Wicked Fast: Racing Through Life with Bentley Warren

Wicked Fast: Racing Through Life with Bentley Warren

by Jacques N. Dresang

May 20, 2014 – In life, there are those certain individuals who don’t always bring home the gold, but moreover win over the crowd with their never-say-die determination. Maine’s Bentley Warren fits that description well, but his share of trophies would cast a shadow over most of his competition through his five-decade racing career that has taken him from America’s bullrings to the Indianapolis 500.

Author Bones Bourcier has chronicled Warren’s life both on-and-off the track in “Wicked Fast: Racing Through Life with Bentley Warren,” spanning from his early childhood to his present-day ownership of Bentley’s Saloon, one of Maine’s most entertaining establishments.

Warren’s lifetime is spotlighted in a year-by-year format in the book’s 272 pages, making his progression through the racing ranks and his personal life easy to follow, with first-hand accounts of Warren’s outright speed and skill noted by some of motorsports’ key personalities making up much of the text.

It might be noted that the variety of those who contributed to the book reflect how diverse Warren’s career was. ISMA Modifieds, midgets, sprint cars, Silver Crown machines, and USAC Indy cars all have made up Warren’s dossier, with success coming in nearly every category.

The book also brings forth the lengths Warren had to go through to not only earn a ride, but make a living. At one point following a sprint car crash that broke both his feet, Warren started driving a semi truck he purchased and fixed up while still in leg casts. The result of the hard work saw to it the start of Bentley Warren Trucking, which is still in business today.

It also saw the birth of Bay States Racing, a USAC Indy car team Warren and some friends started in 1973 with an ex-Pat Patrick 1967 AAR Eagle. Sweeping aerodynamic advancements outclassed Warren’s ride before it hit the track, though Warren’s demeanor and determination impressed noted car owners Lindsey Hopkins and Grand King, both of whom put Warren in their rides for the next two years on the USAC Indy car circuit.

The years that followed are showcased heavily in the soft-cover publication, from Warren’s work as a relief driver for the Hevron super modified team, to his wins at the Copper World Classic and Little 500.

There is plenty of varied text for a reader to enjoy, and it is hard not to like Bentley Warren when you’re done reading.

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