Classic Motorsport Routes

Richard Meaden

This glossy hardback, written by motoring journalist Richard Meaden, is divided into six main sections covering road races, road circuits, rallies, Grand Prix circuits, hillclimbs and ‘record breaking’. All the routes chosen are driveable today and include classics such as the Mille Miglia and also more obscure venues such as the Grössglockner hillclimb in Austria, now a mountain road in the middle of a national park. With roughly six pages dedicated to each route, their history and the best way to approach them today is covered in detail and accompanied by both historical and contemporary photos. If you have a European adventure planned, then this is certainly a book worth looking through, as each route is shown on a map meaning that hours aren’t spent pouring over a 1:300,000 trying to work out where that elusive pit straight really was/is. Although many are now under strict speed restrictions it’s still easy to get an idea of just how exciting these routes were, and indeed still are. Some, like the Isle of Man TT, are unhampered by such problems and can be tackled almost as they are supposed to be. Meaden does, though, rightfully warn drivers to apply common sense when tempted to boot it through a blind corner. The book itself is well written and the 30 routes, over four continents, are certainly approachable as a cover-to-cover read. EF

Published by The Automobile Association, ISBN 978 0 7495 5225 1, £25