Behind the Wall: A Season on the Nascar Circuit - Hardcover

Richard Huff

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 092938766X ISBN 13: 9780929387666

Publisher: Bonus Books, 1992

Synopsis

A behind-the-scenes portrait of stock car racing follows the Hagan racing team and driver Terry Labonte through the 29-race NASCAR circuit, describing life on the road, conflicts among team members, the fans, the corporate sponsors, and the strategies ofracing

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Reviews

Huff, New York correspondent for Daily Variety , spent the 1991 National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing season with the team owned by Billy Haran, with Terry Labonte as the driver and financial backing from the Sun Oil Company. He labels it a roller-coaster year for the team, although the reader will conclude that it was uniformly mediocre, with Labonte ending it as the circuit's 18th-ranked driver. But in chronicling the 29-race season, Huff, who is vastly knowledgeable on the subject, shows what can go wrong--with the driver's feel for his car, the auto itself, the crew that services it, the pit stops--and the accidents that can be caused by the driver or by rivals. He presents racing as an exceedingly demanding business made up of competitive yet patient and long-suffering men, one that forces participants to think in terms of tenths of a second. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The high-octane world of stock-car racing and the planning, preparation, and mechanical wizardry that go on behind the scenes are given a rather bland and repetitious treatment here by Daily Variety correspondent Huff. Huff follows owner Billy Hagan's team, including driver Terry Labonte, on the 1991 National Association for Stock Car Racing (NASCAR) tour. The circuit includes 30 races at speedways across the country as big-name drivers like Richard Perry, Darrell Waltrip, and Davey Allison vie for the Winston Cup in a season-long quest decided by total points won at individual races. Sponsored by Sunoco, Hagan's once-successful team experienced personnel and technical problems from the season-opening Daytona 500 (the ``Super Bowl'' of NASCAR) to the frustrating finale at the Hardee's 500 in Atlanta. As Huff repeatedly shows, Labonte, the 1984 Winston Cup champion, had little use for his crew or management. He complained at race after race that Hagan's cars were either ``loose...like the rear end...would lose contact with the track,'' too tight, too old and outmoded, or simply not ``set up'' properly to keep pace. With the almost weekly rule changes regarding the timing of pit stops and tire changes, and the usual problems of mechanics and accidents, the Hagan crew faced bitter dissension plus numerous equipment and design failures. Everyone from tire-changers to Sunoco's president had an opinion as to where to lay the blame for the team's mediocre performance (Labonte captured only one pole position all year and finished in the top five but once), culminating in crew chief Steve Loyd's replacement. While that change helped a little, it came too late, as Labonte, who found every excuse simply to park the car, finished 18th in the Winston Cup rankings. Stock-car racing would seem rich in dramatic possibilities, but Huff never gets this entry out of first gear. (Illustrations- -not seen.) -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Winston Cup NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) is a very popular spectator sport which dangles the carrot of fame and big money to successful drivers and owners. Huff's revealing behind-the-scenes account of this chase tracks the team of champion driver Terry Labonte and owner Billy Hagan through a troubled 1991 season. Huff's warts-and-all portrayal shows a team fraught with frustration and dissension, and exposes the crude and sometimes illegal aspects of the sport. Though at times it seems loose and rambling, the book is fast paced and very easy to read. Credibly, the author explains situations and jargon which might be unfamiliar to casual fans. This is appropriate for public libraries, and should be especially popular in the Southeast where NASCAR has its roots and hub.
- David Van de Streek, Pennsylvania State Univ. Libs., York
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Bonus Books
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 092938766X
• ISBN 13: 9780929387666
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 278