Racing Hell: The Hidden Truths of Motorsport
Product ID: 585631691
Desertcart purchases this item on your behalf and handles shipping, customs, and support to USA.
The veteran British endurance racing driver with six Nürburgring 24 hour race wins at the fearsome 'Green Hell', Peter Cate has achieved success across more than thirty years of top-level competition. RACING HELL is a candid, behind-the-scenes exposé for aspiring racers to better prepare for the realities of a career on the grid and for serious enthusiasts to understand what's really going on behind the pit garage door. From club racing to Formula 1, much about motorsport is misrepresented or misunderstood. This driver's eye view is grounded in authentic accounts of actual events in the often-controversial world of the paddock, providing contemporary insights which reveal the essential truths and hidden dangers of a life in motorsport, before reaching a uniquely immersive and thrilling conclusion. 'Peter falls into a formidable group of no-nonsense, highly-focused racers. His insights are worth their weight in gold' Alex Brundle, Racing Driver 'A fascinating read and a must for anyone with a passion for motorsport who wants to know more about life on track' Sir Chris Hoy, Six-Time Olympic Gold Medallist and Racing Driver 'At the University of Motor Racing, this book by the six-times Nürburgring 24 Hours winner would be your go-to textbook ' Motor Sport Magazine 'Peter's motorsport life lessons and thoughtful rationale are delivered with a refreshingly frank and engaging honesty' John Hindhaugh, Sportscar Broadcaster 'Peter's fusion of memoir, history and seriously informed analysis cuts no corners and glosses over no cracks' Lauren Sneath, GPFans A message from the author: Racing Hell is a handbook of motor racing truths, packed with uncensored recollections of this veteran driver who managed to cross over from the oily rags and muddy fields of club racing to the spotless pit garages of professional motorsport. I’ve drawn upon my detailed notes from more than 30 years behind the wheel with top-level teams, to share some of the very best and worst features of our sport as I have seen them. I’ll detail key aspects I wish I’d known before I started racing, exposing the realities of striving to compete with the best. You’ll read about incredible things that happened to me or to people around me, the awesome cars I’ve raced (and the not so awesome!), the super-talented world-class team mates, the subtleties of car set-up and the breathtaking tracks that were the scenes of so many challenging contests. But when the pit garage is opened, there are also dark things that live in there which need to be dragged into the light, including the psychological fears, the frustrations, the fools and fraudsters and even the outrageous skulduggery of saboteurs which can make racing hell, destabilising or even crashing a driver’s career at any level. A book of this nature cannot be complete without acknowledging the importance of sponsor partnerships, the real fuel in any competitive race car and the source of most of the unfairness in our sport. I have proactively developed vital relationships that have sustained my driving career far longer than most. By revealing my path, I hope talented racers can also find and sustain support for the breaks they deserve. After sponsorship issues brutally cut short my own British Touring Car Championship career, I discovered a different kind of racing hell: for more than two decades, the Green Hell has reinvigorated my racing ambitions, offering everything I initially imagined motorsport would, including much I had lost along the way. Truly authentic, unadulterated motorsport. That’s Racing Hell! Controversial as many of my accounts and opinions may be, I’ve had a fantastic ride; long may you enjoy the same! Peter Cate Review: Genuinely a fantastic, heartfelt, honest resource for any racing fan - I've never felt compelled to write a review before, however Racing Hell absolutely deserves a five star review. Peter, thank you for providing this honest account of motorsport and all of the details surrounding your history, your life, getting to this point, the ups and downs and the hard blows along the way. As a diehard motorsport fan and budding sim racing enthusiast, learnt so much from the book down to using failure as a learning opportunity, how preparation can provide a lot of the tools to success in racing, and the nuances around car setup have allowed me to see racing in such a refreshing light. Credit to you with your detailed description of the lap of the Nordschliefe, I'll be using this as a genuine Bible for any practice in my hobbies. 5* Review: A Fascinating Driver’s View of the working’s of Motor Sport on a National and International Scale! - The long awaited Racing Hell book, most definitely did not disappoint! Using his long standing experience Peter Cate takes the reader on a tour of both the British National and the European Racing scenes, introducing them to the good, the bad and the simply dark side of this fabulous sport. He doesn’t hold back with his thoughts and comments about how ‘some’ teams and their drivers operate, at the same time as taking the reader in detail through a drivers preparation for a big endurance race and what happens out there in the wilds of the hauntingly fast and unpredictable Nurburgring Nordschleife! If you like Motor Sport , this book is a must…and great value too!
| Best Sellers Rank | 255,861 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) 104 in Racecar Drivers Biographies 225 in Motor Rallying & Rally Driving 635 in History of Sports (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 76 Reviews |
C**Y
Genuinely a fantastic, heartfelt, honest resource for any racing fan
I've never felt compelled to write a review before, however Racing Hell absolutely deserves a five star review. Peter, thank you for providing this honest account of motorsport and all of the details surrounding your history, your life, getting to this point, the ups and downs and the hard blows along the way. As a diehard motorsport fan and budding sim racing enthusiast, learnt so much from the book down to using failure as a learning opportunity, how preparation can provide a lot of the tools to success in racing, and the nuances around car setup have allowed me to see racing in such a refreshing light. Credit to you with your detailed description of the lap of the Nordschliefe, I'll be using this as a genuine Bible for any practice in my hobbies. 5*
M**R
A Fascinating Driver’s View of the working’s of Motor Sport on a National and International Scale!
