As classic car enthusiasts, our love of car racing and motor sports have been spurred more for how these venues have been the development and research labs for the evolving design of passenger vehicles over the past century. Thanks to our About.com colleague, writer and photographer Basem Wasef and his newly released book, Legendary Race Cars, our eyes have been opened to a more up close and personal relationship between man and the racing machine.
What Basem does best in his book is cover any and all styles of racers in thefasinating stories of the twenty five cars that he chose, from the 60-horsepower Thomas Flyer of 1908 to the Greer-Black- Prudhomme Top Fuel Dragster and Michael Schumacher's Ferraris.
The book's great mix of machines and the men that drove them to victory is complimented by modern and period photos on every page which help bring the action of the stories to life. Those of you who are only into Formula 1 or Stock car racing might wonder why you would want to read a book with other genres. Why wouldn't the author stick to one style of racing?
What Legendary Race Cars makes you understand is that it's the journey, starting with an idea, the drive and the passion to the best, the sacrifice and not willing to take no for an answer, the talent and winning personalities it takes to make any concept into something legendary.
A foreword by renowned British racing driver Sir Stirling Moss and the "jacket-poster suitable for framing" of the 1968 Team Lotus-STP Type 56 Turbine Indy Car driven by Joe Leonard, adds to the book's "gotta have" factor.
