Don The Snake Prudhomme My Life Beyond The 1320

Don "The Snake" Prudhomme reveals for the first time ever his incredible life and career on and off of the drag strip.

Imagine spending a year with Don "The Snake" Prudhomme, having coffee together and talking about his life, his racing, his friends, and his family. He’d tell you about how he rose from being a high school drop-out who was painting cars to a respected Top Fuel dragster driver and successful businessman. You’d hear how he toured the country with Tommy Ivo and "The Hawaiian" Roland Leong, racing all the legends from "Big Daddy" Don Garlits to "The Golden Greek" [Chris] Karamesines. He'd say how he met Tom McEwen and recall how they became the Snake and the Mongoose, leading to a career in Funny Cars that netted him four championships in a row. He'd talk about the thrill of first wins and owning his own teams but also the struggles of bad seasons, crashes and fires, broken parts, and broken contracts. Along the way, he’d speak about the people in his life, such as engine-builder Keith Black and NHRA president Wally Parks, and those who were killed in the wild and unpredictable sport of nitro racing. It wouldn’t be only racing, though. Prudhomme would share lessons he learned about business and life from such varied sources as a neighbor in Granada Hills to Ford GT40 driver Dan Gurney. He also would talk about the importance of family: how his wife, Lynn, and daughter, Donna, changed his world and how finding out about his African-American roots opened his eyes to a culture and inheritance he’d always wanted. This is the experience you’ll get in Don "The Snake" Prudhomme: My Life Beyond the 1320.

The story of one woman's tragic life, including the death of her sister, her frantic sexual conquests in an attempt to quell her loneliness, and how she finally finds love, and the answers she has been seeking.

Get the behind the scenes view of arguably the most iconic automotive movie car and scene in history. Ask any automotive enthusiast what his or her favorite chase scene to appear in a movie is, and the majority will respond with "Bullitt." It has made the top 5 in every list covering the best automotive chase scenes in history. But the appeal isn’t just about the chase scene. Shot entirely on location in picturesque San Francisco in 1968, the movie not only features the historic chase scene but also many outdoor scenes filled with cars and architecture of the period that are filmed in crisp clear color. The movie was the fifth-highest-grossing film for 1968, it was well received by critics, and the chase scene won Franks P. Keller an Oscar for editing. In Bullitt: The Cars and People Behind Steve McQueen, you will get the complete behind the scenes picture of how all the action was coordinated and filmed. Included are the ideas behind the making of the movie, an interview with Director Peter Yates, production stills, and the planning for the scene. Also covered is the cast, the building of the cars used in the film, and the how and why the stunts were choreographed and filmed. To round out the story, an examination of what happened to the cars is included as well as coverage of the multiple Bullitt Edition cars released by Ford after the film, including the latest 2019 edition. While several books have been published about Steve McQueen, the "King of Cool," never before has there been a thorough examination of this specific film and these specific cars. This edition is a welcome addition to the library of any McQueen, Mustang, or automotive film history fan.

From racing the family Oldsmobile in 1960 to winning the Winternationals in 1964, read about the meteoric rise of drag racing’s greatest owner and tuner in the first-ever book about "The Hawaiian" Roland Leong. As the son of a Harvard graduate, it could have been difficult for Roland Leong to live up to his family’s expectations. However, that wasn’t the case. “The Hawaiian” knew at a young age that drag racing was his career path. His supportive mother, Teddy, saw potential in Roland and bought him a new 1962 Corvette for "educational" purposes, such as wrenching and tuning. From there, it didn’t take long for the world to discover Oahu’s best-kept secret in drag racing. In 1964, less than two years after reaching the mainland, Roland was in victory lane at the Winternationals in Top Gas Eliminator. The following year, with Don Prudhomme behind the wheel, “The Hawaiian” immortalized his place in drag racing forever with wins in NHRA’s Top Fuel Eliminator at Pomona (Winternationals) and Indy (US Nationals). Leong became the first ever to capture those iconic crowns in a single season. For good measure, Roland repeated the achievement in 1966 with Mike Snively, showing the world that a Harvard education isn’t required to achieve greatness. "The Hawaiian" Roland Leong: Drag Racing’s Iconic Owner & Tuner is a tale of family, friends, and forging a path that no other Chinese-Hawaiian before him had carved. Re-live his biggest wins and lasting friendships in this first-ever publication on drag racing's first builder and tuner superstar, Roland Leong!

Once described by Joanna Lumley as "the man with no fear", Tristan Voorspuy spent his life living up to the legend. From his epic Cairo to Cape Town motorbike ride, to extraordinary wildlife encounters and many death-defying light aircraft near misses, Life on the Edge tells the extraordinary story of an adventurer and horseman determined to live life to the full. This was a life defined by a love of Africa, often shared with appreciative clients on Offbeat riding safaris, famous for lifechanging adventures and innumerable close shaves with dangerous big game. But Life on the Edge is also the story of compassion, conservation and, ultimately, tragedy. In the last two decades of his life, Voorspuy helped transform the overgrazed and drought-blighted Sosian Ranch in Northern Kenya into a celebrated game reserve, acclaimed tourist destination and successful cattle ranch. True to form, it was while defending this property that an unarmed Tristan was gunned down and killed, a murder that sent shockwaves around the world.

