A release out of London today says Sam’s Scrapbook by Sam Posey is now available in the US. Sam Posey, as motorsport fans likely know, raced a huge variety of sports cars, saloons and open-wheel machines in numerous racing segments such as Can-Am, USRRC, Trans-Am, IMSA, Indy, NASCAR, Formula 5000 and Formula 1. His formidable rivals and friends include George Follmer, Parnelli Jones, Mark Donohue, Peter Revson, Dan Gurney, David Hobbs and Brian Redman.
Running alongside the images, Posey’s commentary is both amusing and emotional. This is a must read memoir by one of America’s racing stars. Surely it will appeal to all motorsports enthusiasts and those who are just getting to know the giant motorsports money machine. I knew Posey from my long association with the International Motor Press Association in New York. He was friendly, intellectually curious and colorful in a latter-day Connecticut Yankee kind of way at Racing’s court. Sam’s Scrapbook is a first-hand account of a golden era in racing, through pictures no outsider has seen and stories not heard.
Key Sections
- Sam’s early days racing around his mother’s house on a farm in Connecticut against his friend John Whitman. The start of his career: driving at Lime Rock, his local track, under the mentorship of John Fitch; a ride as the then-youngest American at Le Mans, with a Bizzarrini in 1966.
- Can-Am: racing against John Surtees, Bruce McLaren and Jim Hall in this famous “anything goes” sports car championship with a car he and Ray Caldwell designed and built.
- Trans-Am: competing in this spectacular saloon series during its golden age, first for Roger Penske and then as a factory driver for Dodge, against George Follmer, Parnelli Jones and Swede Savage.
- Later years at Le Mans: finishing third overall in a Ferrari 512 M with the North American Racing Team (NART) team in 1971; driving the first BMW 3.0 CSL ‘Art Car’ in 1975, featuring a paint scheme by American sculptor Alexander Calder.
- Open-wheel racing: a duel with Dan Gurney in the USAC Championship, finishing fifth at Indy in 1972; two drives for John Surtees in Formula 1; battling his friend and rival David Hobbs on the track and off in Formula 5000.
- Three years of off-road adventures in the Baja 1000;
- Rides with the BMW factory team at Sebring and Daytona; and his late career in the IMSA championship with actor Paul Newman and Brian Redman.
Bio of Sorts
Sam Posey’s racing activities spanned 17 seasons, 1965–81, and included a famous victory in 1975 with BMW in the 12 Hours of Sebring. His second career as a TV commentator began at the 1974 Indy 500 and lasted for more than 40 years with ABC, Speedvision and NBC. He has written three previous books: Where The Writer Meets The Road (2015, a collection of writings), Playing With Trains (2004, about his passion for model railways) and The Mudge Pond Express (1976, an early autobiography about racing). The front straight at Lime Rock Park, his local race circuit in Connecticut, is named after him. In 2016 he was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. He has co-authored this book with his son John.
- Publication date: August 2021
- US price: $40.00
- ISBN: 9781910505656
- Format: 8.3in x 10.6in (landscape)
- Hardback
- Page extent: 160
- Illustration: approximately 275 photos
Evro Publishing books are distributed in North America by Quarto Publishing Group USA. Books can be ordered from Quarto by email: sales@quarto.com; phone number: 800-328-0590; or website: www.quartoknows.com. Please use the relevant ISBN number 9781910505656 when ordering.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Sam’s Scrapbook by Sam Posey Now Available in the US
Running alongside the images, Posey’s commentary is both amusing and emotional. This is a must read memoir by one of America’s racing stars. Surely it will appeal to all motorsports enthusiasts and those who are just getting to know the giant motorsports money machine. I knew Posey from my long association with the International Motor Press Association in New York. He was friendly, intellectually curious and colorful in a latter-day Connecticut Yankee kind of way at Racing’s court. Sam’s Scrapbook is a first-hand account of a golden era in racing, through pictures no outsider has seen and stories not heard.
Key Sections
Bio of Sorts
Sam Posey’s racing activities spanned 17 seasons, 1965–81, and included a famous victory in 1975 with BMW in the 12 Hours of Sebring. His second career as a TV commentator began at the 1974 Indy 500 and lasted for more than 40 years with ABC, Speedvision and NBC. He has written three previous books: Where The Writer Meets The Road (2015, a collection of writings), Playing With Trains (2004, about his passion for model railways) and The Mudge Pond Express (1976, an early autobiography about racing). The front straight at Lime Rock Park, his local race circuit in Connecticut, is named after him. In 2016 he was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. He has co-authored this book with his son John.
Evro Publishing books are distributed in North America by Quarto Publishing Group USA. Books can be ordered from Quarto by email: sales@quarto.com; phone number: 800-328-0590; or website: www.quartoknows.com. Please use the relevant ISBN number 9781910505656 when ordering.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.