(Encyclopedia) NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing), organization that sanctions American stock-car races, est. 1948. It held its first race in Daytona Beach, Fla., in 1948 and…
In 1884 a preacher LaMarcus A. Thompson decided to build a new ride at New York's Coney Island to divert attention away from the local beer gardens. He built two parallel tracks, with individual…
When a driver travelling at 240 mph blinks, he/she will miss 50 feet of track.Innovations have gone hand-in-hand with speed at the Indy 500: in 1977, Tom Sneva was the first driver to brake the…
By John Gettings, Mike Morrison, and Gerry Brown A TRAGIC FINAL LAP NASCAR's Winston Cup series didn't just lose a seven-time champion when Dale Earnhardt, 49, died in a last-lap crash at…
NASCAR's biggest race of the year is the Daytona 500, and it's also the first race of the year. Imagine having the Super Bowl at the beginning of the football season instead of at the end.Racing…
Roller Retro-tainment The Recipe for RollerJam — a pinch of Roller Derby and a dash of professional wrestling — is Causing Quite a Stir by John Gettings Back when the golden age…
First Olympic Appearance: 1896 (men); 1912 (women) by John Gettings and Mark Zurlo Related Links Olympics Overview 2008 Encyclopedia: Swimming Did You Know?The water temperature in the…
(Encyclopedia) Foster, Norman Robert, Baron Foster of Thames Bank, 1935–, British architect, b. Manchester, grad. Manchester Univ. school of architecture (1961), Yale school of architecture (M.A.,…
(Encyclopedia) Pontormo, Jacopo daPontormo, Jacopo dayäˈkōpō dä pōntôrˈmō [key], 1494–1556, Florentine painter, one of the creators of mannerism. His real name was Jacopo Carrucci. He studied with…
