On May 30, 1958, thousands of racing fans poured into the infield at dawn to claim the best seats of the Indianapolis 500, unaware that they were going to witness one of the most notorious wrecks in racing history. Seconds after the green flag, a game of chicken spiraled out of control into a fiery 16-car pile-up that claimed the life of 29-year-old Indiana native and rising star Pat O'Connor. The other drivers escaped death, but the tragic 1958 Indy 500 seemed to leave its mark on them: the surviving drivers were hounded by accidents and terrible crashes, and most would die at tracks around the country. But the tragedy also prompted new regulations and safety precautions like roll bars that would ultimately save hundreds of lives. In The Curse of Indy 500: 1958's Tragic Legacy, veteran sportswriter Stan Sutton profiles the ill-fated race and the careers of the drivers involved, highlighting their lives in the dangerous world of auto racing.

This book is the third in Evro's multi-volume, decade-by-decade series covering the entire history of Formula 1 through its teams and cars. This instalment examines the 1980s, when the sport moved into its spectacular turbo era, first with Renault, Ferrari and BMW-powered Brabham, then with sustained periods of success for McLaren with Porsche-made TAG engines and Williams with Honda power. After the last win for the evergreen Ford Cosworth DFV in 1983, turbos prevailed until regulation change for 1989 brought back normally aspirated engines, now of 3.5 litres. Besides Formula 1's high achievers, this book also covers the entire supporting cast, where much curiosity lies in discovering the travails of obscure and unsuccessful cars. This wide-ranging, colourful and authoritative book will be treasured by all Formula 1 fans

The Hero's Body is a memoir of what it means to be a man in modern America. At just forty-seven years old, William Giraldi's father was killed in a horrific motorcycle accident. Writing here with searing honesty about grief, obsession, shame and identity, he looks back on three generations of men from the blue-collar town of Manville, New Jersey, and tells their stories in tandem: the speed-crazed cult of his father's 'superbikes', each Sunday spent racing fate along the winding back roads of Pennsylvania; the trauma of a son's ultimate loss, and William's attempts to rebuild a self in the manliest costume he knew. For a teen consumed by hardcore bodybuilding, pumping iron was so much more than a sport-it was a hallowed lifeline for a bookish tenth-grader, a way to forge himself a spot amongst his family's imperious patriarchs. A work of lasting literary beauty, lauded by the New Yorker for its 'unrelenting, perfectly paced prose', The Hero's Body is a tale of the working-class male, the codes of machismo and the unspoken bond between father and son.

Valentino Rossi's announcement of retirement brings down the curtain on an incredible career in the MotoGP motorcycle world championships. With his nine titles, including seven in the premier class, he is widely regarded as the greatest motorcycle racer of all time, and his 26 seasons of Grand Prix racing make him unique across both motorcycling and Formula 1. Rossi has been captivating fans since he won his first Grand Prix at the age of 17 and even in his final season, at the age of 42, he has been riding faster than ever. In this major new book by top MotoGP journalist Mat Oxley, each and every one of these races comes under the microscope, complete with perspectives about Rossi's achievements, the controversies, his character, and analysis of his bikes. This is a Valentino Rossi book like no other

In 1926 two men, Fred Mockford and Cecil Smith, operating as London Motor Sports Ltd, introduced speedway racing to Crystal Palace. Path racing was an immediate draw to the general public who initially flooded to the track to witness the likes of Triss Sharp and Joe Francis hurtling around the track in the flesh. However, following disagreements with the Trustees of the Crystal Palace itself, Mockford and Smith found it necessary to relocate the team to the greyhound track at New Cross. Thus speedway had its home at New Cross for nearly thirty years and enjoyed a tumultuous but successful existence in all. The American rider, Jack Milne, was triumphant in the Speedway World Championship in 1937, and resides in the New Cross annals along with Johnnie Hoskins, George Newton, Tom Farndon, Ron Johnson and the Roger brothers, Bert and Cyril.

Newly promoted, Bristol began the 1950 season in the First Division for the first time since the Second World War. The performances of favourites drew in the crowds and the team even managed to attract future world champion Bjorn Knutsson into their ranks in 1959. This book shows their resilience and optimism in the face of adversity.

Speedway first came to Bristol in 1928 at the Knowle Stadium. The opening meeting was held on 25 August, with Len Parker winning the Bristol Golden Helmet. This work presents history of Bristol Speedway up to that time. It is for those with an interest in the early years of the Bulldogs.

Concentrating on the midget car speedway races in the Potteries in the period immediately before the Second World War, this book tells of the development of the sport - which was a national feature of speedway tracks for a short period in time. Originally imported from the States, it soon became a passion for many Brits.

The post-war era was British speedway's golden age. Ten million spectators passed through the turnstiles of a record number of tracks at the sport's peak. With league gates as high as 80,000, speedway offered a colourful means of escape from the grim austerity of the times. A determinedly clean image, with no betting and rival fans mingling on the terraces, made speedway the family night out of choice. The sport thrived despite punitive taxation and Government threats to close down the speedways as a threat to industrial productivity. A three-division National League stretched from Exeter to Edinburgh and the World Championship Final attracted a capacity audience to Wembley. Test matches against Australia provided yet another international dimension. Even at the height of its popularity, speedway was a sporting edifice built on unstable foundations, which crumbled alarmingly as the 1950s dawned and Britain's economic and social recovery brought competing attractions like television.

In 1938 Arthur George Wilkinson became the first West Ham speedway rider to win the World Championship, and he remains one of the great names of the sport today. 'Bluey', as the diminutive Australian was universally known, carved his name into the annals of speedway history with a mixture of will, concentration, boldness and power that has rarely been matched by other riders. Wilkinson's story is set in the 1930s, the early days of oval motorcycle racing in Australia and Britain. This was West Ham's golden era, culminating in their Championship year of 1937, and the period in which the 'Custom House Comet' became a legend. Brian Belton is an East End native, whose family have supported West Ham speedway from the very beginning. In this book he brings to life that Claret and Bluey decade which is now part of the history and folklore of London's Docklands.

Casey Stoner, the two-time World MotoGP champion, tells his own explosive story. Showing anything is possible when determination meets talent, two-time World MotoGP champion Casey Stoner shares his incredible journey from being a Queensland toddler with an extraordinary ability on a motorbike to his decision to retire at 27 with nothing left to prove. For the first time, he tells of his early family life, the development of his riding skills and why his parents decided to sell everything and travel from Australia to Europe to chase the dream and support his aim to become World Champion when he was only 14 years old. As fearless with his opinions as he is on the racetrack, Casey includes all the highs and lows of his life so far: the real reason he left for Europe so young, his thoughts on racing as it stands today, the riders' hierarchy, the politics of racing, the importance of family, his battle with illness and why he decided to turn his back on a multimillion-dollar contract when he was still winning. And he also lets us in on some of the new goals he has set for himself.