It’s racing season and as we cruise into the months of October and November, we see horsepower, roll into ‘Horse’ power. One race is famed as “The Race that Stops the Nation” but what about the race getting Eziway Car Club revved up?

That very race, has seen some change over the years. This year we will see ‘The Blue Oval’ reintroduce a wild ‘Horse’ of its own to the track, with the Mustang set to roam “The Mountain” once again. It’s a place where heroes are born, both as drivers and cars, a stretch of blacktop where the fierce rivalry between Holden and Ford (along with Chrysler in the early days) was born… Bathurst.

In Australian motorsport folklore, Bathurst is enormous. Winning the Great Race not only meant bragging rights, it also gave manufacturers credibility, with race day success translating into showroom success all over the country and the phrase "Win on Sunday, sell on Monday" was coined.

With just over two weeks until the Great Race, Eziway Car Club want to get you revved up with some interesting Bathurst ‘Fast Facts’:

• In its first race, 1963, the Great Race was known as the Armstrong 500, the event was won by Harry Firth and Bob Jane in a Ford Cortina GT
• Bathurst race rules stipulated that an entrant’s car must be available ‘as is’, in a showroom somewhere in Australia
• Cars would often race around The Mountain with number plates, with some even being driven up and only a few simple modifications made before the race, such as removing the exhaust
• 1973 saw the race change from 500 miles to 1000 kilometres
• Average speeds of 161.5km/h and top speeds of around 300km/h down Conrod Straight means that every bit of downforce is vital for a V8 Supercar to stay on the track. In comparison, a Boeing 757 travels at 270km/h at take off, any wonder a driver’s average heart rate is 170 beats per minute
• The cabin temperature inside a V8 Supercar has been known to rise to 60° Celsius and a driver’s body temperature can rise to 39° Celsius
• Holden legend, Peter Brock is the undisputed “King of the Mountain” claiming victory a record nine times
• The road over Mount Panorama was originally built in 1938 as a scenic tourist drive.
• The circuit is a public road on non-race weekends and even has homes along it. It’s speed limited, most sections are 60km/h zones to deter “Weekend Warriors”
• The Author of this article is a self-confessed “Chrysler Tragic” and had to resist the urge to bore you with Pacer and Charger facts.

Hopefully this article has gotten you as excited for Bathurst weekend as we are at Eziway Car Club. We are also excited to announce our first Car Club Event. On Sunday, 10 November we will be hosting a Car Show at Eziway’s head office. So get the tyre shine out and join us on the day, the coffee machine will be on and the Classic Car Cruisers Club will be there with some classic rides. Keep an eye out for more information about the Car Show later in October.

AUTHOR

Nick Kotsonis | Corporate Relations

T 03 8768 5777

E nickk@eziway.net.au