Johnny Herbert was one of the most brilliant natural talents to emerge in motor racing, but for all his bravery and prowess, he's lucky to be alive. After becoming British Junior Karting Champion (losing part of a finger in the process), then the Formula 3 title for Eddie Jordan in 1987, he was all set for a glittering debut season in Formula 1 when he was caught in a mass pile-up at Brands Hatch. That horrific crash threatened to end his career, but Herbert made a miraculous recovery, was a hugely popular winner of the British Grand Prix in 1995, and enjoyed 25 years of competitive motorsport, becoming the only British driver to win the 24 hours of Le Mans followed by a Grand Prix. And all that despite driving every pace in extreme pain; in fact, as the first and only disabled driver in F1 history. While chronicling an extraordinary life behind the wheel with cheer and his trademark cheeky humour, What Doesn't Kill You... contains a wealth of stories from the hard end of Formula 1: on Johnny's team-mate Michael Schumacher, legends like Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, his fellow British adversaries Damon Hill, Martin Brundle and Nigel Mansell, and of course all those gruesome accidents. With an encyclopaedic knowledge and love of the sport, Johnny Herbert's autobiography, much like the man himself, delivers brilliance from the back of the grid.

The first authorised biography of one of Britain's best-loved sportsmen. Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss raced professionally over 500 times until his near fatal crash in 1962. At the end of his racing career, he was the most famous Briton - no footballer, jockey, boxer or pop star has approached the national adulation Moss received. In this book Robert Edwards recounts the life of this extraordinary man, whose tally of wins was proportionately higher than that of any other driver, ever, by a wide margin. During his colourful racing career, Stirling Moss was incredibly gifted and competitive, and he has talked in detail to Robert Edwards about his eventful life, from the bullying at school which helped forge his competitive spirit to the crash that almost ended his life.

This book tells the little-known story of a highly celebrated auto-racing event for African Americans, the Gold and Glory Sweepstakes. These races were held in Indiana and throughout the Midwest during the racial turbulence of the 1920s and 1930s, when the Ku Klux Klan cast a shadow over the social and political landscape of the state and region. The story is told through the eyes and emotions of Indianapolis auto mechanic Charlie Wiggins. The greatest African American driver of the era, Wiggins was known as the "Negro Speed King." Set against the colorful backdrop of gangsters, bootleggers, the birth of jazz, and the early history of auto racing in the United States, For Gold and Glory chronicles the tragedies and triumphs of a dedicated group of individuals who overcame tremendous odds to chase their dreams.

In a nation that worships the automobile for the freedom, style, and status that it confers, the Indianapolis 500, run on or near Memorial Day eighty-seven times, is an annual rite of passage celebrating Americans' love affair with speed. Indy recounts the drivers (677 men and 3 women) who have gone to Indianapolis in the past ninety-five years to live their dreams, staking their lives on the outcome. It highlights the faces in the crowd: hardworking Americans, tinhorn celebrities, hookers, movie stars, gate-crashers, and five American presidents. Terry Reed focuses his narrative on the track's four quarter-mile-long turns, each the site of triumphs (including those of such multiple winners as Billy Vukovich, A. J. Foyt, and Helio Castroneves); grisly deaths (at least sixty-six, including three unrelated men of the same unusual last name who died in the same turn but in different decades); and bizarre heroics (like the sans souci French driver who downed champagne throughout the 1913 Indy 500 and still won). Reed also examines Indy's confluence of racing and aeronautics (World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker once owned the track) and the impact upon the event of such forces as segregation, gender politics, food, fads, publicity stunts, world-class partying, and tasteless pop culture. Indy takes readers on an entertaining, full-throttle ride through the history of one of the world's most famous races and one of America's most hallowed rituals. It is the definitive account of the crown jewel of American motorsports.

