High Performance by Robert C Post
This text traces the history of drag racing from the earliest "legal" drag runs in rural airfields to the spectacular - and sometimes tragic - careers of drag racing's boldest innovators. The author has interviewed most of drag racing's legends and superstars such as "Pappy" Hart, who opened the first commercial strip in Santa Ana, California; Florida's "Big Daddy" Don Garlits, the first person to define himself as a professional drag racer; and Shirley Muldowney, who was nearly killed in a 250 MPH crash and returned to the cockpit two years later with the explanation, "It's what I do". The book covers all aspects of drag racing: the sport, the business and the means of personal affirmation. Most of all, the author explores it as an example of technological enthusiasm, tracking the innovation that permitted racers to disprove on pavement the "laws of physics" that experts laid out on paper.
"This book will be the 'Bible' of drag racing for future generations"--Don Garlits "As Post deftly guides the reader through four densely packed decades and his own cogent and persuasive analysis, his relish for the subject matter is unabashed. What's more, his prose is vigorous and tidy, and his research...is not likely to be surpassed. Staking out a technological fringe area, 'High Performance' offers a truly memorable scholar-enthusiast's view of the bond uniting human beings and the machines they build."--John Wilkes, 'Technology Review' "[Post] delves into [his] topic intensely, skillfully elucidating its connections with other areas of study. The resulting performance is high indeed."--Frederic D. Schwarz, 'Invention & Technology' "A junkie's confession for a culture addicted to speed and noise."--'Voice Literary Supplement'
Robert C. Post is curator at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. He is the author or editor of more than a dozen books on the relationship between technology and culture, including 'Street Railways and the Growth of Los Angeles' and 'The Tancook Whalers: Origins, Rediscovery, Revival'.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780801854644 |
| ISBN 10 | 0801854644 |
| Title | High Performance |
| Author | Robert C Post |
| Series | Johns Hopkins Studies In The History Of Technology |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | The Johns Hopkins University Press |
| Year published | 1996-08-28 |
| Number of pages | 448 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |