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Australian motor racing icon Bob Jane has been announced as the Grand Marshall of the 2007 WPS Bathurst International Motor Festival to be held at Mount Panorama this Easter, April 6-8.
Jane, who grew up in the inner Melbourne suburb of Brunswick, had a passion for cars at a young age and started his competitive career in 1956. By 1960 he was rated as one of Australia’s top sedan drivers.
His first major victory came in 1961 when he raced to his first victory in the Armstrong 500 alongside Harry Firth at Phillip Island, Victoria, aboard a Mercedes Benz 220SE.
Jane also partnered Firth to win the race again the following year, the last before the event moved to Mount Panorama at Bathurst, New South Wales.
Jane won the first two of these races at the Mount Panorama circuit in 1963 and 1964, the first with Firth and the second with George Reynolds as co-driver.
The car Jane and Firth drove to victory in the first 500-mile classic contested around the 6.21km circuit is on display at the WPS Bathurst International Motor Festival.
His record of four successive wins remains unchallenged, sure some drivers have surpassed the number of victories achieved by Jane, but none have been able to string together four successive back-to-back wins.
Jane also had success in the Australian Touring Car Championship (now known as the V8 Supercar Championship Series), taking out the title in 1962, 1963, 1971 and 1972. Amazingly, from 38 race starts in the ATCC, he would finish on the podium 21 times.
When not competing on the track, Jane was able to concentrate on his business interests.
In 1965 Bob Jane opened the first “T-Marts” store in Melbourne, and to this day it has remained an independent, family-owned business.
The importation of parts, and most particularly tyres, earned him a stellar reputation in the industry. Most popular were the high performance race tyres imported from Germany.
From 1980 to 1984 he attracted some of the best Formula 1 drivers to the Australian Grand Prix held at Calder Park Raceway (The “Thunderdome”), this event being a precursor to the Australian Formula 1 World Championship Grand Prix held in Adelaide in 1985.
Bob Jane retired from racing in 1986, although his many contributions to motor sport would continue.
Being a passionate follower of NASCAR, Jane constructed the $54 million “Thunderdome” on the grounds of the Calder Park Raceway. The new venue would open in February 1988 and its success was assured when the likes of Bobby Allison, Neil Bonnett and others from the Winston West Series all attended.
From 2002 to 2004 Bob Jane T-Marts held the naming rights sponsorship for the Bathurst 1000, the race Jane dominated early in his career.
“There is no doubt Bob Jane is one of the Father figures of Australian motorsport and we are delighted he has accepted the opportunity to be the Grand Marshall of the WPS Bathurst International Motor Festival,” said Event Director James O’Brien.
“He is one of the most recognizable names and faces in Australian motorsport. Bob’s record, both on the track and in the business arena, over the past 40 years is nothing short of impressive and we look forward to having him as our special guest this Easter.”
The WPS Bathurst International Motor Festival will be held at Mount Panorama from April 6 – 8. Tickets are available from ticketek www.ticketek.com.au.
Every person who buys a ticket to the Bathurst International Motor Festival, will receive complimentary entry to the National Motor Racing Museum over the Festival.
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