In the past twenty years, big-time stock-car racing has become America's fastest growing spectator sport. Winston Cup races draw larger audiences-at the tracks and on television-than any other sport, and drivers like Dale Jarrett, Jeff Gordon, and Mark Martin have become cultural icons whose endorsements command millions. What accounts for NASCAR's surging popularity? For years a "closeted" NASCAR fan, Professor Jim Wright took advantage of a sabbatical in 1999 to attend stock-car races at seven of the Winston Cup's legendary venues: Daytona, Indianapolis, Darlington, Charlotte, Richmond, Atlanta, and Talladega. The "Fixin' to Git Road Tour" resulted in this book-not just a travelogue of Wright's year at the races, but a fan's valentine to the spectacle, the pageantry, and the subculture of Winston Cup racing. Wright busts the myth that NASCAR is a Southern sport and takes on critics who claim that there's nothing to racing but "drive fast, turn left," revealing the skill, mental acuity, and physical stamina required by drivers and their crews. Mostly, though, he captures the experience of loyal NASCAR fans like himself, describing the drama in the grandstands-and in the bars, restaurants, parking lots, juke joints, motels, and campgrounds where race fans congregate. He conveys the rich, erotic sensory overload-the sights, the sounds, the smells, the feel-of weekends at the Winston Cup race tracks.

The Monaco Grand Prix is considered one of the most demanding races in Formula 1. Constant gear changes and the slowest corner in the world championship have always demanded everything from the racing drivers. Edward Quinn captured the most famous car race in the world from 1950 to 1965 in numerous photos. In his recordings, the well-known Formula 1 track is presented with almost no crash barriers and run-off zones, without advertising posters and sponsor logos. Many of his pictures are now combined for the first time in a large-format illustrated book. Accompanied by short descriptions and background information, they give a fascinating insight into the motorsport history of that time. Text in English and German.

After the wing plane revolution on racing cars that began in 1966 (1968 in Formula 1) and the appearance of ground effect in 1977, aerodynamics took on a front line role on the track with winged cars, switching from traditional studies of resistance to advancement to the exploitation of negative lift in order to increase speed through the corners. In this new edition of the first book to appear on the subject in 1991 by Enrico Benzing, one of the best known engineers in the world of Formula 1, this complex subject is explained with completeness and simplicity of expression, so that it can be read and understood by everyone. The motor racing wing is at the centre of the story, while the picture is completed by the entire aerodynamic behaviour of the racing car, especially the single seater, touching on particular aspects such as the Magnus effect, ground effect, calculation of power resistance and matters related to the wind tunnel. The volume also includes a specific chapter on CFD (fluid dynamics computation). Hundreds of illustrations enhance this work, which is an indispensable starting point for people who want to know all about this complex but fascinating subject.

Pironi: The Champion that Never Was relates the remarkable story of motor racing's forgotten man, ex-Ferrari F1 driver and offshore powerboat racer, Didier Pironi. The book charts an incredible journey which took the young Parisian to the heights of triumph and the depths of despair. Before he joined the legendary Ferrari stable, Pironi was already a Formula Renault, Le Mans and grand prix winner. By 1982, the time had surely come for the enigmatic Frenchman to become his country's first Formula 1 world champion. He was to come tantalisingly close to achieving that lifetime ambition, ahead in the world championship and in pole position for the German Grand Prix - before crashing so disastrously in practice. Over the next five years he fought a long and painful battle to return to the cockpit to reclaim the title that had eluded him that grim morning. It was not to be. Thereafter Didier turned his attention to offshore powerboating where his remarkable life would come to a shattering end in the icy waters of the English Channel.

