You know that feeling when you open a book and then have to flip through a few pages to get to the heart of the matter? This book is completely different: the first wide-format double-page spread shows the famous photo of the 20 Porsche 917 longtails lined up in a row, ready for approval - your heart is already fluttering - turn the page again (the thick paper feels great, by the way): Table of contents, clearly laid out, beautifully designed. Numbers catch the eye: 904, Carrera 6, 917, 1000PS... In your mind you're already on a race track, your eyes fixed on a bend, waiting until you finally see a Porsche racing car hurtling around the corner...
And that's exactly how it starts, double page after double page, the author made a very good choice with the photos: A "Le Mans start" at the Nürburgring, two Carrera 6s from behind on the Hunaudières (see picture below), "the sow" at Le Mans, an impressive photo by Ferdi Kräling of the Porsche 917 Spyder on the rainy Nordschleife in 1972... Impressive!
The first racing cravings are satisfied, a foreword now fits quite well as a "pit stop" before the next photos pull you back onto the track...
Is it just about photos?
Of course not! Because what you hold in your hands here is probably the first "real" biography you can read about Ferdinand Piëch. "Real" because there has never before been a Porsche book in which the "racing car whisperer" actually talks.
The book was written by Eckhard Schimpf, who has observed, accompanied and described Ferdinand Piëch's career for many years. Both have often spoken to each other, both have "gasoline in their blood": with the former amateur racing driver (fourth place in the 1000-kilometer race at the Nürburgring in 1982) and long-time car editor of the "Braunschweiger Zeitung", there could hardly be a better author for this work. "We share a close bond," says the reserved Piëch about Schimpf.
"Ferdinand Piëch does not have a cold"
The author skillfully and quickly summarizes the "essence" of Ferdinand Piëch in the prologue, getting to the heart of his character traits in a clear and vivid way: an introverted, taciturn, lightning-intelligent man, always thinking strategically, but a secretive specimen who only very rarely gives out any information. No wonder that not a single Porsche book in the last 50 years has focused on Ferdinand Piëch. You simply didn't get any information if you asked him directly.
Almost untouchable, the author nevertheless tried time and again to elicit anecdotes, opinions or factual details from Ferdinand's life. Eckhard Schimpf compares his approach to that of New York Times journalist Gay Telese, a brilliant writer of the 1960s, who tried in vain for years to meet superstar Frank Sinatra for an interview. Each attempt failed, but with each attempt Gay Telese gathered new clues about Sinatra, whether indirectly through third parties or through observation from afar. And then came the day when Gay Telese really believed he would finally be able to meet the superstar and saw himself reaping the rewards of his many years of effort. At the last minute, however, he was turned down again, apparently because Frank Sinatra had caught a cold. Gay Telese gave up his efforts to arrange a meeting, but published his article on Frank Sinatra anyway, entitled "Frank Sinatra has a cold": it contained all the notes he had collected over the years, creating a mosaic from tiny, countless puzzle pieces that delicately weaved together a dazzling portrait of the superstar.
Eckhard Schimpf sees his working method for this book in a similar way, with the great advantage of having actually met Ferdinand Piëch, in fact having met him many times. And each time the mosaic was completed a little more.
It all began in 1967 at the Nürburgring 1000km race
Kurt Ahrens Junior, a German racing driver, drove for Porsche at the time and was a childhood friend of Eckhard Schimpf. It was teeming with white 910 works cars when the author asked: "Which one is the Piëch? You never see photos of him!", to which Kurt Ahrens replied: "You hardly ever see him. He's always in the background. But he's in charge. Only him."
And so the author discovered an unnoticed person in the box, blue knitted shirt, dark jacket over his shoulder, leafing through some tables. As several people kept glancing at this person, it was clear that this must be Ferdinand Piëch. The one who decides everything.
The Piëch era up close
The book is by no means a sober documentation of all Piëch vehicles; it reads much more like a novel in which you have the honor of accompanying Schimpf on the trail of Piëch. Conversations are reproduced so vividly that you can literally see yourself sitting at the same table, listening to the conversations of these two personalities.
Schimpf's composition of racing chronicles, Piëch's family stories and technical explanations is a wonderful basis for letting the wonderful and legendary cars pass you by: 904, 906, 910, 907, 908, the feather-light 380 kilo Bergspyder 909, "the weasel" 908/3 and the initially untamed, later indomitable 917 ("the biggest risk of my life").
There are also memories of great racing drivers from back then, to whom loving portraits are dedicated: Rolf Stommelen, Jacky Ickx, Colin Davis, Jo Siffert and many more...
Who might be interested in the book?
It is clear that this book should be on the bookshelf of every Porsche motorsport enthusiast. The stories and quotes are unique and, as already mentioned, impressive and written with a light sense of humor by a long-time companion.
The photos are simply sensational! Most of them come from the Ferdi Kräling archive and fill the entire page. We have already held many racing books from this era in our hands, but we have seen many photos for the first time!
Information about the book
- Order the book from Amazon
- Order book directly from the publisher
- Delius Klasing Publishing House, Bielefeld
- Author: Eckhard Schimpf
- 272 pages, 44 color photos, 139 b/w photos
- Hardcover with dust jacket
- German
- ISBN-10 : 3768835936
ISBN-13: 978-3-7688-3593-0 - Dimensions: 32 x 25 cm
