Racing Books

I have read all 17 books currently available in the Thoroughbred Legends series and have been telling myself to write a review of the Sunday Silence volume as I believe it is the best in the series. The recent passing of this unique horse has finally given me an incentive to write about it.

The Sunday Silence book is probably the longest of the books dealing with a single horse (the Affirmed and Alydar book is longer, but is that way because it deals with the lives of both horses). Author Ray Paulick has thoroghly researched the life of Sunday Silence and has used interviews to tell a great tale about a horse nobody wanted who went on to win two-thirds of the Triple Crown, including a victory in what is arguably the greatest race of all time, the 1989 Preakness, where he went nose-to-nose with his arch-rival Easy Goer in an exciting stretch duel.

Sunday Silence's rags to riches story is told alongside the story of his breeder, Arthur Hancock, who was passed over in the succession of his father at the great Claiborne Farms (his younger brother was chosen instead), but who went on to develop his own farm successfully. Also intertwined is the story of his jockey Pat Valenzuela, a talented jockey whose career was later stunted by substance abuse (he is making a comeback and doing well, I understand).

The book also tells of Sunday Silence's breeding career in Japan, where he became a superstar sire and a nation's hero. Reading this part of the book might let you understand why his Japanese owners elected not to euthanize Sunday Silence when he came down with laminitis in August 2002, letting nature eventually take him on her own. He was loved so much in Japan, they obviously didn't want to let him go.

Many of the Legends books were written by people who obviously didn't do much but look at old newspaper and horse racing trade articles to write their stoies. Paulick made an effort, with interviews, and it shows. I believe this is the only book he has written in the series, but I hope to see more from him in future books. There are still many great horses who haven't been written about (Secretariat, Kelso, Count Fleet) who could use the Paulick treatment.

Sunday Silence's story takes on a fairy-tale quality: the cow-hocked, sickly little black foal versus the royally-bred, strikingly beautiful bright chestnut Easy Goer, who became the darling of the Eastern press establishment. Easy Goer could do no wrong. Sunday Silence, racing out west, under the radar of the Eastern press, made no impression at all as a two-year-old.

While the paths of the now-three-year-old Sunday Silence and Easy Goer would not officially cross until the Kentucky Derby, ABC Sports telecast two of their derby prep races on April 8, 1989.

"Easy Goer was simply brilliant in his race, the Gotham Stakes from New York's Aqueduct racetrack....he [bounded] away from the field to win by thirteen lengths. His final time of 1:32 2/5 was just one-fifth of a second off the world record for a mile, set in 1968 by the great champion Dr. Fager."

Sunday Silence ran a good race, too, winning the Santa Anita Derby by eleven lengths and coming within three-fifths of a second of the stakes record set by Lucky Debonair in 1965.

Easy Goer's trainer, Shug McGaughey wasn't so much worried about the cow-hocked black's running style as he was about Sunday Silence's trainer: the ex-marine, hall-of-fame trainer, Charlie Wittingham, the Bald Eagle. "I sure wish somebody else besides Charlie Whittingham was training that horse," McGaughey said.

He was right to be worried. The Bald Eagle was a master at bringing a horse up to a classic race.

Easy Goer was the favorite to win both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, but Sunday Silence was all alone at the wire for the Derby. He went on to win the Preakness by a nose, and was finally made the favorite for the third race in the Triple Crown series: the Belmont. The bettors were wrong, again. Easy Goer was on his home track and he relished the mile-and-a-half distance, winning the Belmont by eight lengths. The two rivals would race together one more time in 1989 to determine who was going to be Horse of the Year.

Luckily, the Breeders' Cup races weren't held at Belmont that year, or things might have turned out differently. The Gulfstream track had relatively tight turns, favoring a nimble horse like Sunday Silence over the long-striding, slow-to-turn Easy Goer. Once again, Easy Goer was hammered down to 1-2 favoritism by the bettors (he was a beautiful horse). Once again, Sunday Silence outmaneuvered his rival on the track and won by a desperate neck.

Sunday Silence was voted Horse of the Year.