In his trademark straight-talking, no-nonsense style Mark Webber reveals his amazing life on and off the Formula One race track in Aussie Grit. Mark Webber was at the centre of one of the most captivating chapters in the history of Formula One. In 2010, while racing for Red Bull, he and his team mate Sebastian Vettel went head to head for the World Championship. There could only be one winner. Since retiring from Formula One Mark has concentrated on endurance racing, including the legendary Le Mans 24 Hour race. He hit the front pages of newspapers around the world in December 2014 when he slammed into the barricades in the final round of the FIA World Endurance Championship in South America, and was lucky to escape with his life. But the controversy of his relationship on and off the track with Vettel, who went on to win multiple world titles, has never been far beneath the surface. Here, for the first time, Webber tells the inside story of one of Formula One's most intriguing battles - it is a story that goes to the heart of why the sport is loved by millions of fans around the world. From his first taste of karting to his F1 debut in 2002, scoring Minardi's first points in three years at the Australian Grand Prix, through to his first win with Red Bull at the 2009 German Grand Prix and the year he should have been crowned World Champion. Mark Webber's journey to the top of Formula One was every bit as determined and committed as his racing. Aussie Grit is his searingly honest story. Includes a foreword by Formula One legend Sir Jackie Stewart.

Juan Manuel Fangio's name is indelibly inscribed in the record books and many consider him to be the greatest driver in history. It was 46 years before his record of five World Championships was beaten, but even now he is still remembered for an exceptional Formula 1 career which contained some of the greatest displays of skill and daring ever seen. Few though know of his almost super-human exploits in epic South American road races that made competition at the pinnacle of motor sport seem like child's play. Gerald Donaldson chronicles not only those arduous early competitions but also his long journey from humble origins in remote Argentina to the lofty heights of international celebrity.

James Hunt burst on the Formula One scene with a reputation for reckless driving, and a reckless lifestyle. Tragically his life was cut short at the age of just 46 by a heart attack. Triumphing against all the odds to become the Formula One World Drivers' Champion, Hunt sank into a period of decadence and depression...only to be rejuvenated when he found love in his personal life. With personal contentment came a renewed zest for life resulting in one one of the most colourful and controversial figures in Grand Prix racing being best remembered by those close to him as a fun-loving, caring man who had a genuinely uplifting presence - qualities that shine through in Gerald Donaldson's compelling and moving account of his life.

In 1948 Watkins Glen staged the first official American race for sports cars since the Vanderbilt Cup races of the early years of the century. This book is about the transformation of post-World War II racing in America and how road racing became a leading sport in the US, beginning at Watkins Glen and followed by Sebring, Daytona, Laguna Seca and other circuits. These historic first five years are fundamental to road racing in America when the race was staged through the village streets and neighboring countryside until a permanent track was built in 1953. The races introduced famous international marques such as Ferrari, Jaguar, Porsche, Allard, Healey and Cunningham and encouraged a pantheon of great drivers to develop, among them, Briggs Cunningham, John Fitch, Phil Walters, Phil Hill, Jim Kimberly and Walt Hansgen. Later, from 1961 to 1980, Watkins Glen was the site of the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix Cameron Argetsinger, a lawyer and leader in upstate New York, was the man with the dream and the story of how he made it all happen against enormous odds is told in detail. It includes anecdotes and interviews contributed by many of the early participants, and has exclusive color photographs taken during years when color photography was practically unknown. In 2011, Watkins Glen celebrates the 50th anniversary of its first Formula 1 Grand Prix. Had the early Sports Car Grand Prix of 1948-52 not taken place and quickly become a huge popular success, Watkins Glen would long ago have disappeared in the annals of history. Instead, it remains to this day a challenging race track, with two nationally televised events each year, and it is the home of the world's first Motor Racing Research Library. Over 300 photographs provide vivid and fascinating illustrations of the men and machines who threaded together every part of this extraordinary story. Full race results and statistics for all entrants in the 13 races run between 1948 and 1952 are also provided in detail. A final chapter shows how many of the race cars from the early years are now highly valued and are prize-winners at concours events.

