It Is What It Is - The Autobiography by David Coulthard
via Amazon.com
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Ex-racing driver and Formula 1 commentator
I'm a huge Formula 1 fan and have been watching it, mainly on TV, for years and years. I remember when James Hunt won the championship - that's how long I've been watching. I also love to read - fiction, biographies, factual - you name it, I read it. So for me, what better than a book that combines an ex-Formula 1 driver and the story of his life? David Coulthard's It Is What It Is is an interesting read and informs you about the early years of the boy and man, and goes on to cover his racing career, explaining the twists and turns of his life along the way. If you're interested in F1 and his career this is a good way to find out more about 'the real DC' so I thought I would share my review with you and hopefully you may learn a bit about him along the way... |
Finding Out About The Real DC?
2004 Montreal Grand Prix - MacLaren. By Sang Trinh from Ottawa, Canada.
I was really looking forward to reading this book. I'm a massive F1 fan - I've been following it since I was young - and though I've never been the biggest 'DC' follower when he was racing, since he launched his TV commentary career I've been intrigued by the apparent new personality that has manifested itself, in this new and improved version of the man. So I wanted to read this book to see what I'd missed - to see what the media had missed - during his racing career.
It turns out that I hadn't missed anything. Well that's not true, I hadn't realised there was a lack of self-confidence when speaking to crowds, that though he'd been labelled a 'ladies man' - with some justification - all he was really interested in was finding his own version of his parents' happy marriage. But what I've come to realise, whilst reading this book, is that actually his public life during his time as a racing driver was a fairly accurate representation of his real life.
Of course, I didn't know all the details of his background. Yes, he lived in Twynholm, Scotland and yes, he started out in karting, but I wasn't fully aware of his journey to F1. I wasn't aware, for example, of David receiving a phone call at the tender age of eighteen from legendary racing driver, Jackie Stewart, wanting to sign him up for his 'staircase of talent', or that he'd won at Le Mans in 1993, or that he'd been indirectly assessed by the great Ayrton Senna as being a suitable test driver for the Williams race team.
It turns out that I hadn't missed anything. Well that's not true, I hadn't realised there was a lack of self-confidence when speaking to crowds, that though he'd been labelled a 'ladies man' - with some justification - all he was really interested in was finding his own version of his parents' happy marriage. But what I've come to realise, whilst reading this book, is that actually his public life during his time as a racing driver was a fairly accurate representation of his real life.
Of course, I didn't know all the details of his background. Yes, he lived in Twynholm, Scotland and yes, he started out in karting, but I wasn't fully aware of his journey to F1. I wasn't aware, for example, of David receiving a phone call at the tender age of eighteen from legendary racing driver, Jackie Stewart, wanting to sign him up for his 'staircase of talent', or that he'd won at Le Mans in 1993, or that he'd been indirectly assessed by the great Ayrton Senna as being a suitable test driver for the Williams race team.
The Conclusion - It Is What It Is!
David Coulthard - Formula Ford 2012 - Brands Hatch. By Tom Bayly via Flickr
There were things I'd forgotten too. Like the fact he'd had a near-death experience during a flight to Nice. One of the engines on the private Learjet failed, meaning they had to make an emergency landing at Lyon instead. Unfortunately, the pilot came in too low and too slow, and was due to miss the end of the runway. Deciding to go full throttle and try again the pilot made a fatal mistake; because they only had one engine, the plane slammed sideways as the pilot used the engine again, and the aircraft rotated violently when the tip of the wing hit the ground, causing the nose to smash into the runway, killing the two men in the cockpit. Luckily, all the passengers escaped with relatively minor injuries considering their circumstances.
I guess the point of any review is about whether or not you would recommend the book to someone else. I can honestly say I did enjoy this book. It's written as David speaks and it covers all the things you would expect from an autobiography. If you're interested in the book like I was, to gain some unknown, unexpected insight into the racing driver, I can't say that it enlightened me much, there's no grand revelation. If though you're a DC fan, don't know much about him, or just want what you know confirming from the horse's mouth so to speak, then this is for you. All I can say is - it is what it is.
Which brings me to a rather peculiar conclusion. That somewhere since the end of this book and the initial period of his TV career David Coulthard has changed, or so it would seem. Whether that's due to his happy and stable family life, or the evaporation of pressures that don't exist in his current career, I couldn't say. But it does mean that I'm still as intrigued as I was before I read the book - so DC, I'm looking forward to the next one!
I guess the point of any review is about whether or not you would recommend the book to someone else. I can honestly say I did enjoy this book. It's written as David speaks and it covers all the things you would expect from an autobiography. If you're interested in the book like I was, to gain some unknown, unexpected insight into the racing driver, I can't say that it enlightened me much, there's no grand revelation. If though you're a DC fan, don't know much about him, or just want what you know confirming from the horse's mouth so to speak, then this is for you. All I can say is - it is what it is.
Which brings me to a rather peculiar conclusion. That somewhere since the end of this book and the initial period of his TV career David Coulthard has changed, or so it would seem. Whether that's due to his happy and stable family life, or the evaporation of pressures that don't exist in his current career, I couldn't say. But it does mean that I'm still as intrigued as I was before I read the book - so DC, I'm looking forward to the next one!
