Hiding Behind Thunder Paperback - 2011

Don Falloon was born and raised in Sacramento, CA, admittedly not quite a hotbed of NASCAR. But Sacramento once hosted NASCAR-sanctioned events at the old state fairgrounds as part of the Grand National tour, and on the day before Don was born, the legendary Parnelli Jones won the NASCAR 100-mile feature event at the fairgrounds track. Growing up, he followed the NASCAR Grand National - later known as Winston Cup - circuit as best he could, usually in the form of movies of the races shown in the Sacramento Autorama theater whenever he and his father attended the annual car show. There he fueled his racing imagination with such names as Richard Petty, David Pearson, Little Joe Weatherly, Curtis Turner, Darel Dierenger, Lee Roy Yarbrough, Fred Lorenzen, and Holman-Moody. But he also got a kick out of hearing names like Speedy Thompson, Smokey Yunick, Tiger Tom, Cotton Owens, Shorty Rollins, Tiny Lund, Jocko Flocko, Buck Baker, Coo-Coo Marlin, and Fireball Roberts. Something about that last name would always remain in the back of his mind. In 1999, being an old-school NASCAR fan and enthusiast got him involved with the San Jose-based Historic Stock Car Racing Series (HSCRS), a group of enthusiasts who locate, restore, and race retired Winston Cup stock cars. That connection would eventually lead to stints as the color commentator on behalf of the group for the three years they ran as a support race to the CHAMP cars at the San Jose Grand Prix (2005-2007), and other events they participated in at the famed Laguna Seca Raceway. Also an avid builder of car models since the age of six, Don turned that little talent into eventually building a full-scale replica of one of Fireball Roberts' last 1964 Ford Galaxies, itself one of the things that led him to penning his novel. Today, he drives the purple, barely street-legal race car replica to various car shows near his home, attending along with his father, an amazing automotive craftsman who has built a number of classic hot rods over the years. Don has also been a radio and nightclub DJ, an historic guide at the Leland Stanford Mansion and, most recently, at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, and appeared (very) briefly in the movie Dare to Dream: The Alan Kulwicki Story after assisting in the re-creation of a key car for the film. Don still resides near Sacramento with his wife, Patti, their blended family, his Fireball Roberts tribute car, and Midget the Flatulent Cat.