On a cold February day in 1979, when most of the Northeast was snowed in by a blizzard, NASCAR entered the American consciousness with a dramatic telecast of the Daytona 500. It was the first 500-mile race to be broadcast live on national television and featured the heroes and legends of the sport racing on a hallowed track. With one of the wildest finishes in sports history--a finish that was just the start of the drama--everything changed for what is now America's second most popular sport.
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HE CRASHED ME SO I CRASHED HIM BACK is the story of an emerging sport trying to find its feet. It's the story of how Bobby Allison, Donnie Allison, Cale Yarborough, Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Darrell Waltrip, A.J. Foyt, and Kyle Petty came together in an unforgettable season that featured the first nationally televised NASCAR races. There were rivalries--even the sibling kind--and plenty of fistfights, feuds, and frenzied finishes. Rollicking and full of larger-than-life characters, HE CRASHED ME SO I CRASHED HIM BACK is the remarkable tale of the birth of modern stock-car racing.

To mark the 60th anniversary season of the Castle Combe circuit this book has been published telling the story of the Wiltshire race track from 1950 right through to the end of the 2009 season. The title completely updates the story first told in the book "The First 50 years", which was published in 2000 and sold out several years ago. All the photographs are new and the story of the last 10 years covers the circuit's rise to hosting British Formula 3 and British GT racing. It also cover the subsequent noise issues that brought massive change to this incredibly popular venue, as well as the creation of the Castle Combe Racing Club. The two-wheel action, including non-championship British Superbike events, is also detailed. This new edition also takes in personal views on the circuit from drivers like Ian Flux, Mike Jordan, Ilsa Cox, Brian Fisher and Bob Higgins. The updated story of the last decade takes in the development of the hugely popular local championships.

Sam Moses, a motorsports writer for "Sports Illustrated," was assigned to go racing and write about what happened. "Fast Guys, Rich Guys, and Idiots" is a personal odyssey that peers over the cliff of change and into the pit of obsession. From small-time races to glittery grands prix, it lays bare the greed, lust, and desperation of every driver for time behind the wheel and a faster car. It explains the perfectionism behind taking a turn at the limit and describes the intoxicating thrill of stealing down the Daytona backstraight at nearly two hundred miles an hour. The core of Moses's story takes place in the heartland of stock car racing, there he finds a spot on a team in Ether, North Carolina. The team's owner is a tough Louisiana oil man, its crew chief a lanky, laconic Texan, and its number-one driver a hairy-chested leadfoot who learned fast driving on backwoods Georgia roads, delivering beauty supplies in his Mustang. Crashes echo throughout the tale that follows, five of them the author's own.

'What Vergeer has written is tremendously personal ... A wonderful book' Observer

Formula 1 Fanatic is a passionate and evocative history of the ultimate in motor-racing from the early 1970s to the present. Vergeer interweaves the lives and deaths of such legendary drivers as Ronnie Peterson, Gilles Villeneuve and Ayrton Senna with the progress of his own boyhood obsession. His accounts of the titanic flights between the top drivers, like Alain Prost (cool and precise) and the 'son of God' Senna (increadably fast, but unpredictable) or Damon Hill (burdened by his father's reputation) and Michael Schumacher (infallible) — are matched by the ferocious rivalry between the teams. For anyone enthralled by motor-racing, Formula 1 Fanatic is a feast of recognition and nostalgia.

A fascinating insider's look at life behind-the-scenes at Formula One. 'An essential read' AUTOSPORT 'A must for the real inside story' FORMULA 1 RACING 'Recommended for anyone interested in F1 on the inside' MOTORING NEWS Formula One Grand Prix mechanic Steve Matchett takes the reader on a compelling journey through his life in the pit-lane, from his beginnings as a young apprentice, through his time at Ferrari and BMW to his later success with Benetton. He gives eye-witness views of the great drivers, including Michael Schumacher, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna. He also talks of key Benetton personalities, and explains how the team was transformed into a strong, competitive organisation, winning three World Championships. His determination and frustration in trying - and eventually succeeding - to break into the high-pressure world of Formula One leaps off the page.

