Introducing "At Speed"

In 1973 racing-car photographer Jesse Alexander, a lifelong friend, asked me to write an introduction to "At Speed," a vast and magnificent book of his most spectacular images. Here's what I said.

Near the town of Aubusson, in central France, where magnificent tapestries have been woven since the 16th century, a Parisian businessman maintains a venerable and expansive chateau for his weekend pleasure. It is much like other chateaus of its time, with outbuildings and courtyards set in green and rolling country that evoke memories of an agrarian, e…