Australia's Greatest Racecars


Book Description

Fully illustrated chapters showcasing the most famous Aussie racing muscle cars. Australia's Greatest Racecars showcases the most spectacular machines to hit the track. These are the V8 beasts that created the legend of Brock, Moffat, Johnson, Bathurst and many more household names. This book rolls out a full grid of legendary metal with magnetic attraction for racing enthusiasts. This fully illustrated hardcover includes dedicated chapters on 25 famous Aussie racing muscle cars. With over 300 full colour photos and great design, this is a book every Australian with petrol in their veins should have on their bookshelf.







Brabham


Book Description

Companion book to the compelling new documentary film of a motor sports hero Sir Jack Brabham was unique in the world of motor racing. He was the boy from Sydney who took on the elite of motor racing and won three F1 world championships, the last one in a car not only built by his own Brabham company, but with an Australian engine he'd helped develop. To those who saw him on the podium, Jack Brabham might have seemed glorious and triumphant. But he was also a man of secrets. He shunned the media, rarely using 'two words when none would do'. He kept vital information from his competitors, his team mates - and his family. It led to unrivalled success. It led to wealth too, much of it hidden around the world. But it also left a trail of hurt and bewilderment ... In this first ever book-length biography of Jack Brabham, his extraordinary accomplishments are laid out with new commentary from his rivals, colleagues, employees and long-time engineering partner Ron Tauranac. And, with the help of his sons Geoffrey and David, it represents the first major attempt to unravel the enigma who became known as 'Black Jack'. PRAISE 'Do buy the book, its a great read over the festive season or otherwise!' Primotipo 'A thorough, broad portrait of a motor sporting giant, an Aussie icon who rarely allowed outsiders to take a peek inside at a personality that offers more surprises than anyone might have guessed' Cars4Starters




Best Seat in the House


Book Description

Racer and broadcaster Neil Crompton has had the best seat in the house for the last 40 years of Australian motorsport, an amazing lifetime upgrade to a first-hand, front row seat to see the biggest names, machines and events of this high-speed, high-octane sport. A kid from Ballarat in country Victoria obsessed by speed with an undying passion to pursue a career in the sport, Neil ended up finding his way to lining up on the grid at the biggest race in Australia, the Bathurst 1000, driving for a team run by his childhood hero, Peter Brock. Since then he's raced wheel-to-wheel with some of the biggest stars the sport has ever seen in this country and experienced first-hand the thrilling success, heartbreaking disappointment and emotional trauma that is a life spent in motorsport and the relentless pursuit of the ultimate success. Uniquely, Neil has spent his entire career either driving a race car, a microphone or sometimes both. As the trusted and respected modern-day voice and face of Supercars racing on television in Australia, he's added the audio soundtrack from the commentary box to some of the biggest spine-tingling moments in the sport and is well qualified to offer his account of the who, what and where of Aussie motorsport. From navigating for Dame Edna Everage at the Adelaide Grand Prix to driving some of the fastest race cars in the world and everything in between, he has been there and seen it all.




Speed Kings


Book Description

The fascinating, definitive story of Australia and New Zealand's quest to win the world's greatest motor race Winning the Indianapolis 500, the greatest spectacle in motorsport, has been a quest for Australians and New Zealanders since the first race in 1911. Seventeen have tried and two have succeeded: Scott Dixon in 2008 and Will Power in 2018. Rupert Jeffkins, Australia's original speed king, entered the first Indy 500 and on his second attempt in 1912 came within five kilometres of victory. He and Italian Ralph De Palma created legend when they pushed their car to the finish line after it blew up while leading. Speed Kings tells Jeffkins' full story for the first time. The lure of the Brickyard, paved with 3.2 million bricks, has drawn champions from both sides of the Tasman. Sir Jack Brabham, his son Geoffrey and grandson Matthew have each tried to win. So have the 'big three' of New Zealand motor racing: Bruce McLaren, Denny Hulme and Chris Amon. Now Scott McLaughlin looks set to become the next driver from down under to chase American motor racing's greatest prize. Indy doesn't offer up victory lightly. Blinding speed - nudging 380 km/h and averaging 280 km/h over 500 miles - makes the Brickyard one of the most precarious racetracks in the world. Forty-two drivers have died attempting the 500. Speed Kings tells the story of the Australian and New Zealand drivers, team owners, engineers, even commentators who've made the Brickyard their quest.