Both horses were expected to renew their rivalry as four-year-olds, but both sustained injuries and had to be retired to stud. Easy Goer was bedded down in the same stall at Claiborne where Secretariat had held court, and he attracted the cream of the regally bred mares. Unfortunately, he only produced four crops of foals before his premature death, with only three grade one winners among them.

On the other hand, no one was interested in breeding to a cow-hocked son of Halo, no matter how well he had run, so Arthur Hancock sold Sunday Silence to Zenya Yoshida of the Shadai Stables in Japan. Sunday Silence has been doing extremely well at stud in Japan, breeding champion after champion. This spring, a contingent of his yearlings sold for an average of more than $700,000 apiece in Australia.

Handsome is as handsome does, as my grandmother used to say.

Ray Paulick also tells the interesting story of how Arthur Hancock, who was written out of his father's will as owner of Claibourne Farm, picked himself back up and made his own Stone Farm an outstanding success.

Another story related to the success of Sunday Silence is that of his jockey Pat Valenzuela, a gifted athlete whose career was side-tracked on numerous occasions because of drugs. He is making what is hopefully his final comeback from drugs in 2002, and has already won a few stakes for the trainers who still put their trust in him.

Sunday Silence went on to Japan and became a leading sire of the horses in that country.

However, his record speaks for itself on the racetrack !

What makes a horse special and famous is who he ran against, which races he won, and how fast he went.

During the campaign of Sunday Silence, a superhorse was also being raced on the east coast named Easy Goer.

Easy Goer would have been a secretariat in his time if not for Sunday Silence.

Both horses ran on opposite coasts, and it helped foster the east/west rivalry that we see in some years but not many.

Coming into the Kentucky Derby, everyone was talking about Easy Goer. He was exceptionally well bred, and he was huge in stature. He has destroyed fields in NY and the east on his way to Kentucky.

Sunday Silence had done well in california, but no one really thought of him as a real threat.

Well we had a Derby and a Preakness go to Sunday Silence and it looked as if we would have a Triple Crown sweep by him.

The large striding Easy Goer came home to the Belmont Stakes and despite the crowd now favoring Sunday Silence, everyone in the know and the art of handicapping knew Belmont Park was Easy Goer's home field.

Turning for home, Easy Goer had extra gears to handle the distance and surface, and he opened up daylight turning for home. It was a hard defeat for Silence and his connections who (if you read the book) had a rivalry with the connections of Easy Goer.

Well lets say it was 2-1 in favor o Sunday Silence, but everyone who loved Easy Goer, and that was a large audience of people, felt that Goer had stamped himself the better of the two.

We had a showdown that year in the B.Cup Classic, and get the book to find out who won !

It was dark and raining, and not a single person left the track on that day. This book covers the story, enjoy it it was well done.

Best Regards to all, MC - TheStickRules.Com

A fine treatment of 1989 Triple Crown hopeful. This volume contains a good number of photos and is overall a classy looking book, as are all of the Thoroughbred Legends series. The text does a great job of covering the rivalry between Sunday Silence and Belmont Stakes spoiler Easy Goer.

Great book for people who enjoy cycling, and/or who believe you're never too old to follow your passion! Very fun true story. Didn't listen to the cd b/c I bought it as a gift.

The book was a great gift for grandpa. Very cute story and illustrations. I would reccomend it to others.

My grandma who is a school teacher got me this book. It's the best! I listened to the cd a ton of times at home and on car rides. I even shared it with my 3rd grade class. My teacher read it then let us hear the cd too. Most books I read are about kids but this one is all about an older man. All he wants to do is ride his bike but the judges say he is too old to join the race. He practises and practises and joins the race anyway. Nobody can believe it when he finishes in first place! They say the story's really true. I guess that goes to show you that everyone has a dream. This story's the best because of the action and the narration. It also has music and sounds that make me laugh.

