From Pittsburgh’s adoption of motorcycles for police use in 1909 to Gen. John J. “Black Jack” Pershing’s 1916 pursuit of Pancho Villa into Mexican territory on Harley-Davidsons, Indians and Excelsiors to the deployment of motorcycles in both world wars, this book tells the fascinating tale of these magnificent machines from their 20th century beginnings to their current use by police departments and militaries throughout the world. Joseph Berk, author of The Gatling Gun, explores every aspect of police and military motorcycles, including the history of their manufacture by Harley-Davidson, Indian, Kawasaki, BMW, Honda and others; details of their procurement by selected U.S. police departments; critiques of the “Big Three” police models employed in the United States from officers who have put them to the test; a detailed outline of the intensive 10-day training program required of U.S. motor officers; an inside look at how specific police departments from Atlanta to L.A. utilize motorcycles on a day-to-day basis; and a look at the specific makes and models used by Special Forces and other military units from World War I through the turn of the century and beyond.
Jack Zink is a legend in the world of car racing. As a driver for more than twenty years, he won stockcar races on dirt tracks, accumulated trophies in off-road dune buggies, and even set a flying mile speed record in a 1957 Pontiac he designed and built for the early NASCAR circuit. As a team leader, mechanic, and engineer, he pushed the limits of technology with his innovative designs for cars that were lighter, lower, and more powerful. Even his failures, such as the attempted use of a turbine engine in a car, opened new doors that others rushed through in the pursuit of speed and durability. Perhaps he is best remembered for his victories at the greatest track in the world, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the greatest race in the world, the Indianapolis 500. From 1950 to 1967, Jack walked shoulder to shoulder with the greatest team owners, mechanics, and drivers in racing history. Twice, his team won the coveted Borg Warner Trophy, in back-to-back Indy victories (1955 and 1956). But Jack was much more than a pioneer in car racing. He raced sailboats. He raced motorcycles. He also was a skilled engineer and businessman, ultimately building not one but two companies into international giants that still dominate the combustion industry with burners, flares, and incinerators that greatly reduce pollution. Even with all these accomplishments, Jack was most proud of his service to his community, especially the Zink Ranch, a 33,000-acre nature preserve in the Osage Hills of Oklahoma that will perpetually provide open space in an increasingly crowded and urban world. This biography weaves all of these stories into a portrait of Jack Zink. Along the way are the friends and family members who were part of the adventure, as well as the challenges and opportunities that drove him forward. Here is the story of one amazing man who lived by a simple code: “The man who wins is the man who tries.”
Gorgeously illustrated with NASA photography, the large-format (12 × 12 inches) NASA Missions to Mars examines everything from the first tentative steps toward the fourth planet to the 2021 landing of rover Perseverance and beyond.
Space exploration has always been about pushing boundaries, but perhaps the achievement which has most piqued a sense of possibility has been the exploration of Mars. Beginning with Soviet and American flybys in the early 1960s that were part and parcel of the Space Race, acclaimed space historian Piers Bizony continues through complete coverage of the Viking 1 and 2 missions of 1975–1976. Bizony also traces NASA’s acclaimed rover program, describing the development, technologies, mission histories, and achievements of the rovers Sojourner, Opportunity, Spirit, and Curiosity—all on the 25th anniversary of their first landing.
This awe-inspiring book features:
- An engaging and complete history of Mars exploration
- A treasure trove of imagery from the NASA archives, including photos and cartography beamed home, artworks and concept drawings created during development phases, as well as photography created to document testing phases
- A glimpse of future plans for Mars exploration and habitation
- Coverage of orbiters sent to the red planet by not only NASA but by space agencies from Russia, India, Japan, Europe, China, and the UAE
- A two-sided 24-inch gatefold
Humankind’s fascination with Mars can be traced back to prewar science fiction. While the billions of dollars and ingenious innovations have allowed us incredible views from more than 51 million miles away, no less incredible are the insights these missions, hardware, and scientists have provided into our universe—and our own planet. NASA Missions to Mars is your complete illustrated history of those efforts and a necessary volume for the bookshelf of any space enthusiast!
Many people remember Don Edmunds as the premier builder of open wheel race cars during the 1960s, 1970s, and into the early 1980s, but the Don Edmunds story isn’t just about iconic midgets and sprint cars. Don was a true innovator, whose cars combined art and performance and were always at the forefront of open cockpit safety and design, but few readers realize Don Edmunds touched so many parts of the racing world and beyond. Author, Paul Weisel, Jr., has partnered with Don to tell the Edmunds story in a new 182-page book, complete with more than 200 photos, titled, ‘The Saga of Rotten Red – The Don Edmunds Story’.
From his childhood in Anaheim, CA, his teenage years as a part of the southern California roadster scene, including appearances at El Mirage and Bonneville, his first oval track exposure racing jalopies with the California Jalopy Assn., to his graduation to the midgets of the United Racing Assn., the book chronicles Edmunds’ journey toward his greatest racing triumph, qualifying for the 1957 Indianapolis ‘500’ and subsequently being named ‘Rookie of the Year’ at Indy. Along the way Don learned the ropes from car owner, Doug Caruthers, paid attention to tips by drivers, Billy Cantrell, Edgar Elder, and others, worked with Eddie Kuzma, fabricating race cars for Indy and the championship trail, and had his moniker of ‘Red’ transformed forever to ‘Rotten Red’, a tag he has always embraced. Even today, Don signs all his e-mails with ‘RR’. Don types the letters with a grin and all his friends smile when they read to the end of the message.
