Book
on S'pore's original Grand Prix to be launched in June
March, 4 2008
SINGAPORE:
The Formula One race coming to Singapore in September is all the rage.
But many, especially the younger generation, might not know Singapore
had a rich racing history in the 1960s, spanning two decades.
All this
will be captured in a book by Eli Solomon who plans to call it “Snakes
and Devils - A History of the Singapore Grand Prix".
The book
which will be launched in June will contain footage and hundreds or
rare photographs, collected over five years.
The book
was originally meant to cover the Asian scene but with F1 coming to
Singapore, the 43-year-old stockbroker, decided to focus on the Lion
City's racing history.
In fact,
Singapore is the only city among the new F1 races on the calendar
this decade, with such a racing history.
Solomon
said: "You had spectator counts of about 100,000 over a weekend,
which is quite enormous for a street circuit, and logistically it
would have been a nightmare.
"The
Johor Grand Prix required 12 miles of fencing, and that is an enormous
amount of material, and so it would be with the Singapore Grand Prix
as well."
Solomon
was a regular spectator at the old Singapore GP which lasted 13 years.
The author,
who owns two single-seater racing cars, currently races overseas in
places like Australia and New Zealand.
He hopes
to revive the racing scene once the permanent track in Changi is built.
In fact
a few of the cars that raced in the original Singapore GP are currently
still involved in the sport overseas.
(Source:
Channelnewsasia.com)
