Customer Reviews

Fly Low, Fly Fast: Inside the Reno Air Races

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have thoroughly enjoyed all five of Robert Gandt's books and, once again, it seems that each has been more exciting than the one before.

In FLY LOW FLY FAST, the author transports you into the pits and into the very heart and soul of those daring aviators and their cutting-edge flying machines that make the Reno Unlimited Air Races the most dangerous and thrilling sport in the world.

Nothing, in my years of watching from the sidelines, had prepared me for the mano-a-mano action behind the scenes that few are privileged to know. Rare Bear, Dago Red, Strega, Tsunami, Tiger Distefani, Bob Hoover, Burt Rutan... All are vividly brought to life by a truly masterful craftsman in a drama of life and death that is certain to keep you spell-bound.

If you liked Gandt's BOGEYS AND BANDITS: THE MAKING OF A FIGHTER PILOT, you're sure to love FLY LOW FLY FAST. An easy 5 Stars! Lookin forward to his next adventure.

In-the-cockpit action is played out vividly, which only further seats my lifetime quest of owning a P-51D. The book was enjoyable enough that I'm about to read it again. Unfortunately there are a few inexcusable technical mistakes (that only an aviation junky like myself would ever catch) along with a few humorous context errors that confirm the book was only proof-read by a software spell-checker. Still an outstanding read, and I highly recommend it! If you're headed to the 2000 Reno Air Races, this book is invaluable advance reading.

I found this book to be the perfect balance of information about the aircraft and the men who fly them. You learn enough about the planes to understand the dangers involved and also get a good feel for the kind of person it takes to strap into one of these machines. Good insight into the behind the scenes stuff that are all the makings of a pilot soap opera. I only wish it included more discussion of the other race classes at Reno as it focused primarily on the Unlimited Class. But definitely worth the ride.

This is the best book i have ever read. It's like your are in the cockpit flying the race. If you are interested in air racing this is the book you should get.

The author's flowing style transforms the statistics, personalities and planes of the Reno Air Races into an easy-to-read novel which can be enjoyed by everyone. The emphasis on the dangers of air racing give the book a Hollywood feel that make it a real page turner.

The book concentrates on the Unlimited Class, but gets four stars instead of five for mis-identifying the Questair Venture -- one of the major contenders in the Sport Class -- as an all-composite aircraft (it is an all-metal aircraft).

Future books on the Sport Class, Biplane Class and Formula 1 Class would undoubtedly be very interesting.

Gandt has a unique eye for observing aviation. And he can describe what he sees in an obsorbing manner to his readers. What I liked most about this book is the mountain of facts he collected! Gandt doesn't gloss over information. He gives you part numbers and explains their differences.

In a time of extreme sport,there is hardly any that is as inherently dangerous as that of racing high performance aircraft. The title of this great book tells just what each aviator has to do to win the National Air Races in Reno: fly low and fly fast. Gandt completely captures the thrill, and yes, the romance, of pushing aging warbirds around a 9.1 mile course at speeds approaching 500 miles an hour. He also gives some history and does personality profiles of the aviators. The book is extremely well written and leaves you wishing it were longer. I only wish there had been more photos! Those aircraft are really gorgeous and the cover shot is just outstanding; what a poster it would make for an aviation lover's wall. This book is a worthy successor to his BOGEYS AND BANDITS, which was also outstanding. I only hope he's got another book in the works.

The book is OK, but concentrates far too much effort on just a few pilots/teams. The author repeats his text several times throughout the book, and while trying to come across as way too cool, he just sounds like an obnoxious idiot. Reno deserves better.