Racing Reviews

It was a good read, but the author didn't check his facts when he started talking about other racing series such as CART and IRL. That there were errors in these areas made me question some of his other things he talked about. I liked the book, but with reservations.

Most people consider that the sport of baseball has the most colorful history of any American sport. They point to characters such as Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, and extraordinarily colorful Dizzy Dean as examples. Baseball history is certainly colorful, but stock car racing can match it character for character. Stock car racing edges ahead, though, because many of the most colorful characters in stock car racing were alive at the time American Zoom was written.

In this wonderful book, Peter Golenbock introduces us to the likes of Richard Petty, Bill France, Junior Johnson, the Flock brothers, and Tiny Lund. Dozens of people associated with stock car racing, from the early days when hopped up cars carrying white lightning were outrunning the law to the modern era of multi million dollar sponsorships, were interviewed by Golenbock. With the exception of the introduction of each person, Golenbock lets those he interviews tell their own story. The words and the memories are faithfully presented for us to savor.

Would you like to hear about the first lap Richard Petty ever took in a race? It's in here (and NOT what you would expect). Do you wonder where the idea of drafting other cars for increased speed came from? It's in here. You'll also find stories about the first Southern 500 in Darlington and how Bill France milked the announcement of a winner in the first Daytona 500 for several days before finally naming the winner (and why people think he took so long to name the winner).

American Zoom belongs on the shelf of any fan of motorsports. Give it a try but hang on, it's a wild ride!

This is the first book that I read on Stock Car Racing. It covers the business, personalities emotions and soul of Stock Car Racing in the most eloquent way possible. After reading about some of the personalities in this book you feel as if you had just spent the day with each one. This book actually was the catalyst for leading me in the direction of starting a NASCAR stock car racing career as a driver. Any long time fan will cherish this book and any new fan will learn about the soul of the sport.

Well, what can I say about "Ayrton Senna : The Hard Edge of Genius"? The book itself is not atractive, but is nice. Has very good pictures about the carrer of Ayrton Senna and good appointments of the author. But, in the really, it is just a big almanac. Hilton can't express the spirit of Senna. Just explains some moments of important races, like Suzuka-88. But, reading the book, we don't know that Senna 'saw God at the last curve' - his own words. So, if you are a fan of Senna, buy the book to remember the big champ.

With Chris Hilton's characteristic meld of insight and panache, "The Hard Edge of Genius" captures the many aspects of a man born with supreme gifts to bend a car to his will and deftly explores the many conflicting emotions Senna stirred in himself and the millions who followed his extraordinary F1 career. Updated to cover the fateful end at Tamburello, Hilton's work spares neither criticism nor compliment, achieving a balance of the two that mirror's Senna's uncanny ability to hold his machine on the edge of adhesion. Senna himself called it "a book you can rely on." Rare praise from a man who relied on little outside of his own skills.

Mr. Hilton wrote an extraordinary book, going deep inside Senna's personality and exploits, his sheer determination and velocity, whitout being an one-sided writer that only sees Senna's qualitites. Great job about a career interrupted prematurely!

This book is the perfect complement to Mr. Lyon's first book on the Can Am series.

Rather than a race by race account, the book presents a quick season overview, a review of the machines of that year and then takes a focus on one or two personalities whose impact affected that year most strongly. Most of the material is new and it is fascinating. The material on Jim Hall and Peter Bryant alone make this book a must read for anyone who saw these cars race or wished that they had.

If you're only going to buy one book, buy Can Am. If you want a broader view of the series, the men and the machines, then Can Am Photo History is the book. Together, they're an awesome set.

As I spent many summers at Mid Ohio Sports Car Course watching these cars, the memories and insights into these awesome cars are irreplaceable.

First of all, I have to say that I loved Pete's first book on this subject,"Can-Am". When I heard he was doing a second book, I was a bit skeptical. Was he simply milking the topic for a few more bucks? How could he top the original? Well, he did it! With its in-depth and very enlightening interview format (there's even an interview with Denny Hulme, done shortly before his death) and its wealth of superb all-new photographs, this book is a Can-Am lovers dream! Lyons captures the look and feel of the old, "real" Can-Am as we remember it, and as those who lived it remember it. My sole complaint: Too short! Tack another 100 pages onto the next one, Pete!

Besides the hundreds of wonderful photographs, Pete Lyons has put together a delightful, insiteful, and informative collection of history, anecdotes, interviews, and technical details. Mr. Lyons has made a great contribution to the history of motorsport by commiting to print these interviews with the giants of the sport. His reporting is very up close and personal and imparts a rich human element to those heady days of thunder.

I give five stars for content, but only about three stars for publishing quality. Certainly this edition is clear enough and the photographs are of sufficient resolution to provide detailed study, but I personally would pay $100 for a premium edition printed on high quality stock with high quality inks.