The long awaited Racing Hell book, most definitely did not disappoint! Using his long standing experience Peter Cate takes the reader on a tour of both the British National and the European Racing scenes, introducing them to the good, the bad and the simply dark side of this fabulous sport. He doesn’t hold back with his thoughts and comments about how ‘some’ teams and their drivers operate, at the same time as taking the reader in detail through a drivers preparation for a big endurance race and what happens out there in the wilds of the hauntingly fast and unpredictable Nurburgring Nordschleife! If you like Motor Sport , this book is a must…and great value too!
P**N
A MUST read for any genuine race fan!
Thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, it's a mixture of all things - a biography, a guide, a thought provoker and it never gets dull. The narrative flows throughout and at no point is it diluted. A book I will read again, and one that provides many a useful insight..
J**E
Top book
Top book by a Top driver! If you love racing, cars, tracks anything motorsport read this book! The book is set out perfectly, easy to read in a way that keeps you gripped, (pardon the pun) and a peep behind the scenes of racing. 5* from me.
A**H
Essential reading for drivers and motor racing enthusiasts
I love driving and motorsport, but I’m not at all technical, so I wasn’t sure if this book would be for me. But Peter makes everything so accessible without dumbing it down - I feel I really learned a lot about how to drive effectively. The backstory and early days of his career with its trials and tribulations were fascinating too. I thoroughly recommend this, it’s an incisive, informative and very readable guide into behind-the-scenes motor racing.
C**N
Immersive, Gripping, Exhilarating
Bought as a present for my husband. His words. "Racing Hell is an exhilarating journey through the world of high-stakes motorsport. Vivid storytelling and attention to detail create a gripping narrative that keeps you turning pages from start to finish. An immersive experience that's impossible to put down".
P**E
Opens up the insights we don’t see!
As an avid sim racer and a love for the green hell I couldn’t put this down! Gives great insight into an unseen arena of intrigue! For me personally, a great holiday read and one for the race book shelf!
E**Y
Disappointing
I'm a big fan of sports car and touring car racing. This was hyped as being a much more honest and open behind the scenes of a driver's experience but I didn't really feel I learnt anything new or surprising. 2 star rather than 1 because the chapter describing a lap of the nurburgring was a bit more engaging.
H**A
A fascinating an honest account of an endurance race car driver
This is an intelligently written and very exciting autobiographical account of the life of Peter Cate, a racing car driver with decades of experience. It cleverly mixes many aspects of life behind the wheel and behind the scenes, being part memoir, part advice to up-and-coming drivers, and part opinion-piece. He also looks at how he thinks racing should develop in the future to maintain the interest of drivers and their fans and sponsors, while improving safety and fairness - based on his own experiences and those of others in the sport. Deeply insightful, Peter's book also includes many amusing and entertaining anecdotes from on and off the track. Two real highlights for me were the snowmobile rides in Michigan and the chapter called "one hell of a lap" which, with a really quick-fire prose style, leads you around an exhilirating lap of the Nürburgring in the 24 hour race, as if you're actually the one driving the car! The book is in English and is available through amazon UK, Germany etc and is highly recommended.
T**K
A Racing Must Read
Peter Cate, veteran race car driver and five-time winner of the Nürburgring 24 Hour Race has written an insightful firsthand look at his racing career. From the highs and lows of working his way up the racing ladder and finding success to the lowest of lows of learning where a few of his competitors would descend to. The style of writing is like you are listening to Peter recounting an event to you in person and described perfectly to put you in that place and time along with him. Many of the lessons he learned in motorsports are not only applicable in the racing world, but in everyday situations as well. I don't want to give too much away, but he also takes the reader on an all-out lap at a certain racetrack in perfect detail. This book is a must read for the aspiring driver and both the casual and most dedicated race fan.
C**S
Fantastically written
This book is a candid insight into the life and career of a racing driver. The major aspect that separates this book from other racing books, is the structure of the book. Instead of being structured in chronological order of the life of a racing driver. This book is based around 24 chapters representing the 24 hours of key endurance races. These chapters highlight key themes of racing and incorporate Peter Cate's experiences throughout.
A**R
Absolute must read
This book is everything i hoped it would be and more ! This book brings you into the paddock the real paddock ! There’s no ghost writing you can tell that Peter’s memory recounts the actual details of his racing career. I love how he gave lots of the early details of the start of his career. You can begin to realize as a fan that this is not an easy road to navigate and without being super rich it’s even tougher. GET THIS BOOK if your into racing it’s a must for your library 👍
K**S
Great read for racers
…and those who like motor sports. 20 (or is it 21?) starts in the 24h Nürburgring give a lot of credibility, and it is super interesting to read the insights of how he got to motor sports, about driving techniques, car set up and what’s going on behind the scenes. Highly recommended for anybody who is interested in or active in motor sports!
Trustpilot
2 months ago
3 weeks ago