Supercars


Book Description

V8 Supercars is a great Australian sporting success story, still going strong for over a quarter of a century. It was the first local race series to gain a mainstream national following, catapulting the likes of Peter Brock and Dick Johnson to fame against the backdrop of Mount Panorama, Bathurst. These days the sport draws huge crowds, attracts big-dollar TV rights deals and a new generation of heroes have appeared battling over old territory, plus a host of new street circuits, turning this Australian motor sport into a globally recognised phenomenon. The V8s have evolved into today's Supercars Championship, creating household megastars such as Craig Lowndes, Marcos Ambrose, Jamie Whincup and Scott McLaughlin. Supercars gives detailed insight into how each and every championship was won, tracking the development of the Supercars class between 1993-2010. This comprehensive and absorbing account of a uniquely Australian sport is a must for any race fan's bookshelf.




Immortals of Motor Racing


Book Description

This book takes the Immortals concept made famous in cricket andapplies it to motorsport, choosing the best of the best from Bathurstand the Australian Touring Car Championship (now the Supercars Championship) and other local series.It delves into the careers and characteristics of icons Peter Brock, Allan Moffatand Dick Johnson along with modern-era championssuch as Mark Skaife, Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup: heroes who are not just high achievers but influential identities who set anew benchmark and changed local racing forever through skill, determination and sheer will. It tells the remarkable stories behind each Immortal's rise, from the fabled tale of rock star Johnson to the little-known facts surrounding Lowndes' Bathurst arrival in 1994 that, a few hours earlier, teetered on the brink of disaster. The Immortals of Australian Motor Racing: the Local Heroes is the third instalment in Gelding Street Press's Immortals of Australian Sport series. In it, motorsport writer Luke West gives readersinsights into his 10 chosen immortals and their influence onthenational scene.




The Immortals of Australian Motor Racing


Book Description

This book takes the Immortals concept made famous in cricket and applies it to motorsport, choosing the best of the best from Bathurst and the Australian Touring Car Championship (now the Supercars Championship) and other local series. It delves into the careers and characteristics of icons Peter Brock, Allan Moffat and Dick Johnson along with modern-era champions such as Mark Skaife, Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup: heroes who are not just high achievers but influential identities who set a new benchmark and changed local racing forever through skill, determination and sheer will. It tells the remarkable stories behind each Immortal's rise, from the fabled tale of rock star Johnson to the little-known facts surrounding Lowndes' Bathurst arrival in 1994 that, a few hours earlier, teetered on the brink of disaster. The Immortals of Australian Motor Racing: the Local Heroes is the third instalment in Gelding Street Press's Immortals of Australian Sport series. In it, motorsport writer Luke West gives readers insights into his 10 chosen immortals and their influence on the national scene.




Aj


Book Description

Few names in international motorsport are treated with the same reverence as Alan Jones. When he speaks, they listen. He is one of only two Australians to win the Formula One World Drivers' Championship, and the first driver to do it for the now famous Williams team. His efforts brought Formula One to Australian TV screens, and today he is the voice of Formula One on Network Ten and a board member of the Australian Grand Prix. He is also a Formula One Steward at a couple of Grands Prix a season. AJ is the son of Stan Jones, the winner of the 1959 Australian Grand Prix, and from an early age he wanted to follow in his father's footsteps and race cars. He started with billycarts in Balwyn and climbed to the top of the motorsport tree in Formula One. His career was potted with highs and lows, the latter coming mainly from a lack of financial support compared with his rivals. But when he hit the big time with Williams, he turned that into the 1980 World Championship and all the fame and fortune that brought with it. But he stopped enjoying himself, the cars were painful to drive and he didn't feel he could give it his all, so he quite at the height of his powers. He did return to F1, but he wasn't the same driver and it wasn't the same team and it didn't last. He finished his racing career in touring cars in Australia. His no-nonsense style brought him both admirers and detractors, but he always spoke as he saw it. He still does that today. There are many stories to tell from his racing career, his personal life and business. Some stories that only time allows them to be told.




Ford Falcon Commemorative Edition


Book Description

Ford Falcon Commemorative Edition celebrates the much-loved car's six-decade rule of Aussie roads and racetracks. With the chequered flag flying on the Blue Oval favourite, this book examines the first Falcons to take flight in the early 1960s through to the final FG-X. Special emphasis is placed on the glorious decade 1969-78 and the magnificent high-performance machines from the Falcon XW GT-HO to the XA, XB and the Cobra. These are cars that still command instant respect and ooze all the excitement, emotion, colour, freedom and raw power of their time. Ford Falcon captures the stories from the men who designed, developed, built and raced these bred-for-Bathurst beasts. It features stunning photography of Falcon's triumphs, milestones and majesty. After some 56 years and 3.8 million cars, what better way to say goodbye to Aussie motoring royalty.