Growing Up NASCAR


Book Description

From the earliest days of the sport, when Humpy often used his fists to keep order, to NASCAR's transition to a multi-billion-dollar business, Humpy's life has paralleled American stock car racing.




Growing Up NASCAR


Book Description

In 1949, when Humpy Wheeler was 11, he attended the very first NASCAR race. For the next ten years, he spent as much time in the pits as he could, and came to know many of the sport’s pioneers. Eventually, Wheeler began promoting races at Carolina tracks such as Concord Speedway, Robinwood Speedway, and Starlight Speedway. Racing was so rough back then he kept a gun by his side when he paid the purse, and often used his fists to keep order. By the time Wheeler retired in 2008, he had helped NASCAR become the six-billion-dollar-a-year industry it is today. Filled with photographs from Wheeler's personal archives, Growing up NASCAR presents the ultimate behind-the-scenes look at NASCAR from the consumate insider.




Drive


Book Description

An inspirational, practical guide to success in business and life learned through the opportunities and challenges of growing up as the daughter of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Sr. and becoming one of the most influential women in professional sports. A successful businesswoman shares her story of growing up in the world of NASCAR and the lessons she learned along the way. Just like a racecar as it takes to the track, each of us needs a certain amount of fine-tuning for our journey through life. In Drive, Kelley Earnhardt Miller, daughter of Dale Earnhardt Sr. and sister to Dale Jr., opens up about growing up in the world of NASCAR, sharing the lessons she learned about being a successful business leader and what she discovered, often the hard way, about winning in life. Kelley never felt she was winning at anything until she began to deal with the thoughts and feelings that were driving her decisions and taking her in the wrong direction. Her journey of transformation is what empowered her to run the family business in an entirely different way than she had previously and to lead people not only with her head but also with her heart. Drive offers nine important lessons learned about winning in business and in life, given not as a formula for greatness but as insight from a fellow traveler on a journey that is sometimes difficult, painful, unexpected, or confusing and sometimes exhilarating and joyful: Be Authentic and Approachable Manage Your Emotions Succeed Using Strengths Let Go to Move Forward Customize Your Communication Know How to Make Decisions Aim for the Win-Win Show Kindness Live a Balanced Life Become a stronger person and a more effective leader by facing the truth about your own life in a healthy way and then drive to the win!




The Crew Chief's Son


Book Description

In this memoir, Michael Clements recounts growing up in the early days of stock car racing. From 1957 through 1965, his father, Louie, travelled the NASCAR circuit, bringing his wife and five children along to every race. Owner and crew chief for champion driver Rex White, Louie introduced many mechanical innovations still used in NASCAR today, and his children grew up on the road between races, befriending many racing legends along the way. Clements' memoir is full of stories about NASCAR's early era and the men and women who built the sport. It includes a wealth of never-before-seen photographs from his personal collection.




Gold Thunder


Book Description

Chevrolet fans were wishing for a hero and Rex White made their dreams come true. He took on big muscle cars and eventually won both the 1960 Winston Cup Championship and the Driver of the Year title and was selected as one of NASCAR's Top Fifty Driving Champions. This autobiography is the story of his struggle. Set against the rough and tumble days of early racing history, it gives insight into the sometimes humorous and sometimes tragic experiences of motor sports pioneers. The autobiography also contains information gained through interviews with other racing professionals, including personal stories from NASCAR greats Junior Johnson and Ned Jarrett. The book is well illustrated.




Winning in Reverse


Book Description

The amazing and dramatic story of Bill Lester, one of the most well-known NASCAR drivers in history—and a pioneer whose determination and spirit has paved the way for a new generation of racers. Winning in Reverse tells the story of Bill Lester whose love for racing eventually compelled him to quit his job as an engineer to pursue racing full time. Blessed with natural talent, Bill still had a trifecta of odds against him: he was black, he was middle aged, and he wasn’t a southerner. Bill Lester rose above it all, as did his rankings, and he made history time and time again, becoming the first African American to race in NASCAR’s Busch Series, the first to participate in the Nextel Cup and the first to win a Pole Position start in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Whether you are contemplating a career or lifestyle change, challenging social norms, or struggling against prejudice or bigotry, Winning in Reverse is a story for sports fans and readers everywhere about the power of perseverance in the face of adversity.




