Our favorite racing books/biographies

What a fantastic price

I received the IMSA yearbooks yesterday and I was a bit disapointed to see they chose to give the same coverage to all the IMSA classes (GTP, Lights, GTO, GTU, American Challenge ...). You'd think the GTP/Lights classes would get the most coverage considering the cars, drivers and technologies who raced in them but all in all you have something like 30 pages about the prototypes amongst the 180 pages of the books (and lots of advert).

Yeah, I'm a bit disapointed as well, especially by the 1971 book which is tiny...

Still a good read though, but not detailed enough I reckon

Found a new old stock copy of this book at the Indianapolis State Fair Grounds last year -- signed by driver Mel Kenyon. Great find.

Haha love the title

Alain Lefebvre vient de sortir la 2ème version de son livre simracing, pour les hardcore simracers il vous apprendra peu, mais pour votre entourage curieux je trouve que c'est un excellent livre d'approche du simracing

il est dispo à cette adresse :

http://www.simracingbook.com/

Je viens de regarder la vidéo de présentation qu'il faisait de la première édition de son livre, on y devine des course HSO.

Hey guys i have small book written by an engineer by my country Ing. Roberto Bargoni, it is a lover vintage motorcycle and Indian culture with other essays written by you.
There his little book.
It is Written in Italian, hope you like it.

http://www.mediafire.com/view/?1lt8bglfkyqno87

Just finished reading Marathon in the Dust last night (hence the avatar update).

A thoroughly enjoyable read. Innes describes the goings on in magnificent detail. And if you are unfamiliar with the rally, there is a surprise ending that, if it were fiction, would seem utterly unrealistic.

I plan to write a book review for the AUTODESIGN blog; I'll post the link here when it is up.

Jason White wrote:

Just finished reading Marathon in the Dust last night (hence the avatar update).

A thoroughly enjoyable read. Innes describes the goings on in magnificent detail. And if you are unfamiliar with the rally, there is a surprise ending that, if it were fiction, would seem utterly unrealistic.

I plan to write a book review for the AUTODESIGN blog; I'll post the link here when it is up.

http://autodesign.com/2012/07/book-review-marathon-in-the-dust/

Thanks to the recommendations on this thread I have already behind me Shunt (great read, thxs Jason), autocourse CART for 1995-2002 and some more I found on the way

Now this one about my all time favourite motorbike champion is starting to tempt me ... : http://www.motorcycle.com/products/wayne-rainey-his-own-story-3956.html

Alberto Ibañez wrote:

autocourse CART for 1995-2002 and some more I found on the way

Love those books, very well written, absolutely superb photos, and outrageously cheap

I have recently bought all the F1 Autocourse from 1978 to 1992. Great books as well, very detailled, and not focused only on the front runners which is exactly what I was looking for (I mean we all know the stories behind the top championship spots). Of course not a lot of colored pictures from 1978 to ~ 1983, but enough to get the feel of what F1 was like in those days.

I have also started a collection of the 24 hours of Le Mans annuals from the 1982-1992 era. Still missing the books from 1983 to 1986 but they are so rare, it's hard to find them bellow 150€ I have several Motocourse as well, got them for a good price but most of the time they're expensive as well.

Bought this one thinking it was about british racing, that is, how british started racing and their history. When it arrived i discovered it was about that team with the funny craptacular car in Grand Prix Legends In my defense i will say that it was my first book about racing, and that i had totally ignored motor racing till simulators sparkled my interested in it.

And what an awesome book it is. Here (and in the next two volumes) Doug Nye traces the history of one of the most disfunctional racing teams that ever graced the Grand Prix circuit. It´s full of detail and anecdotes, very exhaustive but between the technical analyses of engines, cars (all gibberish to me back then ) and races there´s a history so entertaining, infuriating, farcical, ridiculous, charming and awesome that one can´t put the heavy volume down. Not knowing anything about the team it was a rollercoaster of a ride for me, angry when they fumbled yet again, cheering every little victory of them, till that year of 1962...

Those volumes are the reason for my irrational love of crappy cars and teams. Hope the author finishes the fourth volume, that should go from 1967 till the seventies. It took forever for the third book, so i guess i´ll have to wait quite a bit still.

Came across this book in a car model shop about a month ago. Will read it this summer and let you guys know if it's any good...

Just received these two, tons of pics and detailled reports from WSPC, IMSA, Le Mans, JSPC, Interserie, Supercup ... a true Group C orgy

Gustav Büsing used to be a commentator on Eurosport IIRC

Got '91?

No, sportscar racing wasn't the same after 1990 so it wasn't my priority, but maybe I'll buy it one day. Le Mans was cool in 1991 though, I have the yearbook.

True, just as the "F1-rules" engines came in with Peugeot(who dropped out soon enough anyway in the '91 race). Shame Rotary engines were banned, as if they were winning many races But the FIA probably wanted just 1 engine concept for everyone in the sport.

Good man!

A shame I missed the memory runs of Herbie in the Mazda in 2011 we were stuck in traffic and didn't see it, my favourite car

By the way: Anyone going to Le Mans here?

Guillaume Siebert wrote:

Just received these two, tons of pics and detailled reports from WSPC, IMSA, Le Mans, JSPC, Interserie, Supercup ... a true Group C orgy

I'm so jell

Guillaume Siebert wrote:

Just received these two, tons of pics and detailled reports from WSPC, IMSA, Le Mans, JSPC, Interserie, Supercup ... a true Group C orgy

Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie!

Where you get them from?

This !



Still got mine that I received from my father, and still using it as a bible
You have everything from driving techniques to setups. And all that based on later 80's car, what I consider part of Formula 1 Golden age

If you are interested in books about racing techniques, probably the best I have yet seen is Carroll Smith's "Drive to win". I have read it several times and it is fantastically well written and very comprehensive

Richard Coxon wrote:

Where you get them from?

eBay Got lucky and got them for a very good price, because they are quite rare and can be very expensive.

Indeed they can ! I remember buying them for an indecent amount of Francs back in the late 90s, in Jean-Marc Teissèdre's shop in Paris !

Guillaume Siebert wrote:

Richard Coxon wrote:

Where you get them from?

eBay Got lucky and got them for a very good price, because they are quite rare and can be very expensive.

Cool, They in French? And would love some group c books, Aint got one. Got a great on on Group B rallying.