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Book Review – Let’s Go Racing By Rex Robbins With Dave Argabright

Big Bend, WI (November 22nd, 2013) – When someone reads a good book, it draws you in with the first chapter and keeps your attention throughout. But that’s just a start. I feel it also needs to take you on a ride. One book that is a delightful ride is, Dave Argabright’s latest, Let’s Go Racing! It is the autobiography of American Speed Association’s founder, Rex Robbins. However this book is much more than a ‘he raced here, I did that book.’ You follow Rex as he builds his business acumen as farmhand delivering produce to the canning factory, eventually moving into the interesting world of a bail bondsman, and later a novice tow-truck operator and ARCA stock car owner. The book follows the tough love and life lessons he learned from his hard working parents, his time in the Army and all the intriguing characters he met in Anderson, Indiana and later in the world of motorsports.

Rex weaves many interesting, sometimes funny and sometimes tragic stories of being a motorsports promoter in the heyday of high stakes late-model racing. Taking you behind the scenes, when reading this book you find yourself in business meetings with Roger Penske, making deals with GM, Goodyear and trying to keep race teams, headstrong drivers and car builders happy. You also meet the many of the legends in stock car racing away from the limelight. Drivers like Mark Martin, Dick Trickle, Rusty Wallace, Alan Kulwicki, and Dale Earnhardt are just the tip of the iceberg. You also encounter many characters in Rex’s personal life, such as the unforgettable Sgt. Walker who instilled many valuable leadership traits and the sharp Uncle Lawrence who guided Rex in the world of business.

Doesn’t matter if you’re a stock car fan or not, you’re having a cup coffee with one of the most interesting personalities in motorsports. Truly enjoyable, this has been one of my favorite books this year.

From 1968 to 2002 the American Speed Association was one of the most popular and influential racing series in America, with capacity crowds following a legendary driver roster that included Bob Senneker, Mike Eddy, Dick Trickle and many others.

It remains one of the golden eras of American motorsports, with three generations of racing fans enjoying countless memories. Those years are vividly recalled in “Let’s Go Racing!,” the new autobiography of ASA founder and longtime president Rex Robbins. Robbins collaborated with Dave Argabright to recall the series of unlikely events that led to the creation of ASA, and the rise of the series from humble beginnings.

“ASA touched many people through the years, and I wanted them to know the real story of how things came to be,” said Robbins, now retired and living in Pendleton, Ind. “Many of these stories have been rattling around inside my mind for a long time, and it was time to sit down and get them out on paper. “This book tells the story of my life, but that’s not what it’s really about. It’s about the dozens and dozens of people – maybe hundreds – who made ASA a very special thing. For a lot of us, those were the best years of our life. We had ups and downs and highs and lows, but through it all the ASA family always took care of each other.”

Argabright has worked with several noted auto racing personalities to share their story, including Chris Economaki, Doug Wolfgang, Brad Doty, Jack Hewitt, Earl Baltes and “Speedy” Bill Smith. The Robbins effort is in a similar style.

Foreword by NASCAR Hall of Famer, Darrell Waltrip. The 388-page hardbound book is published by American Scene Press and retails for $29.95. To order, log on to www.daveargabright.com.

Content also from Dave Argabright.com

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