In 1951, Gustaf Hakansson, a 66-year old cyclist, was barred from racing in the Tour of Sweden because the judges felt he was far too old. They even told him to "go home to his rocking chair." Instead he joined the 1,000 mile race unofficially--and won while becoming a folk hero in Sweden. It's an incredibly inspiring story that I've already shared with kids and retired friends alike! You just can't help but root for the old codger, and it knocks me out to know that this story is based on true events. The writing's tight, the illustrations delightful, and the narration on the cd takes you straight to the time and place. Bravo!

Some of the greatest racing pictures ever. What a great way to remember Dale Earnhardt. If you LIKE Nascar you will LOVE this book. I have seen a lot of George Tiedemann's work and this is as usual, quality work. Buy it!

If you love racing, and if you have the respect of great drivers you will love this book. I own many NASCAR books, and this is my favorite. The pictures are amazing the information is great. You can't go wrong with this book. There is one sad thing about the book...after reading it reality sets in that we won't see this rivalry on the track ever again. The memories are well-documented in this book and will live on! Thanks Dale and Jeff!

I ordered this book a few days after the death of Dale Earnhardt. I've been a Jeff Gordon fan for a few years now, and loved watching the on-track duels between these two drivers. The stories and pictures compliment each other very well, telling the story of two fierce competitors and their respect for one another. I am sad knowing that there will never be another last lap duel between 'Wonderboy' and the Intimidator, but this book helps keep the memories alive. Highly recommended for fans of either driver, or NASCAR fans in general.

For anyone who likes balls-to-the-wall Nascar action this is the book for you! "Trading Paint" features 173 of the most awesome racing photos ever assembled and delves inside the intense rivalry that Jeff Gordon and the late great Dale Earnhardt shared. The shots of The Intimidator in action provide a great time capsule depicting a man at the top of his sport. As a huge fan of Earnhardt it was both enjoyable and bittersweet looking back over his legendary career through the pictures and text in this book. I also have more respect for Jeff Gordon than ever after reading his story and looking back on his many impressive victories. He's still got a lot of great racing left in him, and if you aren't impressed with him yet you should really check out some of the sick action shots of #24 in this book. Bottom line, whether you're a fan of Earnhardt or Gordon or you just plain love Nascar racing, "Trading Paint" is a must-have!

If you are just starting out in this business, you should read this book. Preston Burch gives you a simple, direct and enlightening understanding of thoroughbred horses. This book may have been published almost 50 years ago but in every advancement man has made we constantly find ourselves going back to old knowledge and wisdom.

If every owner had a trainer like Preston Burch, there would be a lot more owners.

This is a cornerstone book for a racing library. There is a large amount of fundamental training information in this simply written little book.

The sections on conditioning schedules are invaluable. The degree of conditioning Burch afforded his horses is probably unmatched today.

Read this book, and then end it to your trainer (if he can read).

Impossible that present day horses would beat any horse trained by Preston Burch. Just read the exercise prescriptions in this book and be blown away. I certainly was. Here is carefully controlled training by a trainer understanding that his horses are participating in an athletic event. This is a book about conditioning equine athletes and also contains every other aspect of training and caring for thoroughbred race horses in a well written book by an individual who apparently understood the great care required. I held off reading this fearing it was dated, but what a pleasant surprise to find the extreme if succinct comprehensiveness here, every aspect is covered by a fellow who tried to do everything correctly. This is Ivers before Ivers, and one does wonder whatever happened to trainers like Max Hirsch and Preston Burch.

The author writes from legendary experience as a thoroughbred trainer. Of course with any knowledge presented it can not possibly include every little detail regarding the subject but certain it can only enhance the experience one can acquire as a trainer.

Be that as it may, my motive behind purchasing this material was not that of becoming a trainer, but rather to become an outstanding horseplayer. To me, the more a horseplayer can learn about the horses including important details about how thoroughbreds are trained, the better.

This book offers exactly the information desired about training. I truly recommend others reviewing this material and also let me know what you think about the information, perhaps we can dialogue about the sport of training thoroughbreds. All the best! --- Stanley Pall

Great book, by a GREAT author!

Check out ALL of her books (Your greatest fan!)

