ATLAS F1 - THE JOURNAL OF FORMULA ONE MOTORSPORT
The Bookworm Critique

By Mark Glendenning, Australia
Atlas F1 Columnist


Click here to buy this book




Well, if there is anything left that I needed to know about the Maserati 250F, I'm damned if I can think of what it might be. Judging from the brief author bio on the back of the book's dust jacket, the 250F has been a happy obsession for author David McKinney over the past forty or so years. Which is kind of appropriate, because the 250F arguably embodies both the flavour and the romance of Grand Prix racing during the mid-1950s.

It was a car that found its success through being functional and adaptable rather than state-of-the-art, and it is this comparative accessibility that has seen its competitive life continue through to modern times at historic events in every corner of the globe. No matter where you happen to live, if you want to see a Maserati 250F on full song, chances are that you won't have to travel too far.

It also says something - both about the car, and perhaps about its heyday, that so many words have already been written about it - but there are still enough gray areas and unanswered questions to justify another book about the 250F.

Or at least, there were. It's a big call to say whether anybody has produced a definitive book about Maserati's finest, but McKinney's authoritative effort certainly ranks up there among the very best (such as Jenks's volume). It would be interesting to know how long the research phase for this book stretched out, because it is very heavily-laden with intricate details that could only have been found through hours of chasing up and poring through a lot of different material.

From all the thousands of odds and ends, McKinney has created what virtually amounts to a step-by-step chronological guide through the creation and competition history of the 250F - no mean feat, particularly considering the typically murky nature of the records concerning such vitals as chassis numbers.

Neatly, the history of the 250F doubles as a history of a certain period of Grand Prix racing, too. The car's six years in the spotlight neatly book-ended the 2.5 litre formula, so this book thus offers a window into that particular chapter of racing's past.

It is in his exploration of the 250F's post-spotlight years that McKinney really comes into his own, though. The cars had a particularly vibrant life in Australia, and also provided a stepping stone for a teenage up-and-comer named Chris Amon in New Zealand. All of this, as well as the handful of cars that sneaked across the Atlantic into North America, are documented here, along with those that found their way into South America in the wheeltracks of Fangio - a man who spent a lot of time at the wheel of Maseratis.

Particularly impressive were the author's efforts in chasing the whereabouts of various original 250Fs today, as well as documenting the Cameron Millar replicas. And then, to cap it all off, there is an appendix detailing the life of every 250F chassis made with, crucially, a photo to accompany each car. A second appendix recounts the model's results from all the major races in which it participated. See what I mean about exhaustive?

Supporting the whole thing is a great selection of black and white shots that do a good job of showing all the major figures that made the Maserati 250F what it was, as well as the many 250F variants that found their way onto racing circuits.

Clearly-written and informative, the only thing that the book seems to lack is an occasional spark. As a reference it is indispensable, but when you sit down and read it cover-to-cover, the constant onslaught of facts, figures and race reports can become a little numbing. It is dry rather than boring, but the priority here is to inform, and on that count it passes with flying colours.

The Maserati 250F has rightly become an all-time classic amongst Grand Prix machinery, and McKinney has gone to extreme lengths to do the car justice with this history. It's a commendable achievement, and in time should be seen as an indispensable part of any motorsport historian's library.


© 2007 autosport.com . This service is provided under the Atlas F1 terms and conditions.
Please Contact Us for permission to republish this or any other material from Atlas F1.
 
Email to Friend

Print Version

Download in PDF


Click here to purchase this book from the Atlas F1 Bookstore


Volume 9, Issue 47
November 19th 2003

Articles

Sixteen Sundays, Part I
by Thomas O'Keefe

2004 Countdown Facts & Stats
by Marcel Borsboom & Marcel Schot

The Fuel Stop
by Reginald Kincaid

The Montoya Trivia Quiz
by Marcel Borsboom

Columns

Bookworm Critique
by Mark Glendenning

On the Road
by Garry Martin

Elsewhere in Racing
by David Wright & Mark Alan Jones

The Weekly Grapevine
by Tom Keeble



  Contact the Author
Contact the Editor

  Find More Articles by this Author



   > Homepage
   > Magazine
   > News Service
   > Grapevine
   > Photo Gallery
   > My Atlas
   > Bulletin Board
   > Chat Room
   > Bet Your Nuts
   > Shop @ Atlas
   > Search Archive
   > FORIX
   > Help