Walt Hansgen: His Life and the History of Post-War American Road Racing - Hardcover

Michael Argetsinger

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1893618544 ISBN 13: 9781893618541

Publisher: David Bull Publishing, 2006

Synopsis

Walt Hansgen was a star in both sports cars and single-seaters, and his meteoric career carried him from the early days of amateur road racing to the very highest level of professional competition in America and Europe. As the lead driver on Briggs Cunningham’s dominant team, and later John Mecom’s team, Walt evaluated and developed race cars working closely with Jaguar, Lister, Maserati, and Ford. At different points in his career he paired with Dan Gurney, Stirling Moss, John Fitch, Archie Scott Brown, and Augie Pabst on circuits as far-flung as Watkins Glen, Le Mans, Silverstone, Sebring, and Road America. Walt was a relentless competitor, but his sense of fairness and camaraderie made him respected by his peers and a leader in the sport. For many up-and-coming racers, including Mark Donohue, Walt was a crucial mentor. The 1950s and 1960s were a time of tremendous change in racing. In this exciting, fast-paced biography author Michael Argetsinger shows how Walt’s life encompassed the conflict between amateur and professional racing, the extraordinary advances in technology, and the joyful ambition of his era. The result is a vivid account of the remarkable history of post-war American road racing.

About this title

About the Author

As a member of an American racing family, Michael Argetsinger remembers the earliest days of post-war road racing. Growing up in the race organization at Watkins Glen he graduated from mowing grass at the circuit to becoming assistant to the press director at the United States Grand Prix and later representative in Europe to the race director. His experience includes working with the Cooper Car Company during the 1966 Formula 1 Grand Prix season. After two years of service in the U.S. Army he began his own racing career in 1965 while still in college. He raced in Europe for ten years and remains an active driver in the SCCA and vintage racing. He is married and lives in Chicago, Illinois, where he heads a public relations business he founded in 1981.

Edition details

• Publisher: David Bull Publishing
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1893618544
• ISBN 13: 9781893618541
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 400