Posts

Posted on

The Porsche 550 and Jaroslav Juhan’s Story from his book Life Without Brakes.

The book on Jaroslav Juhan “Life Without Brakes, The man that brought Porsche to Carrera is written by Jan Králík in Czech and published by Grada Publishing

The translations (with help from Google), narration and video were done by myself. The views are my own and any the use of the book as a reference is with permission of Frankie Juhan. Frankie let me use his hard copy to augment the PDF Jaroslav sent me from Geneva before the book went to print.

The book is broken down into four videos inspired by sections of the book. please let me know what you think.

#1 : Franta Juhan, Czechoslovakian Speedway champion and Jaroslav’s older brother.

#2: The pre-war years Life was good!

#3: The war years and imprisonment by the Nazis

#4: Porsche 550 and Jaroslav Juhan The man who brought Porsche to the Carrera.

Life with Porsche, Lotus and Ferrari

I hope you enjoy this and that you give me a thumbs up if you do and subscribe if you care.

Jaroslav Juhan was a Czech racing driver who played a significant role in bringing Porsche to the forefront of motorsport. In the early 1950s, he raced a Porsche 550 Spyder in several endurance events, including the legendary Carrera Panamericana race in Mexico.

Juhan’s success in the Panamericana race in 1953, where he finished third overall and first in his class, Porsche’s management invited Juhan to join its works racing team, and he continued to compete in endurance races around the world, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Mille Miglia. Juhan’s success on the track helped to establish Porsche as a formidable competitor in international motorsport.

His contributions to the development of the Porsche 550 Spyder also helped to shape the future of sports car racing, with the lightweight, mid-engined design becoming a template for future Porsche race cars.

Juhan’s achievements in motorsport were not limited to racing for Porsche. He also won several Czechoslovakian national championships and competed in Formula One, becoming the first Czech driver to do so.

Overall, Jaroslav Juhan’s career as a racing driver helped to shape the course of motorsport history, and his legacy continues to inspire fans and competitors alike. His brother was the famous Speedway star Franta Juhan so the family was influential on four and two wheels.

The process I used to do these included my writing notes as I read the book to give me a reference point. This wee clip was to show my best friend Frankie Juhan and Jaroslav’s nephew peek at my process.

Posted on

Welcome to Winding-Roads with Duncan Fraser

Welcome to my blog, where I’ll be sharing my experiences with motorcycles and books. Both have the power to shape who we are as individuals. Motorcycling offers a unique physical connection with the environment, unlike traveling in enclosed vehicles. On the other hand, books provide an endless journey of self-discovery, with libraries being accessible almost everywhere.

I value your feedback, so please subscribe, comment, and don’t hesitate to share your thoughts. I appreciate your participation in shaping the evolution of this blog.

Please note that this is a family-friendly platform, and I will not tolerate foul language or racism. Let’s maintain a respectful and inclusive environment for everyone.

Posted on

Honda CR-V Hybrid Race Car is a rolling Lab for future tech.

Honda is investing 1.38 Billion Dollars to build new models in Canada!

Honda’s commitment to next-generation technology and the investment in upgrading the Allison plant for CR-V Hybrid production is a significant step towards a greener future. The Honda CR-V is a popular and versatile vehicle, and the introduction of a race hybrid version with 800 HP as a training and test platform is exciting.

Collaboration between Honda Canada and Honda America to build the CR-V Hybrid showcases the power of international partnerships in driving innovation and sustainability. It’s great to see the two countries working together to make advancements in automotive technology and contribute to a better world.

The investment in carbon-neutral Honda vehicles aligns with the growing global focus on reducing emissions and combating climate change.

The Honda CR-V’s potential as a rolling lab for next-generation tech demonstrates Honda’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of automotive engineering.

Formula One World Champion Max Verstappen who just won in Monaco for Honda took the CR-V Hybrid for a spin.

Please Like my Videos if you do and Subscribe if you Care

Such initiatives can lead to advancements in hybrid and electric vehicle technology, making them more accessible, efficient, and enjoyable for consumers.

Overall, it’s an exciting time for Honda enthusiasts and environmentally conscious individuals, as the investments and collaborations pave the way for a more sustainable and enjoyable automotive future.

Like me if you do and subscribe if you care

Posted on

Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) 40 Years

Honda Racing Corporation celebrated 40 years in 2022 and I and the Honda Centre in Burnaby has been with them every step of the way. Soichiro Honda said “If Honda does not race, there is no Honda.” Like my video if you do and subscribe if you care!

