Peter Egan
 Peter
Egan is an American writer known for his monthly columns, Side Glances in Road
& Track magazine and Leanings in Cycle World magazine, as well as road tests
and occasional features in both magazines.
His columns are chiefly autobiographical and anecdotal in nature, typically
cheerful, self-deprecating and sometimes displaying an ironic or dark sense of
humor. He has written extensively about his many road trips, including detailed
accounts of the failings of the vehicles and his interactions with the people
who accompany him and those he meets.
While writing for Cycle World, Egan also wrote for the automotive magazine
Road & Track, part of the same organization, and had its headquarters in the
same building in Newport Beach. His writing style fit well with, and may have
been influenced by, those of his contemporaries at Road & Track, including
Henry N. Manney III, Rob Walker, Innes Ireland, and Dennis Simanaitis.
Apart from writing road tests and reports on motor races and car shows, Egan
wrote about the perils and pitfalls of repairs, restoration, and racing,
illustrating his points with first-hand anecdotes. His experience of working on
and his love for English cars has led him to exaggerate their faults and
idiosyncrasies, though he makes it clear he prefers to work on and drive them.
He has also expressed a particular interest in old English and Italian
motorcycles.
Egan has since retired from the regular staff of both magazines, although he
still contributes monthly columns to both and also writes features as an
Editor-at-Large.
An example of his humor excerpted from a piece originally appeared in Road & Track, April 1996 in Peter's
column, Side Glances.
Hammer: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer nowadays is used as a kind of divining rod to locate expensive car parts not far from the object we are trying to hit.
Mechanic's Knife: Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well on boxes containing convertible tops or tonneau covers.
Electric Hand Drill: Normally used for spinning steel Pop rivets in their holes until you die of old age, but it also works great for drilling rollbar mounting holes in the floor of a sports car just above the brake line that goes to the rear axle.
Hacksaw: One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board principle. It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable motion, and the more you attempt to influence its course, the more dismal your future becomes.
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