If you have yet to read a book by Ms Burton, you don't know what you are missing. This lovely lady tells stories that keep you turning every page. Never do you want to put the book down nor do you ever want it to end. They are stories that you wish to continue on and on. And the next day you awake still having those characters inside your head. I fell in love with Brenda and Alex and kept wondering when the two were going to come to their senses and finally get together. I loved the way that Alex would go to the school to see her and help out with her activities. This was a love story; one that everyone should read. This is a five stars two thumbs up book!! An incredible writer, another incredible story. I would recommend this sweet love story to one and all. It was so wonderful!!

I just finished reading The Tycoon and it was great. The descriptions of the couple's conflicting thoughts are wonderful. The inclusion of many time elements make it so much more exciting. I couldn't put the book down.

I found this book to be a page-turner. The characters were likable, the conflict believable and the content interesting. I like the way the one antique care was woven into the story. When I reached the end of the story, I wanted to read more but it had ended! I recommend this sweet romance to all.

I found this book to be a wellspring of information covering some of the greyhounds humble beginnings through its racing career. It gives in deapth views of the life of the racing Greyhound in not only the US, but in Ireland, the UK and Australia; the similarities and differences between them. It talks about bringing your new adoptee home and some of the common medical issues you may have to deal with. Lots of color photos. The Ultimate Greyhound is an Ultimate source of info. Definately 5 stars.

This book had informative chapters about how a racer is cared for, Adopting an ex-racer, bringing it home, socializing and training. It also had a a-z common health problem guide in the back. definitely one of the better Greyhound books

I was really suprised by the comprehensive nature of this book. Anything you could possibly want to know from history to racing to owning to caring for a greyhound is inside this book. I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to know about the glorious greyhound and his/her rich history and bright future.

The Ultimate Greyhound is one of the most thorough greyhound books I have come across to date. Gorgeously illustrated with lots of colorful photographs, the book gives a generous background into the history and origins of the breed as well as origins of Coursing, Track Racing and the development of the Conformation Standard of Greyhounds in both the AKC and UKC. It shares information on the care and upbringing of these beautiful creatures from three different Countries, covering ALL aspects dogs bred both for conformation (show-dogs) and for the track. The Ultimate Greyhound also covers reasons for retirement, troubleshooting both health and common behavioral problems, giving insight into their cause as well as their cures. An excellant book. If you have a greyhound, want a greyhound or just want more info; this is the book to get.

Rod and custom fans will love this book but it's also a treasure for those of us who prefer our "iron" stock. I knew that Studebaker can easily become "Baker" - to give an example not cited in this volume - but I had to read Breitenstein to learn that a Buick is a "Buford". Or a super-cool "Bu". Tom Wolfe should discover this book if he hasn't already. It's full of candy-colored hip-and-sly humor and illuminates a lively decades-old subculture - you just have to love it. Whether or not you tool around in a hopped-up Chevy Biscayne ("Biscuit").

Finally the answer in the hot rod world. This book covers many terms new and old over many generas in the sport of hot rodding. Easy dictionary form allows you took look up terms quickly and easily. Illustrations are great and give you a picture explanation of the terms. Wether your a veteran hot rodder, new comer or just looking for an explanation for a term used. This book is a must on your shelf.

This book is long overdue. Over the past decades I have seen many feeble attempts made to document the broad and colorful language of the hot rodder. The Ultimate Hot Rod Dictionary puts all previous efforts to shame. With over 1,600 words, phrases and expressions represented - spanning nearly a full century of experience - this book should be considered the "ultimate authority" on the specialized language of a unique American subculture.
Author Bretenstein very clearly knows his material.What made this book so appealing to me is that it goes well beyond the curt, skeletal definitions found in most dictionaries and includes a wealth of history, etymologies (word origins) as well as plenty of fun trivia. There is a staggering amount of information crammed into the book's 243 pages , but I have yet to find any inaccuracies . The material is "dead-on." Bretenstein has clearly done his homework.
I have also found that the book has broad appeal. The Ultimate Hot Rod Dictionary is very enlightening and
it's ideal for beginners, but those readers who feel they already know the subject should prepare to be humbled ;nobody knows all of this stuff. What's more, the book's writing style is clear and fluent making for a most pleasurable read.
Conclusion: The Ultimate Hot Rod Dictionary is a "must have" for any rodding, drag, custom or musclecar enthusiast!