After Indianapolis 1959 Don retired from driving championship cars and returned to Anaheim to enjoy married life and to pursue his plans to eventually open his own race car shop. Stints with Bill Devin, Bill Stroppe, and Bill Thomas culminated with Don’s design and fabrication of the prototype of the Cheetah sports car and gave Don the practical experience he needed to open Don Edmunds’ Autoresearch in 1964.
Three separate shots at Indianapolis as a car builder and literally hundreds of midgets, sprint cars, supermodifieds, and super vees later, Don Edmunds replaced Frank Kurtis as the country’s most prolific designer and builder of open wheel race cars. Don Edmunds was on the cutting edge of open wheel race car design and later enjoyed a superb career driving supermodifieds, including a junket to compete with cars of his own design in South Africa. In 1991, Don Edmunds was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and in 1994, the National Midget Hall of Fame, two awards he holds in the highest regard.
Away from the track Autoresearch designed and built Evel Knievel’s X-1 Skycycle, the prototype vehicle the stuntman would use to jump the Snake River Canyon in Idaho. Don also became involved in the restoration of several significant 1930-era race cars and used his ‘retirement’ to produce dozens of stunning scale model race cars. Author Paul Weisel takes the reader on all of Edmunds’ adventures and provides insight into the thought process of one of the true ‘dreamers of the day’.
“A Big Ask” is the inside story of the Ford Motor Company’s return to the world’s most famous sports car race – The 24 Hours of Le Mans – as told by veteran motorsports journalist David Phillips and accompanied by more than 100 color images by some of the world’s leading racing photographers. Half a century ago, Ford’s battles with Ferrari for supremacy at Le Mans became the stuff of legends. Rebuffed in his bid to buy Ferrari, Henry Ford II spent untold millions to defeat the iconic Italian marque in a race it had come to dominate in the early 1960s. After two years of humiliating failure, the Ford GT40 delivered a storied 1-2-3 finish at Le Mans in 1966, the first of four straight wins for the American automaker. Ford returned to Le Mans in 2016 with a 21st century Ford GT and a bold mission: Celebrate the golden anniversary of its legendary 1-2-3 finish in 1966 with another victory. But Ford did not go it alone. Boasting a driver line-up of “Le Mans Assassins,” Ford partnered with powerful Chip Ganassi Racing, winners of the Indianapolis 500, 24 Hours of Daytona and Daytona 500, world-renowned Multimatic Engineering, and a host of world-class suppliers in an effort to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Veteran motorsports journalist David Phillips was embedded with Ford Chip Ganassi Racing throughout what proved to be an exhausting and exhilarating journey, from the development of the Ford GT and its problematic competition debut through to its first successes and, finally, triumphant performances at Le Mans and beyond. With unfettered access to all of the key players at Ford, Chip Ganassi Racing and Multimatic, he provides a detailed, insightful and compelling account of Ford Chip Ganassi Racing’s audacious bid to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans that will be a welcome addition to the collection of any motorsports aficianado, automotive buff or sports fan.
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Modern Motorcycle Mechanics isn’t so modern anymore.
Yet this hefty reference book last revised in 1974 remains an indispensable source of information for anyone who has ever owned or owns a motorcycle, regardless of make or model. Author J.B. (Bernie) Nicholson of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan covered all aspects of motorcycle repair and maintenance. His advice has literally changed lives.
More than 100,000 copies of this book have sold worldwide since Nicholson wrote the first edition in 1942 making Modern Motorcycle Mechanics a bestseller. For anyone interested in what makes that old bike tick the seventh edition of Modern Motorcycle Mechanics is required reading.
Before Clymer and before Haynes service manuals, there was J.B. Nicholson and Modern Motorcycle Mechanics.
Nicholson, together with his brother Lawrence, opened Nicholson Bros. Motorcycles in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada in 1933. To this small city in the middle of the Canadian prairie they imported DOT, Calthorpe and Douglas motorcycles and by 1935 the brothers had transformed the business into a fledgling mail order parts supply house.
But it was a 25-year old J.B. (Bernie) Nicholson who published what could be considered one of the first comprehensive texts regarding the operation and maintenance of motorcycles of the day. In 1942 the first edition of Modern Motorcycle Mechanics was distributed widely. They sold the book themselves, and industry giants such as Johnson Motors bought books for resale in their showroom. Floyd Clymer himself ordered hundreds of copies for resale through his motoring catalogs.
Nicholson went on to revise his book six times, with editions appearing in 1945, 1948, 1953, 1965, 1969 and the final and seventh in 1974.
Over the years more than 100,000 copies of Modern Motorcycle Mechanics books have sold from Canada to England, India, South Africa, Australia and beyond.
Jam-packed with Nicholson’s clear and concise service and maintenance information and ever-handy clearance and settings charts for several different makes and models the Seventh Edition Reprint of Modern Motorcycle Mechanics is 766 pages – just like the original. The book covers everything from setting the timing on a single-cylinder Lucas magneto to rebuilding the engine of a Harley-Davidson 45”.
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