Editorial Review

Basic introductions to the lives of NASCAR racers, illustrated with excellent full-color photos of the cars and the personalities. Helmet describes Winston Cup champion Matt Kenseth’s victory in Phoenix, AZ, in 2002. The text relates the strategy and decision making involved, the driver’s ability to recover from running out of gas, the role of his pit crew, and the equipment and physical demands of the sport. Ride details how a driver gets to the highest level of stock-car racing by focusing on the progression of Ryan Newman’s career from go-karts to the Winston Cup Series. It also points out the importance of sponsors and athletic training. Although a few passages border on oversimplification, these books should be useful wherever NASCAR racing is popular.