Twentieth Century Drifter: The Life of Marty Robbins is the first biography of this legendary country music artist and NASCAR driver who scored sixteen number-one hits and two Grammy awards. Yet even with fame and fortune, Marty Robbins always yearned for more. Drawing from personal interviews and in-depth research, biographer Diane Diekman explains how Robbins saw himself as a drifter, a man always searching for self-fulfillment and inner peace. Born Martin David Robinson to a hardworking mother and an abusive alcoholic father, he never fully escaped the insecurities burned into him by a poverty-stricken nomadic childhood in the Arizona desert. In 1947 he got his first gig as a singer and guitar player. Too nervous to talk, the shy young man walked onstage singing. Soon he changed his name to Marty Robbins, cultivated his magnetic stage presence, and established himself as an entertainer, songwriter, and successful NASCAR driver. For fans of Robbins, NASCAR, and classic country music, Twentieth Century Drifter: The Life of Marty Robbins is a revealing portrait of this well-loved, restless entertainer, a private man who kept those who loved him at a distance.

NASCAR held its first Strictly Stock race in Charlotte on June 19, 1949, and, in the following decades, dozens of large and small tracks throughout the Carolinas were home to a major NASCAR event. Called Grand National from 1950-1970, NASCAR's top circuit became the Winston Cup in 1971, and most of the dirt and small tracks were subsequently gutted from the schedule. Although a handful of those speedways tenuously held on through exploding popularity, and an influx of big corporate dollars, the transition to metropolitan markets and super speedways was inevitable. Some of the original tracks, like the North Wilkesboro Motor Speedway, still stand testament to the sport's not-too-distant past. Others, like the Charlotte Speedway, are long gone, leaving only memories and photographs. This is the story of every racetrack in North and South Carolina that held at least one big time race through 1971, but is no longer used for auto racing. Seven are one-race wonders, while others are as much racing legends as the sport's past champions. Chapters cover each track's big time history, from early background through its racing years to its current status. Included are the thrilling tales of the personalities and machines that shaped NASCAR's early days. Statistics chart every track's past winners, records, and wins by make. Nearly 150 photographs give the reader a virtual tour of speedways that are often inaccessible or nonexistent.

In this unique book the reader will have his armchair converted to the laid-down cockpit of a Formula One car and be swept around the world's classic motor racing circuits. He will experience the extraordinary sensations, the adrenaline and the atmosphere as told by the sport's best analyst. Together with F1's respected journalist, Maurice Hamilton, Brundle brings his infallible humour and insight, his experiences and opinion, to each of the circuits and its classic races. From the camber at Monaco, which will leave your wheels hanging in the air, to Melbourne and the dynamics behind the most dramatic crash of the decade. Encompassing such essential details as neck-snapping acceleration, smashing cars worth a quarter of a million, and the amount of sweat a driver will lose in a race, this is a rare F1 book - funny, opinionated, evocative and dramatic.

No other team in history has come close to matching the record of Roger Penske s team at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Team Penske has won seventeen times in its forty-four Indianapolis 500 races at the Brickyard. Penske first attended the Indy 500 with his father in 1951. He became a champion sports-car driver in the 1950s and 60s before forming his own team, which debuted at Indianapolis in 1969 and earned its first victory in 1972 with legendary driver Mark Donohue. Celebrating Team Penske s fiftieth anniversary of competing at the Indy 500, this volume captures all the highlights from each year s journey at Indianapolis, including individual driver s details, exciting race photography, and team statistics, and features legendary racers like Rick Mears, Bobby Unser, Al Unser, and Helio Castroneves. A tribute to the spectacle and prestige of auto racing s most historic event, this is a must-have book for aficionados of the Indy 500, motor sports, and automotive innovation.

The images in this volume represent the work of one of North East motorsport's best-loved characters, photographer Spencer Oliver, who is recognised as one of the finest motorsport photographers Britain has ever produced.