Review
Readers can almost smell the rubber.... Essential for drag racing fans and libraries in communities where drag strips draw crowds. (Susan Belsky, Oshkosh Public Library, WI Library Journal 20091111)
This book is a great way for the beginner to get acquainted with the different classes of cars. (National Speed Sport News 20091105)
Simply fascinating... Miller's style of writing and awesome photography appeals to the racer in us all. (Evo Street Racers.com )
Burn rubber, eat smoke and feel the earth rumble in Drag Racing. (Performance in Motion )
Product Description
Two cars, a straight line and a burning desire to win.
Drag racing is the simplest and purest form of auto racing: two competitors accelerate from a standing start to the finish line. Once considered the "bad boy" of motorsport, drag racing has evolved into one of the most technically sophisticated forms of automotive competition. There are almost 400 professional racetracks devoted to competitive drag racing in North America.
In Drag Racing Timothy Miller reviews the history of the sport and explains the differences between the specific car classes, such as top fuelers, funny cars, alcohol cars, pro modifieds and pro stock. Profiles of the sport's pioneers and today's best-known names are also included.
Consider these remarkable statistics from modern drag racing:
- From a dead stop, a top fuel dragster is the fastest-accelerating vehicle in the world and, at full throttle, consumes the same amount of fuel as a fully loaded Boeing 747.
- During the launch of a fuel car, the driver sustains close to five Gs of gravitational pull -- more than a space-shuttle astronaut.
- Today's pro modifieds are capable of traveling a quarter mile in less than six seconds at speeds that exceed 240 miles per hour.
Burn rubber, eat smoke and feel the earth rumble in Drag Racing.
(20091201)About the Author
Timothy Miller is an automotive journalist and the author of NASCAR Now!, just published in its third edition. He lives in Hamilton, Ontario.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Introduction
Once considered the "bad boy" of motorsport, drag racing has evolved into one of the most technically sophisticated forms of motorized competition. And it produces some of the most exciting racing, based on a simple premise: two drivers race their vehicles, from a standing start, over a measured distance (usually a quarter-mile), competing for the shortest elapsed time.
From its California roots after World War II, drag racing spread throughout North America in the 1950s and 1960s, and today there are close to 400 facilities devoted to straight-line racing. As well, this motorsport has crossed the ocean and established itself in Great Britain, Europe, Australia and New Zealand -- something other forms of auto racing can only dream of.
Drag racing has also broken out of the men-only traditional mold when it comes to competitors. It has always welcomed women racers, some of whom have become major players in the sport. It has also embraced youth like no other form of racing, with programs such as Junior Dragsters and Tuner car events where young people can compete.
Fans of drag racing enjoy an atmosphere that allows them to walk through the pits at the track and watch the teams at work on their cars between races, something unheard of in other types of racing. Fans can also, at times, meet their heroes in the pits, and many a child has gone home happy, after getting a hero-card autograph or a chance to sit in a race car.
From the pioneers and their crude homemade cars built with no after-market speed equipment and raced on impromptu tracks with virtually no crowd control or fire and safety gear to today's multimillion dollar touring teams and professional racing venues, drag racing stages an assault on the senses like no other form of racing. It entertains in a colorful, loud, fast-paced environment that explodes upon the viewer. Some classes of cars literally shake the ground with the body-thumping vibrations of the loudest mechanical vehicles on the planet. Just watch a person who is witnessing a Top Fuel match-up for the first time. When the tire smoke clears, their jaw is still wide open and their eyes are as big as saucers.
Drag Racing not only talks about where drag racing has been, it also talks about today's racing and the current trends that will help form the future of drag racing. You'll read about the legends of the sport, and how the various sanctioning bodies have shaped drag racing. You'll learn the basics of the sport, and about the makeup of a 7,500-horsepower missile-on-wheels. You'll also get a better understanding about the importance of youth in drag racing, and read about some of the more prominent builders in the sport.
So get staged and watch that Tree!