Now if we could persuade Mr. Lyons to turn his keen eye towards the Grand Touring Prototype era of the late 80s-early 90s...

I have to say I'm less than thrilled with this book. It comes off as being written by someone who really really LOVES the cars, but doesn't have a clue. It reminds me of listening to my niece tell her friends about my car, enthusiastic, but uninformed. Lots of incorrect "facts"(for instance, a fuel altered is defined as a "vehicle on a radically shortened wheelbase") and shallow interviews. If you want a nice superficial coffee-table book with interesting cover art, go for it. If you want actual depth and research into the sport of drag racing, check out "High Performance" by Robert Post. END

90% of the battle to win a race is done before the car pulls up to starting line.

Leah M. Kerr definitely went through her checklist before launching her new book, "Driving Me Wild".

Action Photos......check; Drag Racing history.....check; Screaming Cars......check; In-depth Interviews.....check; Numb Fans.....check; Smoking Tires.....check; Creepy Art.....check; Roaring Engines.....check; Funky Cars.....check; Hot Rod Music.....check; Hot Rod Movies.....check.

She's gone through the checklist.

Now all you have to do is line up at the starting line and ...............Punch it!

My boyfriend gave me this book for my birthday and I can't put it down. It covers all the things I love about going to the races. This book illustrates the excitement of drag racing from people who devote their lives to finding ways to go faster, entertaining a crowd and staying alive all at the same time!

Leah Kerr's book beautifully describes a spectator's (like me) attraction to this sport. She lays out an easily understandable history that credits women like Barbara Hamilton, Della Woods and Paula Murphy (yeah, and the great Shirley Muldowney), for their racing determination. It's nitro-powered!

The book is for you if you're interested in the history and development of Ducati's from one model to the next. It also has a fair amount of technical information about how each model varies from the next. What I didn't like was that it had only a few color photos and very little information on more recent models (1995 and up)....

A very thorough and detailed history of Ducati with a model by model, year by year breakdown. Great to get a general history of Ducati or if you are considering buying one of their bikes. The model specifications at the rear are handy though need to be read in conjunction with the book to get every detail on a particular model in a particular year. Focuses more on the last 20 yrs of Ducati, but could still be considered the definative book on Ducati. A few more pictures would be nice.

I bought this book out of curiosity, and because I am interested in Ducati motorcycles. And I would say that this book fulfills any need for information about Ducati and the story about the bikes and the men behind it. Great book ! Recommended!

I really enjoyed this book. I found the characters to be very interesting and believable. It was intriguing to see how Jennie's well-intentioned good deed could change so drastically the lives of others. I couldn't put the book down because I realy wanted to find out what would happen to these people I had come to care about. Even after finishing the book, I still find myself thinking about Jennie and Ross and how she affected so many lives with her special gift. I would recommend this book highly.

What a great book with such vivid detail and dramatic intrigue! The characters are very believable, despite Jennie's almost spiritual gift. Duke Southard also adeptly uses historical detail that parallels the characters through their lives. A very moving and intriguing novel. I can't wait for his next one!

This is a superbly written novel that vividly portrays life in the 1950s in suburban America. However, beyond that is the haunting aspect of Jennie Proctor's unique gift and how it affects those around her. This is truly a "spiritual" story that will draw you in to the characters and their lives and make you care about what happens to them.

Being an F1 fanatic, I had just finished the great book by Murray Walker. Looking for another 'good' book about F1, I found this gem on Amazon. Mad Dog is among other things, a fighter and you have to give him credit; getting into the worlds most expensive sport with no cash is quite a feat.

The book is very well written in a Conversational style that makes you feel like one of the 'rat pack'. Like F1, it's paced at the speed of taking Eau Rouge flat out. After reading this story, you certainly wish you were one of the blokes lined up to give him money. He has a charm and whit that is infectious and translates well in print. I strongly recommend this book. Not to learn about F1, but to learn about Perry. To learn something of risk, gambles and the will to succeed at all costs. The parallel stories of his mates; Hill, Blundell and Herbert are equally entertaining. The overall story of his father, who was foreshadowing Perry's own career choices and paths, is a welcome angle to this book as well. In short, this book was a total surprise and treat for anyone that just likes good stories of life and struggles in the motor racing world.

To Perry, I say good luck to you sir. You have had a difficult road to travel but what memories it has provided for you, and now me.

A well written and very funny account of breaking into formula 1.

