Review Of Tim Considine's Work On Le Mans
"Yo Tim … what lap are you on?"
A video review of remarkable volume.
By Doug Stokes & Harold Osmer
Tue, Apr 30, 2024 10:29 PM PST
I’m asked here to preface Harold’s review of this set of books with a few remarks of my own about Tim Considine. I only knew of him growing up as a kid TV actor. It wasn’t until many years later that we met, when he was writing for AutoWeek and I was doing PR stuff out in the motorcycle and auto racing worlds. Subsequently, we became good friends and had some fun times…
When Tim was writing this remarkable anthology I’d occasionally call him, always with the same question: “Yo Tim … what lap are you on?” - knowing that just about every waking moment of the day he’d be at his standing desk belting out more American adventures at Le Mans. He’d laugh and reel off the precise hour, lap number, and turn on the 7-mile long circuit, the weather, and a full rundown of which driver was doing what … a vivid, personal play-by-play of an event that had happened decades before.
It was like that with him.
Not to compromise Harold’s excellent review, but sitting down and absorbing Considine’s attention to detail in this set of books - for me at least - was almost like watching a movie.
Everything has a place, a motive, a goal, and the players are all deeply/personally involved. Here Considine meets, interviews, and gives voice to the best of them.
His index, notes, and bibliography for this amazing work are wonderfully intriguing and intense documents in and of themselves, something that I recognize as deep, true storytelling passion - open one of the books and get a look at them first for a intriguing head start on the adventure!
Just for general purposes here’s an excerpt from a press release that I wrote about “Yanks”:
“Twice Around the Clock - The Yanks at Le Mans”
Honored with Motor Press Guild Batchelor Award
Los Angeles, CA (03/09/19): Tim Considine’s “Twice Around the Clock - The Yanks at Le Mans” was honored last week by the Motor Press Guild with its highest award, the Dean Batchelor Award for Excellence in Automotive Journalism.
This is the second time that Considine has been so honored by the national journalism organization, his “American Gran Prix Racing: A Century of Drivers & Cars” being similarly awarded a “Batchelor” in 1997. He joins Pete Lyons and John Lamm as two-time winners of the prestigious award.
“Yanks” is the first three volumes of a seven-volume set that will tell the stories of every American driver who has raced in the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans…
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Tim Considine passed away on March 23, 2022 at the age of 82 in his home office while working the next volume of his “Yanks” … he is very sorely missed by friends and fans alike.
About The Authors
Doug has a long and wide-ranging history in the motoring business. He served five years as the Executive Director of the International Kart Federation, and was the PR guy for the Mickey Thompson's Off-Road Championship Gran Prix. He worked racing PR for both Honda and Suzuki and was a senior PR person on the first Los Angeles (Vintage) Grand Prix. He was also the first PR Manager for Perris Auto Speedway, and spent over 20 years as the VP of Communications at Irwindale Speedway. Stokes is the recipient of the American Autowriters and Broadcaster’s 2005 Chapman Award for Excellence in Public Relations and was honored in 2015 by the Motor Press Guild with their Dean Batchelor Lifetime Achievement Award. “… I’ve also been reviewing automobiles and books for over 20 years, and really enjoy my LA Car assignments.” he added.
Together with
Harold Osmer works as a writer as well as a publisher in whatever spare time he can find. He’s authored award-winning books about auto racing in Los Angeles, has a Masters degree in geography, and holds a black belt in karate. He’s a regular at local car shows and race venues where he’s often seen setting up a table and selling books. His show ride is a 1951 Chevy pickup, dressed to emulate a Spec truck, complete with graphics, numbers, and sponsor decals.
