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Honda XL250 from 1972 and the Doors inspires a Poem

Welcome to 2023. We always think back as a New Year starts for some reason, and here is one of the places my head was this weekend.

Out of the blue in my Inbox lands a picture from 1972. It was from a Cross Country Race in British Columbia on my Honda XL250. I had stripped the lights from it, changed the exhaust and went racing, When the weekend was over I stuck the lights back on and used it as a commuter. I think I raced that bike in a 100 miler and a couple of 200 milers. The poem is a result the feeling looking at the picture caused. Wondering where in my brain (The Grey Matter) these memories were stored. My thoughts drifted to stuff like watching the Doors in concert in Vancouver.. They were playing at a club within walking distance of my place in the West End of the City. I have a poster signed by the artist Bob Mass in my den.

Click on the video to watch my narration

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Grey Matter
They Slip through the grey matter
Loke wisps of cloud on the wind
Lighter than a summer breeze
You feel it, then it’s gone
They are missed
Your memories

When I asked my AI who I have named Nancy what she thought of my post here is what she said.

“A moment frozen in time A snapshot of your past The feeling rushes back to you

A memory that lasts

A cross country race on a Honda In the mountains of British Columbia The thrill of the ride The rush of the wind

The Doors in concert In a club in Vancouver A poster signed by the creator A moment you’ll always remember

These memories slip through the grey matter Like wisps of cloud on the wind But they’re part of who you are And they’ll always stay within”

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Honda Africa Twin Video created for The Honda Centre

Happy New Year everyone this is the last post for 2022. It is a Video that I created for the Honda Centre in British Columbia in Canada

It is highlighted by snippets from Honda Global images that are used with permission and edited using Adobe.

Featuring my of my favorite motorcycles The Honda Africa Twin which I first encountered in 1988 as the XRV650 then the Honda NXR-750, which won the Paris -Dakar Rally four times in the late 1980s. In 2023 Honda will release a brand new bike Honda XL750 Transalp which feature in a future Blog. I am still waiting for permission from Honda. Coming Soon!

The current model the CRF1100L shown in this video is a wonderful piece of technology.

The Video was created for the header to the Company’s Wed Site and featuring video from Honda Marine, Honda Europe, Honda.com and the Honda Centre. The Africa Twin, 250hp Honda Outboard, 2.3 Honda Outboard, Honda CBR, Honda Generators are included

Edited and narrated by Duncan Fraser

All copywrite stays with the original producers this video may be shared when used in it’s entirety

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itchyboots Goes Trials Riding by winding-roads.ca

A clip edited from a utube post https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyTADOHYpSw

World Champions in Road Racing, Motocross, Speedway and Enduro all train with trials bikes.

It is the motorcycle sport where control, balance and concentration not speed is paramount. It is the quiet motorcycle Sport. It does not get the coverage of it’s more flashy cousins yet it is probably the most environmentally friendly of our disciplines.

Noraly from itchyboots travels the world on a motorcycle and she has over a million followers and I am one of them! She took the time to learn something about Trials between her episodes.

The Canadian National Trials Championship In IOCO B.C. this month just a few minutes from where I live and Noraly was just here in British Columbia on her Honda CRF300L Rally on the way to Alaska. That is what prompted this post

This young lady is am inspiration. Please let me know what you think

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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.

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The Art of Motorcycle Racing by Mike Hailwood

The Art of Motorcycle Racing by the Legendary Mike Hailwood and commentator Murray Walker is book where Mike gives great advise for the aspiring racer. In my introduction to the book I try to share some of the excitement my copy has provided me.

I have mix a few relevant video clips like Mike Hailwood on the Honda six. I have another post on that great bike you here. All racers need to give some thought to what will they ride, where will the ride and how are they going to get there and back.

Mike gives some insight into all of these. When you are a world champion you gain insights from a rather lofty viewpoint, knowing the steps he took and the thing you need to consider on your path were helpful to me and is well worth the read!

My intro concludes with some great footage of Mike on World Championship Winning Honda 250cc RC166 six cylinder work of art. I hope you enjoy it!

Here is my introduction to the book: Please give me a thumbs up if you like it and subscribe if you care.

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Commodore Computers with Jim Butterfield and the Birth of Microcomputers and on being a nerd.

One of the books I cover in my vlog Duncan Fraser Reads is the First Book of Kim by Jim Butterfield who for thousands was their first introduction into the word of computers. The threads I pulled by opening this book took me on a personal journey which mirrored my working with Commodore in Canada, Computerland, Conti Computer Systems and travelling the world being a nerd.

I especially enjoyed my visits with the Amiga communities in England and Germany. The images were are pulled from the public domain and from my personal collection. When you are commenting on a book that is all about machine language( the language of Bits and Bytes) It was better to just pull the images. I wonder if they still teach would be software engineers how to write a “boot-start loader” Send me a comment if you know.