I read 15-20 motor racing related books per year, and this one has to be right at the top of the list in entertainment value & a general lesson in life. When I purchased it, I had little knowledge of who the author was; I knew from following Formula One that he had flirted with a drive in that category, and I knew he had some sucess in sports car racing, but I knew nothing else about his career or life.
Mr. McCarthy has a truely unique style of writing that lets the reader re-live all of the ups & downs with him. He writes very freely, just as if he were talking to you; much like the style of Niki Lauda in his autobiography. Parts are as funny as anything I have read in this genre, & parts make you wonder why he keeps going back to bang his head against the wall, literally.
Through the entire book, & it sounds like his entire life, he never looses his sense of humour, or sight of his goal. This guy has perseverance!
I was totally entralled from cover to cover, but I do admit I was surprised that he didn't go into a little more detail concerning his races. I then realized that I could go to one of the many racing annuals & read race detail, but he was giving me a behind-the-scenes look at the sport, not usually available.
This is a great book, & I highly recommend it to anyone who either aspires to a goal, or has driven a car, or wants to drive a car...or has seen a car...

The sequel to "The Last Open Road" it is a must read for readers who loved it. As a stand alone book it isn't quite as good and might not be appreciated as much if read by itself. "The Last Open Road" is multi-dimensional, it is a great car tale and also a coming of age story of a young man who wants to be a sportscar mechanic and is pursuing a girlfriend at the same time. All three threads are intertwined. The book is wonderfully evocative of time and place, you can smell and feel the summer nights which he describes. In "Montezuma's Ferrari" the protagonist is a successful mechanic and married so the focus is mostly on the car tales and the descriptions are not as engrossing but the book is still wonderful.

This book is Beatufiuly written and is very entertaining. If you have not read any thing by Mr. Levy you must read this book.Like catcher in the rye? Read this book. the advertising section is beautifully done . Come on be cool.NOW BUY THIS BOOK AND ENJOY IT!

If you read "The Last Open Road" and enjoyed it, you'll enjoy "Montezuma's Ferrari" as well. There's more adventures involving an increasingly worldly and less awkward Buddy. Although this book would stand alone, it has more meaning after first reading Open Road. They are both books that make you laugh out loud in the wrong places...like airplanes and public transportation. Unfortunately, if you're like me, the book is so entertaining it ends all too quickly. And the ending is a little abrupt. So If you're reading Burt, let us please have some more.

Dan Mearns, who as served as managing editor of both "The Blood Horse" and the "Thoroughbred Record" has written a very workman-like account of the life Seattle Slew, the dark brown racing Hall-of-Famer, who is also an extraordinary sire-of-sires, a remarkable broodmare sire, and our last living Triple Crown champion. Last year (2000) Slew underwent surgery to fuse two vertebrae in his neck and alleviate pressure on his spinal cord. The feisty twenty-seven year-old is back in the breeding shed this year and his first mares have been pronounced in foal, so maybe we'll be privileged to watch many more champions by this extraordinary Thoroughbred.

Dan Mearns's book is number five in the "Thoroughbred Legends" series and he covers Seattle Slew from his birth (an ugly foal with big floppy brown ears), through his racing and breeding career, up into the year 2000. For those of us who admire racing's only undefeated Triple Crown Winner (Slew did lose a few after the Triple Crown races), this book is a satisfying read. There are also sixteen pages of black-and-white photographs of Slew from his ugly-duckling birth through a picture where we can see a few gray whiskers dotting his muzzle.

May the Slew live a thousand years through his offspring!

This is a wonderful, easy to read and understand book written about a true champion. I have read most of the Thoroughbred Legends and love them all. It is a wonderful collection for anyone who loves horses or anyone who loves a winner.

Wonderful book befitting of a King! Seattle Slew was definately king of the racetrack when he ran. He flew down the course with wings beneath his hooves.
A great honor to have written about a great horse!
The author did an excellent job on this book.

I am very pleased and satisfied with this book! 5 stars!

This book is great for learning about the body systems of a horse.It also briefly explains how to manage a stable with things such as how to make a stall have good drinage. It is the best book to get if you want to meet the requirements of Pony Club levels A, HA, or B. But I recommend getting this book only if you are at the advanced levels in riding and horsemanship because otherwise you will find that the book overwhelms you with information.I may suggest that people buying this book should consider buying Pony Club Manuals on levels C and D before or perhaps in addition to this manual.Overall, a good book for learning about the horse.

This book is very informitave and helped me alot. I am only a D-2 but it still answered alot of the questions I had. It covers everything from teaching horsemanship to jumping and yes even vet care. The jumping part helped me to understand alot of things that helped me train my horse. I recomend that you buy it.

This is a great follow-on to the first two volumes of the USPC manuals. Together, they are the best "curriculum" on horsemanship available, bar none. (I say that, owning 900 horse books! The three USPC Manuals are the most useful of all.) As another reviewer said, it's not "complete"--one should read the first two volumes, first, as, like the USPC Standards of Proficiency, the Manuals build upon each other. I am a long-time riding instructor (over 22 years), especially with the US Pony Clubs. The three-volumes of the USPC Manuals would be a solid foundation of a good equestrian library.