Earnhardt Nation


Book Description

A colorful, fearless portrait of the larger-than-life first family of NASCAR, the Earnhardts, and the rise of the world’s fastest stock car racing organization. More than sixty years ago, Ralph Earnhardt toiled in a cotton mill in his native North Carolina to support his growing family. Weekends he could be found going pedal to the metal at the dirt tracks, taking on the competition in the early days of box car racing and becoming one of the best short-track drivers in the state. His son, Dale Earnhardt Sr., would become one of the greatest drivers of all time, and his grandson Dale Jr, would become NASCAR’s most popular driver of the 2000s. From a simple backyard garage, the Earnhardts reached the highest echelons of professional stock car racing and became the stuff of myth for fans. Earnhardt Nation is the story of this car racing dynasty and the business that would make them rich and famous—and nearly tear them apart. Covering all the white-knuckle races, including the final lap at the Daytona 500 that claimed the life of the Intimidator, Earnhardt Nation goes deep into the fast-paced world of NASCAR, its royal family’s obsession with speed, and their struggle with celebrity. Jay Busbee takes us deep inside the lives of these men and women who shaped NASCAR. He delves into their personal and professional lives, from failed marriages to rivalries large and small to complex and competitive father-son relationships that have reverberated through generations, and explores the legacy the Earnhardts struggle to uphold.




They Call Him Cale


Book Description

The story of Cale's life, told for the first time ever in this authorized biography, is a tale of adventure, perseverance, and, above all, desire. After 43 years as a NASCAR driver and owner, Cale amassed a career record that remains staggering to this day: 560 races, 319 top-10 finishes, 83 victories, three NASCAR championships, and four Daytona 500 victories. Along the way, Cale would find himself rubbing fenders – and sometimes trading punches—with some of the biggest names in racing, including Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty, Darrell Waltrip, and the Allison Brothers. They Call Him Cale is the incredible true story behind one of the racing world’s biggest stars and fiercest competitors, as well as the tale of a quintessential American.




The Ghosts of NASCAR


Book Description

Who won the first Daytona 500? Fans still debate whether it was midwestern champion Johnny Beauchamp, declared the victor at the finish line, or longtime NASCAR driver Lee Petty, declared the official winner a few days after the race. The Ghosts of NASCAR puts the controversial finish under a microscope. Author John Havick interviewed scores of people, analyzed film of the race, and pored over newspaper accounts of the event. He uses this information and his deep knowledge of the sport as it worked then to determine what probably happened. But he also tells a much bigger story: the story of how Johnny Beauchamp—and his Harlan, Iowa, compatriots, mechanic Dale Swanson and driver Tiny Lund—ended up in Florida driving in the 1959 Daytona race. The Ghosts of NASCAR details how the Harlan Boys turned to racing cars to have fun and to escape the limited opportunities for poor boys in rural southwestern Iowa. As auto racing became more popular and better organized in the 1950s, Swanson, Lund, and Beauchamp battled dozens of rivals and came to dominate the sport in the Midwest. By the later part of the decade, the three men were ready to take on the competition in the South’s growing NASCAR circuit. One of the top mechanics of the day, Swanson literally wrote the book on race cars at Chevrolet’s clandestine racing shop in Atlanta, Georgia, while Beauchamp and Lund proved themselves worthy competitors. It all came to a head on the brand-new Daytona track in 1959. The Harlan Boys’ long careers and midwestern racing in general have largely faded from memory. The Ghosts of NASCAR recaptures it all: how they negotiated the corners on dirt tracks and passed or spun out their opponents; how officials tore down cars after races to make sure they conformed to track rules; the mix of violence and camaraderie among fierce competitors; and the struggles to organize and regulate the sport. One of very few accounts of 1950s midwestern stock car racing, The Ghosts of NASCAR is told by a man who was there during the sport’s earliest days.




The Wildest Ride


Book Description

In The Wildest Ride, Joe Menzer gives us a timely, comprehensive look at the dramatic, rollicking history of stock-car racing in America, exploring both its inauspicious bootlegging beginnings and the billion-dollar industry that it has become. Menzer straps the reader into the driver's seat for a run through NASCAR's history, revealing the sport's remarkable rise from rogue outfit to corporate darling. Menzer also profiles the many superstar drivers who have dominated the sport, men as unpredictable as they are fearless, including "The Intimidator," Dale Earnhardt, whose ferocious driving made him NASCAR's signature personality -- and whose tragic death at the 2001 Daytona 500 was mourned by millions. Menzer expertly maneuvers through the tight corners and wide-open straightaways of NASCAR's history, examining the circuit's attempt to distance itself from its "redneck racin'" past without compromising its country roots. Simultaneously rowdy and insightful, The Wildest Ride is a thorough and unfailingly honest account of NASCAR's amazing rise to prominence and a sweeping account of a uniquely American phenomenon.