Dyno Don: The Cars and Career of Dyno Don Nicholson

by Doug Boyce

Relive the roar of “Dyno Don” Nicholson’s iconic drag racing cars from Chevrolet, Mercury, and Ford and dive into at his legendary career with the detailed accounts in this book.Nicholson's first wins on a national level were actually in the early 1960s in Chevrolet products. He became extremely successful on the match-race circuit. Then, in 1964, he switched over to Mercury with the new Comet after General Motors enacted a factory ban on racing activities. He won 90 percent of his match races that year. He stuck with Ford and Mercury products and won throughout the 1960s and 1970s, even after Ford also pulled the plug on factory team sponsorship. He made it to the final rounds in nearly 50 national events during that period, in addition to winning championships, awards, and match races along the way. Drivers often became associated with a particular manufacturer, such as Chevy, Ford, or Chrysler through sponsorship, factory team rides, or sometimes simply their own preference. The more successful drivers became household names in the drag racing community. Chevy had Grumpy Jenkins, Pontiac had Arnie “the Farmer” Beswick, Mopar had Sox & Martin and Dandy Dick Landy, and Ford's most successful driver of the era was the legendary “Dyno Don” Nicholson.If you are a fan of a certain era of racing, a Ford fan, or certainly a “Dyno Don” fan, this book will be a welcome addition to your library.

176 pages, Paperback

Published July 2, 2018

Reviews

[Melissa Borsey]

You cannot be a fan of drag racing and never heard of the legend, Don Nicholson! This is by far one of the best tribute books out there today. The photography alone is outstanding! Highly recommend! I thank Car Tech and LibraryThing for giving me the opportunity to read and review this great book.

[Tom Donaghey]

Dino Don: The Cars and Career of Dyno Don Nicholson (2018) by Doug Boyce. Racing fans will long remember the outstanding “Dyno Don” Nicholson for his career running Chevys and Mercs before moving onto funny cars and Super Stocks. Setting the standard at the original Winternationals, or as a kid street racing, Mr. Nicholson was always the leader of the pack. But he was far more than just a driver; he was brilliant under the hood or working on car bodies. And he got his nickname by being the first mechanic trained on the new dynamometer. He put his early knowledge or torque conversions into super powering his vehicles.
Doug Boyce has written a well researched biography of a racing pioneer. Starting with a brief primer on Don’ youth, he quickly captures the thrill of the early rain years, the changing of aligence from one manufacturer to another, his race to the top and the later years when there were fewer and fewer tracks to race. Each section tells of a different chapter in the fascinating career of “Dyno Don” and gives us pause to think of all he had seen and done. All too few racers can even try to accomplish all he did.
Don Nicholson is missed by all who remember the greats.

[J.]

This biography of Don Nicholson, nationally known drag car racer and Motorsports Hall of Famer inductee was obsessed with speed from his early years. After a stint in the Navy, he began working on cars rather than racing them. Lured by the promise of a mechanics shop and racecar, he quickly moved his family from California to Georgia. It was not long before the temptation led to him to compete and ultimately win several races. Author Boyce provides detailed specifications for the cars he worked on and raced. This book will appeal to those who enjoy motor racing and details such a life will bring.

[Dan Simonsen]

With his book "Dyno Don: The Cars and Career of Dyno Don Nicholson, Doug Boyce tells the biographical story of a drag racing legend. As one of only two people to make the finals in six different drag racing categories, Dyno Don Nicholson certainly set himself apart from other drag racers. Mr. Boyce does an excellent job of telling Dyno Don's story. The book is loaded with photographs. Absolute must read for drag racing fans.

I received this book as part of the LibraryThing early reviewers program.

[Bargle]

Very interesting look at the long and highly successful racing career of Dyno Don Nicholson. Many photos of his cars and info about the many mods thereof. I remember reading about him often back in the day, but I'd forgotten just how dominant he was. Always striving to go faster and achieving it most of the time.