Allen PlattCritiques

I was greatly anticipating the publication of this book about Hubert Platt. As a gearhead and fan of racing I've consumed many books on drag racing, in particular those that pioneered those way-out races of the 60's and 70's (when I was a kid). I got completely hooked while living in Gainsville Florida and attending Gator Nationals - something about the engine roar and the smell of hot fuels really gets the heart going. I still make it out to local quarter and eighth mile tracks on occasion - great time to catch up with friends, especially later over a few beers. Anyway, I digress - what got me eying this title was the Georgia Shaker - seems one of the investors in my 50's/60's neighborhood development was an old Ford dealer who also sponsored this car - funny how you occasionally come across some serendipity like that.

The book is typical of CarTech Publshing at about 8 1/2" x 11" with stiff paper covers and a glued binding. It's filled with 192 pages of color and black and white photos of Platt recounting his history and mostly significant events - it's also written in a style that's easy to read and interesting. I think anyone who's into racing and in particular 60's drag will enjoy this book - it's informative and hard to put down. Lots of candid photos and reprints of old magazine covers. It's written by Hubert's son, Allen so you can be assured the information is accurate.

I received this book as part of LibraryThing's Early Readers program.

What a great trip down memory lane! I really, really enjoyed this book. Great cars, great drivers, great stories. Super photographs!

This book was a lot of fun. I would recommend it, obviously, for Ford drag racing fans, but also for anyone who is into drag racing. It has a mix of anecdotal writing and technical writing and photography (in B &W and color). The primary sources were one of my favorite parts, things like newspaper clippings and original adverts.

This is the nonfiction automotive biography of famous racer Hubert Platt, the "Georgia Shaker", as written by his youngest son. It spans Hubert Platt's entire life, from 1931 to 2015, focusing mainly on his racing in the '60s and '70s and the many cars he ran during that time period. Interesting and entertaining, the author captures the reader's attention, keeping a book involving a lot of names, places, and numbers from being remotely boring. The 420+ neat pictures throughout this book are a joy to behold.

Despite the fact that I personally liked the book, there are some negative comments I have about it.

There seem to be some aggrandized stories repeated here. For instance, it states that "Legend has it that there were some weekends when he would race the 1938 in both A- and B-Gas competition on the same day, changing out the intake setup from the carburetor to the injectors between rounds. Anybody who has ever turned a wrench at the drag races knows that was no easy feat." Not only is it no easy feat, it is virtually impossible in such a short time, and even if it was possible, changing the intake setup would not have moved the car from A/Gas to B/Gas. Even though the author clearly states it was "legend", including stories like this does not lend to credibility. Other such aggrandized stories include stating that "Dyno" Don Nicholson was "the first to master the dynamometer" although this claim is unproven, and stating that Platt's enclosed racecar hauler in 1971 was "ahead of its time and a hint of things to come" although enclosed haulers had been used by racers since the sixties.

There are several typos and mistakes the editor missed. These include saying such things as the batteries were relocated to the "truck" for better weight distribution, and "Hubert was a wealth knowledge". Also, the index sends you to at least one or two incorrect pages. The most stand-out mistake is the fact that Hubert Platt's nearly equally famous brother Houston had his name misspelled as "Huston" probably 50 times throughout the entire book. The only places you can see his name spelled correctly are in the pictures, where you can clearly see it on the side of his car.

Despite these problems, I would still heartily recommend this book to any drag racing aficionado. Four stars.

I have read and re-read this book several times but forgot to do the review. So much to say if you really love drag racing and especially the old time drag racing of many moons ago. Lots of good pictures ..........family and racing ones. Todays racing is all about money and too commercialized. Still good but not like the old days.

Hubert Platt: Fast Fords of the "Georgia Shaker"

It was truly a pleasure reading this book on Hubert Platt, The Georgia Shaker as I have seen Hubert Platt race many times at Rockingham Dragway in North Carolina. He was the ultimate showman, doing long wheel standing burnouts with the door open.

