|
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jim Hall, first place in innovation, May 8, 2000
...............................I first saw this book at Watkins Glen's new library & museum during the Vintage races. Since I had found myself deep in discussions with other race fans on the history of the Chaparrals I needed to know what the facts were. My search was centered on the great 2J which had its 1st race at the Glen with Stuart as pilot. It was with much anticipation that I opened the pages of this automotive history. I had to see and learn more of what was under the body of 2J, that mysterious really fast 'sucker'. To know what its detail history would provide a deep insight to automotive evolution. Since my recent purchase of this historic book, I now feel enjoyably enlightened. My interest was in part due to having filmed one of 2Js builders. Tom Dutton built and raced a Caddy Lola which I followed from Lime Rock tests to racing at Mossport and the Glen before he joined Hall's team. I now wanted to learn more of what was then only very limited information on this remarkable car's history. This book has an ability to make you feel close to all that seminal racing history. In some ways it felt familiar to the experience of waking up with the sun while camping at the Glen, yet there is no book that could make my heart pound like watching most all my old cars scream past the camp site in a glorious deafening 100+ mph 'warm up' traffic snarl. The book's many helpful semi transparent line drawings aid one's journey back deep into the Chaparral development. The book gives insight to the man who might be the single most innovative individual builder & driver in racing history if ones counts all the firsts his team effort produced in these formative years in racing history. Jim Hall was first to create so many new ideas and racing machine breakthroughs that are still with us. Reading this book is like digging up the archeological roots of the able cars we know today both on and off the track. The great "2J" ending the series in the book, could have been the best performing car ever attempted to be built by any one, for road racing on this planet. It not only culminated many ideas to precede it in the Chaparral legacy, but most importantly the 2J sought to achieve what may be a 'maximum' potential concept for any motor racing car. In order to drive in the quickest possible means around a track, Hall's very basic and seminal idea was to force the rubber that meets the road to an absolute minimum of slip, in cornering, accelerating, or decelerating. To have all the power, torque & brakes usable, seems a worthy vision the likes of which was only to be attempted by such an amazing racing team. The only way for the competition to deal with such a marvel was of course to ban it. The authors neatly pointed out that those who feared its potential failed to hold onto the principles of the; "original concept of the Can Am series was to provide,, an absolute minimum of rules to promote engineering innovations. Jim Hall's Chaparral Cars is the only entrant that has attempted to fill this concept to any degree". The authors state that this is the eloquent epitaph to the long and honored line of Chaparral sports cars. Thankful to the inspiration of Jim Hall and those he likewise inspired, open ended visionary technology was discovered and was made well enough to then to cause the rest to follow him till today, and this book helps tell us how and where so much came from.
|
by Dave Friedman
by Pete Lyons
DVD ~ Paul Newman
by Dave Friedman
