Traces the efforts of four American athletes from disparate backgrounds to win the gold medal for bobsledding during the 1932 Olympics, profiling how the American public, deep in the grip of the Great Depression, rallied around their achievements. --Publisher's description.

Ever since we built machines that could transport us, there has been a desire to find ways to make them go faster. For some, going faster isn't enough -- they want to be the fastest. This book celebrates those who have built the machines and driven them at ever greater speeds. This is The History of Speed. Bestselling automotive writer Martin Roach (The Science of Supercars) tells the extraordinary story of those who have come to be obsessed by speed....