This unpretentious little book is a gold mine of information. It was so thorough I couldn't believe it. I tried to think up every obscure name or subject, and it had them all. It had all the old, 40's and 50's jargon, but the latest ones too. The illustrations, though not lavish by any means, aid in explaining the definitions. Do yourself a favor - buy this book!

This is one of the most detailed and accurate presentations on Walt Hansgen and the Sports Car Club of America in that organization's early years.

The writing style is exceptional. Content is well organized. Every page has solid, factual material.

Michael Argetsinger has written the definitive book on US sports car racing in the 50s and early 60s. His descriptions of races and drivers from that era bring back a flood of memories that I truly treasure. For one all too brief moment Walt Hansgen is back with us. This is the best racing biography, and maybe the best biography of any kind that I have ever encountered. This was money well spent.

I had the pleasure of being acquainted with Walt Hansgen, and when asked for a description of this great racing driver and fine man, I responded with this:

One Word - Integrity.

This was a driver of the caliber of a Stirling Moss, a Juan Manuel Fangio, a Jackie Stewart, a Jimmy Clark ... and I have NO doubt that had he been born a decade or two later, Walt was one who would have become a Formula One World Champion more than once, and might well have won the Indy 500 more than once as well. And it is a clear testament to his ability to not only DO the great things, but to share the "how", with a rare egoless generosity, with others, that his protégé and friend Mark Donohue DID win at Indy.

His story is told accurately and his racing exploits described with an attention to detail that only a researcher of the great skill that Mike Argetsinger demonstrates can accomplish. And some of the pictures are just priceless reminders of what many (including myself) might call a far better time for Motorsports in general and road racing in particular. That shot on the cover of a fully relaxed Walter Hansgen at speed in the Birdcage Maserati just flat stuns me to silence - "in memoriam". It sits in the place of honor on my coffee table and there is a rush of pleasure every time I glance down and notice it anew. What a great treasure.

For some of the Walt Hansgen story I was there, albeit only as a very small part of it. I always knew Walt as a very special guy, even on the odd occasion when we happened to disagree (as we did at Marlboro in a race for Holman and Moody in Ford Falcons, one of which I shared with Walt). It was a minor matter I don't remember. But I sure do remember Walt's essence of pure integrity and great character, as well as his awesome ability to make anything on wheels go fast (yes even a Ford Falcon! LOL!)

We used to say about such men, "He doesn't cast a shadow".

This book is a must read for all who either lived at the time - or are interested in an accurate record of that time - of the heady era of big bore sports car racing, as it moved from amateur to professional in sometimes awkward ways, and produced great American drivers down the timeline like Masten Gregory, Roger Penske ( a VERY quick driver for the short time he drove, before taking on the role of car owner and team manager), Dan Gurney, Mark Donohue, Danny Sullivan, Sam Posey, and many, many others.

Thanks, Mike, for a pleasurable, engrossing and informative read!

- Charlie Hayes, author of Life After Death

I highly recommend this book to all with an interset of American road racing, its history and how it has gotten to where it is today. I read the book as one who either spectated or actively competed at many of the race meetings described in the first half of the book. At times I was on the track for events described herein.

In the 50's and 60's modern road racing was evolving in the US. This was a golden era with most of the world's best sports cars were being raced in the US. The top international drivers came for most of the international events. Racing was going from racing on the road, through the airport era to the first of the specially constructed tracks that were sometimes heavily opposed by the powers controlling such racing.

I rate the book as an 8 or higher out of ten by my very discerning rating system.

The book is truly two subjects in one as intimated in its title. One subject is the life and racing history of Walt Hansgen, one of the US's all time best road racing drivers. The book tells Walt's story, often by detailing specific race meetings and each of the cars that Walt drove.