Relive the glorious first 25 years of Chevy drag racing in this comprehensive and nostalgic history. With the introduction of Chevy’s OHV V-8 in 1955, the brand’s domination on the drag strip immediately snowballed. Drag racers loved the compact V-8. It was lightweight, revved high, and responded like no other engine previously produced to modification. Chevy saw a record year in sales in 1955, thanks to a combination of a restyled body and the new mill. It was the age of ingenuity, and those who could get their hands on the new engine were swapping it into engine bays that once housed other weaker mills. Ford’s flathead, one that had dominated for so long, was rendered obsolete almost overnight. Chevy had a winner and dominated the sales charts for years to come. Aftermarket manufacturers got on board and offered up all the go-fast goodies needed to make Chevy a winner, no matter what category they ran. From Dragsters to Stock, Chevy’s success was immediate. And it was a long-term success, thanks to a combination of years of great styling and a vast array of driveline combinations. Accomplished racing author Dour Boyce takes a celebratory look at those years of success, with a focus on the first 25 years (1955 through 1980). Chevrolets gave rise to such stars as Bill “Grumpy” Jenkins, “Jungle Jim” Liberman, “Sneaky Pete” Robinson, “Dyno” Don Nicholson, Sox & Martin, Dick Harrell, Dave Strickler, and many more. World champs and fan favorites all drove Chevys. The success showed in the record books. No brand has won more races and events or has set more national records than Chevrolet. And unlike the other manufacturers, Ford and Chrysler, it was done with little to no factory support. Whether you are a hardcore Chevy fan or just love catching up on the history of drag racing during the golden age, this nostalgic look at Chevy racing history is sure to entertain for hours on end.

For the first thirty-five years of my life, I thought I was unstoppable, believing that my hard work, focus and passion could carry me through anything. I had an amazing, flexible job, a loving husband, a powerful, strong body and lived in one of the most beautiful places in the world. I believed I made good choices and had control over my future. I didn't. Going from professional level ultra-distance mountain bike racer to mother addicted to pain pills was a long and arduous road. And not just painful in the physical sense, but in a deeply emotional and spiritually soul crushing way. I spent ten years in a downward spiral I couldn't control. I was labeled a drug seeker and a phony. I dragged my family through years of turmoil and despair. But I am a fighter. And I didn't succumb to those who thought the pain was "all in my head". I clawed my way through the healing process and fought every day to put my life back together. I didn't just do this through more surgeries and drugs, I also had to go through a deeply powerful Shamanic experience to heal fully. We humans are more than our bodies and healing is not just about identifying physical problems and fixing them. It is about tapping into our emotional wounds, the ones that lay deep beneath the surface. Those lacerations are the hardest to find and the most challenging to heal. What started as one little surgery snowballed into the decade that almost destroyed my life. Each time I had one of my surgeries, diagnostic injections, CT scans or doctors' appointments, I had hope. Hope that this was the last one, the last knife, the last needle, the last pain pill. Hope that I could get my life back. Hope that the pain would finally be gone. And each time that hope was crushed. But instead of letting the grief of lost hope consume me, I had to find ways to continue to show up for myself and my family. I found love, gratitude, grit and a perseverance I had no idea I possessed. If you want to read a book about Vicodin and OxyContin to understand how these drugs ruin lives, this is not the book for you. I offer a much different take on opioids. They did not destroy my life, they saved it. Our society loves tragedy and drama. And don't get me wrong, my journey has both of those elements, but it is also a story of hope and perseverance. There are many people who have an experience like mine but you never hear about them because they are not commercial. I didn't end up in the back alleys of the big city shooting up. Instead I fought through the withdrawal process twice, unsupported and alone while continuing to work and care for my family. But as I sit here today, I can tell you, the journey, the pain, the fear and subsequently the growth that took place were all worth it. When I reflect on those years, I know it was meant to be. Because I share my life lessons each and every day. And not just with people in pain, with everyone. The six lessons I share in this book are not exclusive to those who are suffering. You don't have to experience the misery I did to appreciate the growth and take a nugget of it with you into your life. The human experience is defined by highs and lows. And we all have them. It's what we do with them that matters. Even though I now know I am stoppable, my spirit remains unbreakable.

2011 International Automotive Media Gold Award Winner In the early 1960s, Tommy Ivo had the world in the palm of his hands. Still a young man, he was already a star of television and film with a promising Hollywood future ahead of him. Then his producers told him he had to quit drag racing. He quit the entertainment industry instead. This is the official story of Ivo’s incredible life and racing career. Readers will follow “TV” Tommy as he becomes the most ambitious drag racer in the nation, building his own cars in the garage behind his Burbank home; becoming the first driver to pilot his dragsters to 170, 175, and 180 miles per hour and towing his cars to match races at small-town drag strips across the United States. Always the showman, Ivo pioneered promotional techniques that are today taken for granted. In this regard especially, his impact on the sport cannot be understated, and his legacy is detailed in this incredible bio of one of drag racing’s most irrepressible characters.