You certainly do not need to be a drag racing geek to have heard of the great rivalry between Don “The Snake” Prudhomme and Tom “Mongoose” McEwen. The two were part of what is probably the most important sponsorship deal in the history of drag racing. Their deal with Mattel and the ensuing barnstorming match race tours across the country kicked the sport into the public eye like nothing ever had before. 

Motorbooks has released a new book dedicated to all aspects of the time the two men spent under the Hot Wheels agreement and about the two guys themselves. You really could not get much more different on the personality scale than Prudhomme and McEwen. Prudhomme lived and bled drag racing. Nothing else mattered but winning. He was one of the most focused and intense competitors the sport has ever known. McEwen loved drag racing, and he also loved a lot of the stuff around drag racing. He like to party, have fun, and live it up. That’s not to say he was not a serious racer, because he was, and an extremely talented one at that. He made for the perfect foil to run with Prudhomme.

The New York Times gives their take on the new book in a nice piece that recounts the high points of the rivalry and really ties it all together nicely by talking to some of the modern stars of the sport and finding out what role the rivalry played in their interest in drag racing.