Allen Platt, really shares unknown and interesting facts about his dad's career as a winning drag racer and how and why he became a professional racer.

There are so many interesting stories about Hubert Platt in this book but the most interesting story to me was on page 155 about an event that happened at Cumming Dragway in Georgia. (Buy the book and read it for yourself)

Several years ago at the East Coast Drag Times Hall of Fame in Henderson, North Carolina I had the pleasure of meeting Hubert Platt and to have dinner with him and a group of other racers. As the book says Hubert was a showman, even at the group dinner.

This book is a must-read for everyone. You will see several sides of this great man, Hubert Platt, the "Georgia Shaker."

After a start in the world of speed by running moonshine and a stint in the army. Hubert Platt found his way into the world of drag racing, After winning a drag car by running a gambling operation out of the back of his garage, Hubert Platt and his love of speed found their outlet. Within a few years he was drag racing full-time. Hubert Platt was the first individual sponsored Ford Drag Team--they provided him a car while Hubert provided the rest. He went on to become a drag racing legend from the early days of drag racing.

The books is loaded with high quality photos and insert stories. The author is Hubert's son Allen. If you like the early days for drag racing, you'll thoroughly enjoy this book.

Full Faith in advertising: I received this book as part of the LibraryThing.com early reviews program.

This is a super book about Hubert Platt! It contains a thorough history of his racing career illustrated with amazing pictures. For anyone interested in racing history, this is a must read! This is very interesting and I highly recommend it.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Library Thing in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed are purely my own and I was not paid for this review.

What a fun book to read. Great pictures, great memories by those who were there and Mr. Platt seems like areal gentlemen.
Unfortunately I didn’t know much about Hubert Platt, but I am a fan of him and Allen now. This book was especially great for me since I am from Michigan and big Ford fan (85+ years of relatives working at Ford, etc.). What a life.
This is a keeper and I will let my buddies know about this book.

Loving cars, loving Georgia, and loving Ford. Keep up the great work

I really enjoyed "Hubert Platt: Fast Fords of the "Georgia Shaker." Allen Platt has done his dad proud with this this great biography. The book is loaded with photos and includes an interesting narrative that kept me reading. I liked that Allen included photos of himself as a child and young man. A great tribute and fun book! Highly recommended.

The CarTech book, Hubert Platt, Fast Fords of the “Georgia Shaker” by Allen Platt is a great book for early drag racing enthusiasts. The book is a treasure trove of information on not only his long career, but stories about friends, partners, and people along the way. Wonderful photos and information on cars he raced and his many racing friends through his long career with Ford Motor Company. Like many drag racers of that era, he switched from driving Chevrolets in 1964 because GM got out of the racing business for a while. Anyone old enough to have been at the tracks back in the early days will remember the successful “Georgia Shakers” drag cars, and enjoy this great read.

Allen Platt has written a fine tribute to his father Hubert Platt. The illustrations are first rate and add a good deal of interest to the text. The reader is provided a degree of insight into the life style and character of this famous drag racer and receives a bonus in the discussions about Platt's cars.. Platt was primarily associated with Ford products and again the reader gains a good deal of insight into that factory's association with Platt and drag racing in the 1960's and 70s. This book will be especially welcomed by the fans of Platt, by those interested in the era in which he competed, and those who would like further insight into the evolution of drag racing.

I love this book! What an amazing story. Beautiful pictures, a lovely forward, and a lot of wonderful information.

Amazing Quality and very knowledgeable. Wonderful in depth images. This is a superb read for any car or racing enthusiast!

A detailed and well-researched biography about NHRA Hall of Fame member Platt, from his early days hauling moonshine to becoming a legend in the drag racing world. Loaded with b&w and color photographs, the book is well-designed and fascinating to read. The book has enough mechanical information about the cars so motor heads will be satisfied without overwhelming a more novice reader. Anyone who grew up going to drag strips in the 60’s and 70’s will love this book.

What a great book on the drag racing legend Hubert Platt. Filled with great facts and wonderful photos. Even those with only a passing interest in drag racing should enjoy this book.½