Al Pearce saw his first NASCAR race in 1966 in Daytona Beach, Florida. The first race he covered was in July of 1969 at Dover, Delaware, for The Times-Herald of Newport News, Virginia. Since then, he's covered thousands of races of all types--NASCAR, IndyCar, Formula One, NHRA and IHRA drag racing, APBA powerboats, SCCA, international sports cars and weekly short-track races for Tribune Co. (1969-2004) and Autoweek magazine (1973-current). Pearce has authored thirteen books on racing and has covered events throughout the United States and five foreign countries. He is an eight-time Virginia sportswriting award winner and the recipient of a half-dozen national and regional sports halls of fame awards. He currently lives in Newport News, Virginia, with his wife, Francie. They also have an adult daughter, Annie, whose interest in horsepower is limited to the four-legged version with a Hunter/Jumper saddle.