created and passed down to him. With it he survived many serious attacks from bees.
"That medicine is effective.....but I won't tell the ingredient. On average I collect around 60 honeycombs every year. The largest one I ever got is 1.7 meters high, 35 kilograms in weight. It was so gigantic that I had to cut it into two halves to take it away in my car," Huang said, as reported by Chengdu Business Daily.