Book excerpt: What is it that makes a man strap himself into an automobile and drive it hundreds of laps around a track at speeds surpassing 200 miles per hour? Critically acclaimed journalist G. Wayne Miller decided to find out by spending a year on the NASCAR circuit with Roush Racing's legendary owner Jack Roush and his four title-contending Winston Cup drivers: Mark Martin, Jeff Burton, Matt Kenseth, and Kurt Busch. Miller plumbs the allure of speed and the exploding popularity of stock-car racing through the dramatic 2001 season, which opened with the most famous Daytona 500 in history, when NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt died as his car slammed into the wall on the final turn. Miller takes us inside the minds and behind the wheels of the of the hottest drivers of the past two seasons, as they cope with the thrills and the dangers along the way to the Cup. Miller also takes us inside Roush Racing, a $125 million business, showing a side of NASCAR that few fans ever get to see. For longtime fans and curious newcomers alike, Men and Speed takes you for a wild ride through the fastest sport in the land.