Overview
The incredible, untold story of the men who risked their lives in the first transcontinental air contest--and put American aviation on the map. The Great Air Race reclaims one of the most important moments in the history of American aviation: the transcontinental air race of October 1919 that saw scores of pilots compete for the fastest roundtrip time between New York and San Francisco in frail, open-cockpit biplanes. Riveting the nation, the aviators--most of them veterans of the Great War--pioneered the first coast-to-coast air route, braving blizzards and driving rain as they landed in fields or at the edges of cliffs. Bringing the pilots and the race's impresario, Billy Mitchell, to vivid life, journalist and amateur pilot John Lancaster captures the challenges of flying in that almost prehistoric age--the deafening roar of the engine, the constant fear of mechanical failure, the threat posed by mere rain. As he demonstrates, the race, despite much drama and tragedy, was a milestone in the development of commercial aviation. The Great Air Race is a captivating story of man and machine, and the debut of a major new popular historian.
Full Product Details
Author: John Lancaster ,
Jonathan Todd Ross
Publisher: HighBridge Audio
Imprint: HighBridge Audio
Edition: Library Edition
ISBN: 9798212394369
Publication Date: 15 November 2022
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Audio
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
"""A fascinating account of this country's rocky early years aloft, when fatal accidents were a common and accepted cost of business."" -- ""New York Times Book Review"" ""Entertaining fireworks during the early days of flight."" -- ""Kirkus Reviews"" ""Lancaster brings to vivid life the eccentric cast of racers...The result is a high-flying history of aviation's white-knuckle early days."" -- ""Publishers Weekly"""
Author Information
John Lancaster is a journalist who spent most of his career at the Washington Post, including eight years as a foreign correspondent. His writing has also appeared in National Geographic and the New Republic, among other publications. He lives in Washington, DC. Jonathan Todd Ross, a graduate of the NYU/Tisch School of the Arts, has narrated over 120 audiobooks across a wide variety of genres, including fiction, nonfiction, self-help, YA, biography and memoir, children's literature, and romance. He's won an Audie Award (Restart by Gordon Korman), received numerous YALSA and Earphone Awards (Swindle by Gordon Korman, Fake Mustache by Tom Angleberger, and more), and made all of his middle school bullies regret every mean thing they ever said to him when he narrated Tom Brady's The TB12 Method. Jonathan loves narrating all genres, bringing the author's words to audio-life.
