NASCAR & Stock Car

For nearly 70 years, NASCAR has been the premier sanctioning body for organized Stock Car Racing in the United States. During that time, the sport has grown from a Southern, regional series to a global brand with its races telecast in more than 100 countries around the world.

Author John Close details the earliest races of the 20th Century that laid the groundwork for the formation of NASCAR through today's modern events at mega-race stadiums across the country. Presented in an easy-to-read decade-by-decade "Fact Format," this books allows you to spend a couple of minutes or hours at a time learning about the Cars (and Trucks), Personalities, Tracks, and Milestones of NASCAR, America's most popular and attended form of motorsports. Close, a longtime NASCAR journalist, author, team member, and race-day Spotter, also includes dozens of rare and informative photos that take you from the famed "Beach Course" at Daytona to the high banks of today's NASCAR tracks. A must read for any NASCAR, Stock Car Racing, and American Motorsports fan, the book will provide hours of interesting entertainment as it uncovers rare information and statistical anomalies.

“The best ever” Daytona 500, featuring a spine-tingling last lap pass of leader “Intimidator” Dale Earnhardt by eventual winner Dale Jarrett, is covered in color and in depth. So are all the key events leading up to the 500, practice and qualifying, the Gatorade Twin 125-mile qualifying races, and the Busch Clash. Every driver to qualify for the Daytona 500, including polesitter Kyle Petty, second fastest qualifier Jarrett, the Twin 125 winners, Earnhardt and rookie Jeff Gordon, receive color photographic coverage. 500 winner Jarrett and his father, two-time Winston Cup winner Ned Jarrett, who rooted his son home from the CBS television announcer’s booth, get feature coverage. So does rookie Gordon, who actually led the first lap of his first Daytona 500 and finished fifth. Color coverage of all the supporting events starts with the Rolex 24 at Daytona, North America’s premiere endurance race, which features IMSA GT cars. It was won by a Dan Gurney Toyota entry, an honor which had previously eluded the popular and highly successful team owner. Included are the Goody’s 300 for Busch Grand National cars, in which Dale Earnhardt prevailed for a fourth consecutive time, the ARCA 200, and the Gatorade NASCAR Dash. Official results for every Speedweeks event are presented in detail. A photographic feature zeroes in on the top Winston Cup Team owners, key players in the Daytona 500 drama. Driver’s families, friends, and racing luminaries are pictured in the relaxed “off-duty” moments at Daytona. Of special interest is photo coverage of Richard Petty in a new role, Honorary Starter for the Daytona 500. He got the 41-car field off to a clean, fast start, the only Daytona 500 (save one) he’s missed as a driver since he started in 1959.