Runways & Racers Sports Car Races Held On Military Airfields In America 1952-1954

Product description

Runways and Racers focuses on the various aspects that contributed to sports car races being held at military installations throughout America in the early 1950s. It was a marriage of convenience for the Sports Car Club of America and the Strategic Air Command, with both parties gaining advantages from the arrangement as well as providing contributions towards it. The thorn in the side turned out to be a Congressman whose own aspirations exceeded his standing, but who found himself in a position to be able to influence the outcome of events. In fact he found out potential irregularities, and he ordered an audit to be conducted to ascertain precisely what it was costing the air bases to host the races. His findings led to the cessation of the races, ordered by Congress. The product of a long period of extensive research by the author, this book gives a fascinating insight into this two-year period, complemented by over 150 period pictures, many previously unpublished.