Road & Track - December 2006

Equations of Motion review from Road & Track, December 2006

Equations of Motion Entertain

"Bill Milliken is one of the world"s foremost experts in vehicle dynamics. He and his son Doug, bless "em both, are also good friends of R&T. And, having attained the age of 95, Bill figures there might be enough to warrant an autobiography.

More than enough

Its title, Equations of Motion, 80 Years of Adventure, Risk and Innovation only hints at the richness-and fun and drama- of Bill"s life so far. (He"s still having a ball: At Goodwood Festival 2002, he stormed up the hill in his MX-1 Camber Car.)

There is tragedy in Bill"s recollections as well. He was Flight Test Operations Engineer in development of the Boeing XB-29 bomber. Its test crew of 11 and 20 people on the ground perished in an accident. But for an office-politically charged grounding, Bill would have been on that plane.

Longtime readers may remember Milliken"s corner at the original Watkins Glen circuit. Its naming is but one of Bill"s adventures detailed in his full career of racing. A photo shows Bill and his Bugatti at full chat; caption: "I"ve started the turn as indicated by the right front wheel off the ground . . ."

Whatever your leanings, Bill"s story is a delight. No less than Dan Gurney concurs in his Foreword: "Sometimes in life you meet a person and for unknown reasons, you feel an immediate connection.." It"s Bill Milliken"s magic that so many of us are proud to share this feeling.

Review of Equations of Motion from Road & Track - December 2006