Racing Ahead

Racing Ahead — A Competitor’s Guide To Motorsport, by Glyn Thomas. MRP, £9.99

When motor racing was less intense than it now is, we at the MOTOR SPORT offices used to get readers ringing up, even calling, to ask our advice about becoming a racing driver. There was really very little advice we could impart, except, get a car, start at the bottom and if you are not in hospital at the end of the season, we recommend you to persevere. When racing drivers’ schools began to offer tuition they could be a useful means of discovering whether any talent was imaginary or real…

Since then the sport(?) has become more complicated and all manner of things enter into the hope of rivalling Damon Hill or Michael Schumacher. Not only how to drive but in which car to do it, for starters. Sponsorship has to be handled, the correct gear purchased, a full appreciation of the rules governing racing and the many classes of racing understood. Much much more, of course. This book explains all these things, so should be read by the optimists and those who have some early motor racing talent. In its soft-cover 240 pages it leaves just about nothing out. W B