Posted on

I’m On My Way To Work, A silly song by Duncan Fraser while driving to Work

On my way to work on a cold rainy September day I started singing, or something like that. It was utter nonsense so, I stuck my iPhone on my dashboard and filmed it. There was no forethought, no reason just silliness. I posted it in the hope that it makes someone smile.

Like me if you do and subscribe if you care

Be save, look after your family and consider your global responsibility as you head off on your day. Please like this if you do and subscribe if you care.

Posted on

Idioms a revue by Duncan Fraser

Book 24 in my reading series is the Penguin Dictionary of English Idioms by Daphae M. Gualland and David M. Gulland.

It has been neglected on my bookshelf, and I regret not using it more often as it contains valuable snippets.

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW AND WATCH MY NARRATION

This book is part of a complete Penguin reference collection that I should have explored further. During the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, I sought a distraction from the constant worries it brought.

To occupy my mind, I started a series of readings where I would randomly select a book from my library, open it to a random page, read a paragraph, and then create a video exploring the thoughts inspired by the words.

There was no specific plan; it was simply a way to engage my mind. When I opened the Penguin Dictionary of English Idioms to page 115, I came across two idioms: #11 “to know one’s own mind” and #12 “to have a mind of one’s own.”

Is it strange that in my particular case that my mind is often changing?

I was surprised by the significance of these phrases in language and culture, and I spent hours researching and following digital pathways as I crafted my video.

Please like it if you do and subscribe if you care,

Here is what my AI Nancy said when I asked her. “Know your own mind” means having a clear understanding of your thoughts, beliefs, desires, and values. It refers to being self-aware, knowing what you truly want or believe, and being confident in your own judgments and decisions. It emphasizes the importance of introspection and self-reflection to gain insight into oneself and make informed choices.

YOUR FEEDBACK MATTERS

.

Posted on

The Pill Versus The Spinghill Mine Disaster (Collected Poems) by Richard Brautigan

Richard Brautigan was a member of the Beat Generation who was on the fringe of much that was happening domestically in America during the war in Vietnam . Brautigan was an insightful and thought provoking poet unfortunately, like many creative and troubled people of that generation he was taken from us by his own hand.

Genius is a burden that can’t be worn lightly!

Please give me a thumbs up if you like this and subscribe if you care!

When I queried my AI Nancy about my post this was her reply.

” Richard Brautigan was indeed a poet and novelist who was associated with the Beat Generation, although he was not necessarily considered one of its core members. He was known for his unique and often surreal style, as well as his wry and sometimes dark humor.

While Brautigan did write about social and political issues of his time, including the war in Vietnam, his work was perhaps more focused on personal and existential themes. He was interested in exploring the human experience in all its complexities, and his writing often had a dreamlike quality that was both haunting and beautiful.

Brautigan’s untimely death by suicide in 1984 was a great loss to the literary world, and it is true that creative genius can sometimes come at a great cost. Many artists and writers struggle with mental health issues, and the pressure to constantly produce new and innovative work can be overwhelming. However, it is important to remember that mental illness and creativity are not inextricably linked, and that there are many ways to support and nourish artistic talent without sacrificing one’s well-being.”

Posted on

Pierre Elliott Trudeau Citizen Of The World and Truth and Reconciliation with Canada’s First Peoples

A short video that highlights one of the difficulties of a great Canadian. This book covers a huge amount of history and the chosen paragraph about residential schools is a small part of it. His belief in the rights of our peoples and this portion of the book are what has galvanized me to learn more.

Please watch my video and like it if you do and subscribe if you care.

As I was creating this we are undergoing a federal election where Pierre’s son Justin was seeking another term. His dad put aboriginal rights into the 1882 Constitutions and we as a people must deal with our failures to those peoples. Most recently these have been highlighted by the uncovering of hundreds of unmarked graves at residential schools. If Justin Trudeau wins I will do everything I can to make up for my own and my countries failures by pressuring him and his party to engage fully and bring the church to heel on this issue. Only full disclosure will pave the way to true reconciliation and this means the church must be forced under law to disclose all the documents they have regarding residential schools. ALL! This is a Canadian responsibility.

There has been some headway, for instance, where I live in Coquitlam the city has incorporated this statement in their presentations.

“We acknowledge with gratitude and respect that the name Coquitlam was derived from the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ word kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (kwee-kwuh-tlum) meaning “Red Fish Up the River”. The City is honoured to be located on the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (Kwikwetlem) traditional and ancestral lands, including those parts that were historically shared with the sq̓əc̓iy̓aɁɬ təməxʷ (Katzie), and other Coast Salish Peoples.”

The pope has visited Canada and apologized and British Columbia has reached agreements with some bands and others are in advances stages.

I have personally visited the Kwikwetlem and Katzie nations band offices, interviewed my Member of Parliament and Coquitlam City Council to get a greater understanding of the issues. I want to ensure that my concern that our Native Peoples be heard and that we do all we can to meet just and meaningful agreement with them.

There is a long way to go and with the world dealing with a pandemic that has killed millions, war in the Ukraine , Africa being torn apart by famine and armed insurrections and families dealing with a huge increase in the cost of living there are challenges for our bandwidth. That said, this is our problem and opening our ears and heart will help find the solution.

Canadians can do better with both our National and International responsibilities and we just have to collectively pressure our political and business leaders by making them aware of our concerns. Actions speak louder than words, votes and dollars count, so stand up and be heard!

This is a historic moment in Canada as Pope Francis and as Katarina Szulc · CBC News reported "not everyone is applauding Littlechild's gesture" Samson Cree elder John Crier supports Littlechild's decision to gift the headdress to the Pope. "The giving of the headdress is honouring a man as the honourary chief and leader in a community. So, in doing that it actually adopted him as one of our leaders in the community," said Crier. Niigaan Sinclair, professor of Indigenous Studies at University of Manitoba, says allowing prominent people to take part in significant Indigenous traditions can devalue their meaning. "To give our most sacred items to those who, perhaps demonstrate goodwill, but don't deliver on the promises is just very upsetting, and it's also very degrading to our own ceremonial items."
Posted on

Electric Dirt Motorcycles and Surron Vancouver

As we move forward towards a carbon neutral future resellers are positioning themselves to provide for the needs of their customers, This is specialty true in the transportation sector.

In motorcycles the major manufactures have published electric roadmaps.

The sheer size of these projects at the manufacturing level and the implementations of getting it wrong can slow the delivery to the consumer. This has enabled smaller companies to enter the market and meet the demands of consumers.

The United States and Canada provide unique challenges in electric motorcycles mostly due to vast distances that motorists travel and the fact that for most two wheeled enthusiasts the bike is a secondary means of transportation ridden for pleasure. In most of the world a motorcycle is the only means of transportation that anyone can afford and for that reason the introduction of electrics for transportation will be concentrated on the densely populated Asia Pacific and Indian subcontinent. This will also allow the companies to meet economies of scale to help them meet the drastic changes needed to hit the net zero targets many of them have espoused.

In North America Electric Dirt bikes could be the first the major entry point for electric motorcycles .

For example look at the Honda Centre in Burnaby, B.C. Canada.

The Company has been a Honda Motorcycle dealer since 1965 and has a loyal clientele that is generational and many of them have asked when can they buy an Electric Dirt Bike.

The Honda Centre’s parent North-West Motor Corporation Ltd, has said; “the time is now! but, not yet with Honda in North America”.

The company has acquired dealer status from Surron Canada and the right to market as Surron Vancouver. The digital showroom is housed @ http://www.hondacentre.com along with Sherco Vancouver and Beta Vancouver.

The bricks and mortar location is at a major intersection that separates the Cities of Vancouver and Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada .

For North-West Motors, three of the brands Surron, Sherco and Beta are Dirt Bike specific with only Honda covering all the market segments in Motorcycles, ATV’s and Side by Sides, Power Equipment and Marine. Beta Motorcycles have youth electric dirt models and Surron are specifically electric dirt motorcycles.

Off Road Motorcycle sales market projections like most crystal balls show a different view depending on the perspective of the viewer.

In a recent Global Market Insights Report posted in the Internet in their Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) stated:

“How Big is the off-road vehicles market?

The market size off- road vehicles registered nearly USD 20 Billion revenue in 2022 and is anticipated to grow at over 8% CAGR between 2023 and 2032, owing to the expansion 0f the electric-off road vehicle industry in Europe

What is driving the electric segment market revenues by 2023?

The electric off road vehicles industry is projected yo observe 17% growth through 2023, driven by the growing popularity of electric alternatives in vehicles to reduce gas emissions and pollution globally.

Why is North America Industry recording strong growth?

The North American of-road vehicles industry is expected to gross a valuation of USD 12 billion by 2032, on account of higher participation in recreational activities , including off-roading, in regions compared to others.

Who are some of the leading players in the global off-road vehicles landscape?