This provides for the beginning and early history of the modern era of road racing to be told in all of its glory and sometimes sordid political throes.

The book will appeal to all students of the sport who want to understand better how it evolved to today's status and/or with an interst in how one of its all time greats came to being. The period also includes the the time of the beginning of some of today's leaders of the sport.

Michael Argetsinger had at his disposal a most amazingly detailed set of facts, recollections and quotations that he utilised to author his book. It is not likely that anyone will ever be able to write a book to top this one for the subject matter as he reaches information that will soon disappear without books of this type.

Regards and happy reading

Joe Bosworth

This has to be a one of a kind book! This book to takes you to various race circuits around the world.Although there are several obvious omissions the book is still superb.Colour photos,factual information,diagrams,etc ,make this book a great value and a bargain.

Most motor racing fans will enjoy this book.

This is a fabulous book. I wanted to say that so my only nit-pik can be taken in proper context. How, I repeat HOW, can the Watkins Glen circuit in upstate New York have possibly been left out of this book? It's probably because I attended the Grand Prix several times in the late 60's, that I am flabbergasted by this omission. Other than that glaring omission, I loved the book.

This one is a "no-brainer," for me. If you love auto racing, this book is a MUST HAVE! It doesn't matter what kind of racing circuit you enjoy: NASCAR, Formula One, IRL, CART, it doesn't matter. This book shows the tracks, detailed descriptions of each turn, including highlights of famous races on each course. For circuits that have changed over the years, it even shows the evolution of the changes. With stunning color photos of famous drivers, famous racing moments, and several track perspectives, and even the famous 14 mile Nurburgring circuit from days gone by. This is a book all racing fans should have sitting close by to refer to at a moment's notice.

NOTE: (added 5/19/02) The book only goes up to the 1999 season, so it will not reflect the changes made to Hockenheim, Germany's circuit in the 2002 season. This is a MUST HAVE book if you have an interest in remembering the older, longer Hockenheimring that is now a thing of the past.

Excellent Book. As well as giving in depth, but easy to read descriptions of each Grand Prix circuit, many tracks from around the world are included such as Indianapolis, Surfers Paradise and many more. All circuits have the track layout with the speed, G-force and the gear selected on each corner and straight. On some of the tracks there are driver profiles and a description of a great race on the circuit. There are rally good pictures too. A lot of great information and pictures are packed into this book. Great for a novice but it also offers something for the expert.

By Colin MacKellar.

Until someone writes a better book this will remain the TZ owner's bible. I have just about read the print off the pages of the chapters on the production TZ 250 / 350's and the TZ 750 !!

Here we have a wealth of information for the TZ obsessed with excellent photos, and a brilliant text filled with pretty good (though far from complete) detail of the bikes concerned. At the back there is a great technical specifications list second to none.

I have learnt a hell of a lot from this offering and although it has a number of "holes" obvious to a die-hard enthusiast it is still a remarkably good starting point for someone becoming interested in old Yamaha 2 stroke production roadracers.

It was published by The Crowood Press and is now out of print after initial runs totaling around 3,000 copies. Expensive, but well worth the money.

Greg Bennett
www.tz350.com

This is an excellent book on the history of Yamaha in GP road racing! I don't think i have ever seen such a comprehensive and detailed account of EVERY aspect and step along the way in the development of Yamaha's 2-stroke racing programs.

Follow every design change from year to year, through the 1990's. This is a great book with no equal. Full of many photos and lots of interesting history, it is without a doubt one of my favorite Motorcycle related books!

This is an excellent book about motorcycle racing during the last 40 years. It is very well researched, accurate and will provide plenty of information to seasoned racing enthusiasts as well as new-comers to the sport. Definitely a must have. O. Rossi /Kaohsiung /Taiwan

This has to be one of the most comprehensive books on Yamaha racing. A few errors have been found in the book, but for the most part it is very well researched and chocked full of great pictures of some of the best riders in the sport. Past, Present and future. If you are into two-strokes, there is no better book.