Plugging into the New Reality

Rod LaRocque
It is fascinating times for large and fledgling auto companies willing to take a shot at manufacturing the next electric vehicle. Its where smaller operations are hoping to make a claim and big car makers are directing their dollars.
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Breathing Life into Classic Vehicles

Rod LaRocque

Breathing Life into Classic Vehicles Author : Douglas Landsborough     Editor : Jennifer J. Lacelle Date : May 18, 2021  Housed in a historic building topped with a windmill, The Guild of Automotive Restorers is not only a staple in the town of Bradford West Gwillimbury, Ontario but has gained international renown and awards for the amazing work they do restoring classic vehicles.   The Guild started long before it opened its doors 30 years ago. When owners David Grainger and Janice Stone met years ago, David, who had already made a hobby of restoring vehicles, especially military ones, was impressed...

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Pleasure Craft Operator Competency Amendments

Rod LaRocque

Pleasure Craft Operators Author : Kelly Louiseize   Editor : Jennifer J. Lacelle Date : May 26, 2021 Tighter marine regulations on the Pleasure Craft Operator Competency Program may be flowing downstream, according to an email from Transport Canada.   It would allow the ministry the authority to suspend, revoke or cancel accreditation if a course instructor does not comply with regulatory requirements or is found to have obtained his or her instruction through fraudulent means. Other possible amendments may be introducing a $5,000 accreditation fee to course providers every five years, and a test material fee of $8.50 for each Pleasure...

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Dive into Boating

Rod LaRocque

Dive into boating Author : Kelly Louiseize  Editor : Jennifer J. Lacelle Date : May 26,2021 Border lockdowns and province-wide restrictions leave the closest body of water to escape to, and people are coming in droves to purchase their first boat or scale up, says Cole Ritchie, owner of North American Yachts.   The St. Catherines broker sells sailboats and cruisers worth as much as (CAD) $1.5 Million down to runabouts worth (CAD) $30,000 to Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, and even California residents. “It’s like the housing market right now and most of the big stuff is being bought in Canada,”...

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A Remedy to Rising Tides

Rod LaRocque

A Remedy to Rising Tides Author : Kelly Louiseize  Editor : Jennifer J. Lacelle  Date : May 3, 2021   Holland is a fake country stolen from the sea artificially by dikes, pumps, dams, gates and bridges, says Koen Olthuis architect and owner of Waterstudio NL. If water seeps in, one better hope the infrastructure is flawless.  Any breaks would cause much of the land that houses almost 700,000 people to submerge. But it isn’t only in Holland. Ten of the world’s top cities are near waterfront which means concerns around rising waters should be at the forefront of development. It...

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A Neighbourhood on Water

Rod LaRocque

A Neighbourhood on Water Author :  Kelly Louiseize  Editor : Jennifer J. Lacelle  Date : May 3, 2021   Scott Collins and Arleen Ma often paddled by the rows of floating homes along Richardson Bay in Sausalito, California wishing one day they could afford to purchase one. Five years prior, the couple bought a 36-foot trawler and it was there they spent weekends.   Collins says plenty of sailors make fun of couples like them, buying a boat to have it tied to a dock, but people buy boats for different uses. “We used ours as a condo.”   That is up until...

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A Family Bound by Bonds

Rod LaRocque

A Family Bound by Bonds  Circumnavigating the World Author : Kelly Louiseize  Editor : Jennifer J. Lacelle  Date : June 25, 2021 Christopher Cross’ song “Sailing” faintly plays in the recesses of the mind - the raw, simple, adventure of opening one’s senses to nature. A breeze caresses the main sail of Gromit, fluttering it with a whisper as the sun perches on top its mast.  It’s a moment frozen in time. Each person in the Buratynsk family has such a moment etched in their memory. They resort to it when their days back on land become impossible. All they have...

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I Can Sea for Miles

Rod LaRocque

I Can Sea for Miles Author : Kelly Louiseize  Editor : Jennifer J. Lacelle  Date : June 28, 2021   Imagine going to sleep under the stars or rising to have a cup of coffee on the patio overlooking the vast ocean with dolphins playing below like children. It sounds fantastic and for Grant Romundt, it wasn’t a consideration until he met Rüdiger (Rudy) Koch on a plane bound for Thailand.  He showed Grant his engineering project photos, a basic house sitting on a large pedestal in the Indian Ocean and although it was nothing pretty, Grant saw its potential. “It...

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