Some of the major players in the competitive scenario are BRP, Kawasaki Motors Corporation, Honda Motors, Yamaha Motor Corporation and Polaris Industries. “

Posted on

What is Truth? Francis Bacon and Milton influence my research into my understanding of Truth and Reconciliation regarding the aboriginal peoples of Canada.

Reflecting on failing our Aboriginal Peoples in Canada, this short reading, is in part driven by my closing remarks in Duncan Fraser Reads Book 16 “Citizen of the World The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau.”

Please click on the YouTube below and, like it if you do and Subscribe if you care.

Reading Francis Bacon and Milton made for some thought provoking hours researching the meaning of Truth.

I have a simple collection and use local libraries when I can. I have created a new Bookshelf, this time a digital one and created this blog where my review and narrated videos can be seen.

I do not think digital will ever displace hard copy but, it the form most readily available for stuff like the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action Report and the BC Treaty Commission Annual 2020 Report it is what is available .

Reports like those among others are growing quite rapidly as I search for Truth in some of my interests and the documents are more readily available in digital format.

Unfortunately, there seems to be as much unsubstantiated information masquerading as fact on the Web so that those searching for truth could easily be misled.

Posted on

The Doors at the Retinal Circus in Vancouver (Dante’s) 1967

On Davie street in Vancouver in the late sixties there was a very edgy club that supported local artists, and brought in great bands. It was Dante’s Inferno for a bit and the same year the Doors played it changed to the Retinal Circus. Click on the YouTube below and like it if you do, and subscribe if you Care

It was within walking distance from my place in the West End and I was a regular on weekends. The promoter Roger Schiffer was very active in helping the youth be heard in Vancouver civic politics who, had what could best be called a repressive attitude toward what they called hippies and peaceniks.

Tom Cambel’s antagonism toward Hippies and despise of the emerging drug culture led him into direct conflict, resulting in the 1972 Gastown Riots when riot police, acting on his orders, broke up a peaceful “smoke-in”. He also tried unsuccessfully to ban The Georgia Strait, then a young counter-culture newspaper. The picture below is the alt gov meeting on the sidewalk outside of Vancouver City Hall The Doors in 1967 and the Velvet Underground in 1968 fueled that West Coast counter Culture and was fed by the mantra love not war. The music was great, The vibe fueled a revolution.

Another of the revolutionary bands playing the Retinal Circus was probably one of the most revolutionary bands in history. They were spawned in the Art studios of Andy Warhol and Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground were a force. A couple of nights of madness is what that was like and you could get stoned just from being in the room,

Click on the YouTube below and like it if you do and Subscribe if you care.

Posted on

The Velvet Underground at The Retinal Circus in Vancouver 1968

Everywhere you go there is a cutting edge venue that is on the edge. They are not always large some are even in basements. Local artists depend on these to showcase their talents.

In the sixties in Vancouver we were lucky enough to have a club that did that and more. The promoter was Roger Schiffer who worked tirelessly combating a repressive civic government at the time to give the peace movement in the form of what was called hippies a voice in civic affairs. The Doors in 1967 and and the Velvet Underground in 1968 fueled more than a musical renaissance they helped a generation stand up and be counted leading to a cultural revolution. What started out as Peace not War became a “you need to listen movement”

Please click on the YouTube below and like it if you do and Subscribe if you care

The Retinal Circus on Davie Street in Vancouver’s West End was within walking distance of where I lived at the time. It became a weekly ritual. There were lots of local bands who had their own unique west coast Canadian vibe and the headliners were always amazing. The Doors, Velvet Underground, Muddy Waters, The Siegel Schwall Blues Band, Country Joe and the Fish, Junior Wells and more. Jimmy Hendrix played there when visiting his grandmother in Vancouver. It was a crazy time and Vancouver was a mecca for the anti war movement and the terms Peace and Love with a smattering of drifting smoke and Timothy Leary were common place. You may not be able to live in the past but it can be a cool place to visit. I was there for two of the four nights they played and it was a love in.

Another of the leading bands of the time played the Circus just before they exploded in the the public conscience. The Doors at the Retinal Circus was mind altering for many!

Watch this YouTube, like it if you do and subscribe if you care.

Local West coast groups included that played at the Circus included:

Charlatans, the Collectors, Chilliwack, Mother Tucker’s Yellow Duck, My Indole Ring, Papa Bear’s Medicine Show, The Paupers, Seeds of Time, Tom Northcott
United Empire Loyalists Velvet Underground Winter’s Green Yellow Brique Road
Youngbloods. All of them were different but there was two thing they had in common, a unique Vancouver West Coast sound and energy.

Following are some of the postcards that were available on entry to the shows.