Some time ago I found an old wiro notebook in a drawer. A scruffy wiro bound notebook with a photo of 2 men in a kayak with a bear on the front cover. In that notebook I found terrible sketches drawn in pencil made while travelling in 1991. One sketch leapt out at me. It was a rough pencil sketch of Mt Ararat from a backpacking trip to eastern Turkey. The sketch really surprised me – it was a very basic pencil sketch, drawn using a .5mm technical pencil on a cheap notepad. The sketch is just black and white… To my surprise the sounds and smells of the day came flooding back. Meeting some Kurdish goat herders and their flock near the base of Mt Ararat, about 10km from the Iranian border on a bright sunny but cool, alpine day. Along with memories of driving across the mountain steppe in an old Renault 19 and the smells of chai and coffee in a Doğubayazıt pasta solunu. It all came back come flooding back! Why did it evoke such vivid memories? I’m not really sure to be honest. Maybe t...
My preview copy has arrived! An inspirational children's book about the life of Bruce McLaren.
A little known fact about Bruce was that he spent two years at Takapuna's Wilson home for crippled children with his legs strapped to a bed cart!
Initial inspiration for the book came from my uncle, Keith Madgwick, who despite his own severe difficulties due to polio fulfilled his dream to race in motorsport driving Mini Coopers in events like the Wills 6 hour endurance races at Pukekohe Park Raceway, numerous street races and hill climbs and went on to be a key figure in running the original Baypark Raceway. Keith would often try to fill me in on what Bruce, Denny and Chris got up to in the 60's.
Initial inspiration for the book came from my uncle, Keith Madgwick, who despite his own severe difficulties due to polio fulfilled his dream to race in motorsport driving Mini Coopers in events like the Wills 6 hour endurance races at Pukekohe Park Raceway, numerous street races and hill climbs and went on to be a key figure in running the original Baypark Raceway. Keith would often try to fill me in on what Bruce, Denny and Chris got up to in the 60's.
Two years in the planning it's been a bit of a mission but it will soon be on the shelves. Very nice to hold it in my hands at last. A big thank you to Dreydon, publisher (and author!) at Inspired Kids for making it happen and Jan McLaren at the Bruce McLaren Trust for her and David's help, guidance and the use of the museum resources.
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