There is a great video in this with Andy Warhol at The Amiga Launch Party. Cool!

In the late 70s and early 80s, Apple and Commodore were two names at the top of every tech wish list. It was challenging to compare the Apple II and Commodore 64 at the time, but the Commodore 64 is the best-selling desktop PC of all time according to Guinness World Records. I owned, sold and serviced both, The 64 spawned the Amiga and The Apple IIE the Mac. The Mac VRS the Amiga is worth looking at.

Here is my video. Please give me a thumbs up if you like this and subscribe if you care!

When I asked my AI Nancy what she thought of my post here is what she said,

“It’s fascinating to hear about your personal journey in the tech industry, and how your experiences intersect with the content of the book “First Book of Kim” by Jim Butterfield. It’s incredible to think that the Commodore 64 is still the best-selling desktop PC of all time, even after all these years.

As for whether or not boot-start loaders are still being taught to software engineers, it’s likely that they are still covered in some computer science curricula. While modern operating systems have become much more complex, low-level programming concepts like boot-start loaders are still important to understand for certain types of applications and system-level programming.

It’s also interesting to hear about your visits with the Amiga communities in England and Germany, as well as the Andy Warhol appearance at the Amiga launch party. It’s a testament to the impact that these early personal computers had on culture and society, and how they paved the way for the devices and technologies we use today.

Overall, it sounds like you have a rich and varied background in the tech industry, and I’m sure that your insights and experiences are valuable to those who are interested in the history and evolution of computing.”

Let me know what you think

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The Race for Leadership (Motorcycle Gran Prix 1961) Intro by Mike Hailwood for Duncan Fraser Reads

The Race For Leadership. The Introduction by Mike Hailwood. I have this great book on Honda that has seen better days. It has been stuffed in drawers, under beds, in carboard boxes and on numerous of my book shelves in the decades it has been in my possession.. The forward to the book is written by Mike Hailwood who to me is the greatest racer of all time, with Giacomo Agostini being right behind. This look at my book includes some great footage from the Isle of Man courtesy of the BBC. The process I undertake with these video’s that are based on books in my personal bookshelf is as follows: I pull a book from my Bookshelf, mostly at random, open the book to a random page, read a paragraph, make some notes, them pull digital threads I find. I digitize these and create a video. The narration and views are my own and no slight to anyone living or otherwise is intended. I sincerely hope you enjoy them and that I am able to transfer some of magic these books have provided me. My love for motorcycle racing, art and reading I hope is obvious. I have been involved in motorcycling in Canada since the early sixties and it is as glorious a sport today as it was when I was young.

My vlog on this is here. Please give me a thumbs up if you like it and subscribe if you care.

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Why Frankie Juhan Loves his 1965 Porsche

My friend Frankie Juhan comes by his love for his Porsche honestly enough. His uncle was the legendary Jaroslav Juhan who raced for Porsche. His dad was the Czech motorcycle champion Franta Juhan who had a Spyder that Frankie borrowed before he had a driver’s license.

I suppose I will have to ask Frankie what his Dad thought about him ripping around West Vancouver in his Porsche, What do you think?

My introduction to Jaroslav Juhan the man who brought Porsche to the Carrera and be seen here. Please give me a thumbs up if you like it subscribe if you care! 

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

Edited by Duncan Fraser

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Mike Hailwood’s Honda Six Cylinder 250cc RC166

Motorcyclists from every era have one bike that for them is the best bike of all time.

I asked the late great Czech Speedway Champion Franta Juhan what his favorite bike was and and he told me.

“Sonny” (his nickname for me) I have raced many great bikes including the Gilera Four in Monza, The Vellocette KTT which I rode to a new lap record in Switzerland and rode in the Isle of Man TT. I had a DKW 240 Speedway bike and a 1000cc Covenry Eagle and raced Jawa in the Six Days Trial. I have ridden Jawa, Vincent, Gilera, Moto Guzzi and MV Agusta but my favorite was the Jawa 350 Speedway Bike.”

Franta was a big imposing gentleman and is eyes got a far away look when he hung his arm over my shoulder and talked of these bikes.

I personally was what you could call a child of the sixties and my own personal best was the incredible Honda RC166 in the hands of the incomparable Mike Hailwood .

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

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Mini Moto as a Concept

I should come as no surprise than Honda have grouped together small motorcycles and scooters and are marketing them as a group. Honda are world leaders in this space. The practically invented it with the introduction of the Honda Cub in 1958.

This wee bike has sold over 100 million units world wide and is the most sold bike in history.

The current lineup will have to go some to meet those lofty numbers but the actual concept is not new to Honda,

Small affordable transportation for the masses,

The Current Canadian Mini Moto can be seen in Duncan Fraser Reads vlog of the mini moto at the Honda Centre in Burnaby BC