The First Lady of Dirt: The Triumphs and Tragedy of Racing Pioneer Cheryl Glass [Hardcover]

The incredible, little-known story of the first successful Black woman in the sport of auto racing in the United States.

Early in her career, Cheryl Glass looked like a lock to become the first Black woman to compete in the Indianapolis 500. From racing quarter midget cars at ten years old to Indy Lights in her twenties, Cheryl was on her way towards a winning career in auto racing.

InThe First Lady of Dirt: The Triumphs and Tragedy of Racing Pioneer Cheryl Glass, Bill Poehler tells Cheryls full story for the first time. He recounts how Cheryl rapidly became the first successful Black woman in the sport, yet frequently encountered racist and sexist taunts from other drivers and fans throughout her career. While appearing to have it alltalent, ambition, looksshe faced many challenges on and off the track and her life soon spun out of control.

Featuring exclusive interviews with Cheryls mother, friends, and competitors,The First Lady of Dirttakes you behind the scenes and in the drivers seat of Cheryls life. Poehler, an amateur racer himself, places the reader at the track, smelling the dirt and fumes, hearing the roaring engines and crashing metal, and feeling Cheryls joy and pain. Its the inspiring story of a racing pioneer and a tragic tale of the pressures that are often hidden from public view until its too late.

Bill Poehleris an award-winning journalist who has spent his career as a reporter at the SalemStatesman Journal, part of the USA Today network in Salem, Oregon. His work has appeared in such newspapers asUSA Today,Washington Times,The Indianapolis Star,The Detroit Free Press,Des Moines Register,The Tennessean,Cincinnati EnquirerandReno Gazette-Journalas well as on Yahoo.com, MSNBC, Oregon Public Broadcasting, KGW TV, and KOIN TV. Poehler has won awards from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association, the Best of Gannett, and frolcå