Mention motor racing and in particular the V8 Supercars to pretty much any Aussie bloke (or girl) and they will probably immediately think of Mount Panorama Motor Racing Circuit in Bathurst, NSW. Shortly after that they will probably ask the question Holden or Ford? From my experience you are either a supporter of one or the other and no fence sitting is allowed!
On our recent trip to Cowra the kids asked if we could go over to Bathurst for the day. They wanted to visit the National Motor Racing Museum which is right next door to the famous racetrack. Miss Oz was also excited by the prospect of being able to drive around the track as well.
LOCATION
Bathurst is located about three hours drive west of Sydney. It was first declared a settlement in 1815 after a way over the Blue Mountains was discovered in 1813 by explorers Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth. It holds the title of Australia’s Oldest Inland Settlement and many of it’s historic buildings are still in use today.
MOUNT PANORAMA
During the 1930’s Mount Panorama was built by Bathurst City Council as a Scenic Drive with government unemployment funding. In April, 1938 the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix was the first race to be held there followed just two days later by the first race for motor cars. Racing stopped on the Mount during World War II and recommenced in 1946.
Numerous improvements have been made to the track over the years and it is now 6.213 kilometres long. It is classed as a public street when not being used for racing. Therefore all road rules applicable in NSW must be adhered to. Even when driving around the circuit at the posted speed limit of 60kph you can appreciate the difficulties of the track and the amazing skill levels of the drivers who race on it today have.
FIRST BATHURST 1000
The first Bathurst 1000 race was held in 1963 and was then known as the Armstrong 500. As there were four different classes racing at the time there was no outright winner. These days Harry Firth and Bob Jane in a Ford Cortina GT are acknowledged as the winners of that event.
No one was sure at the time if Bathurst would host the race the following year but it did and the rest as they say is history. The Bathurst 1000 has made household names out of racing greats like Peter Brock, Dick Johnston, Craig Lowndes, Allan Moffat and Colin Bond to name just a few.
Not forgetting a few motorcycle legends who raced at the track – Mick Doohan, Wayne Gardner, Barry Sheehan – before motorcycle racing was discontinued there due largely to riots that erupted between spectators and Police in the early 80’s.
NATIONAL MOTOR RACING MUSEUM
The National Motor Racing Museum celebrates all these motor racing legends and more with an impressive collection of race memorabilia. All the era’s of racing are covered here right from the very beginning of motor racing in Australia in the 1920’s through until now.
The museum is open every day and entry fees are reasonably priced – $35.00 for a family. It is well worth spending a few hours there especially if you are a fan of any form of motor racing.
BUCKET LIST TICK
Since writing this post in 2016, we ticked attending a round of the V8 Supercar Championships off our Bucket List. We spent three days watching the first round of the 2021 series. It was an absolutely awesome experience.
USEFUL LINKS
Have you ever been to the great race? Would you like to go?
Listen in to their podcast episode https://allaroundoz.com.au/podcasts/travelling-and-working-around-australia/
We visited Bathhurst on our driving trip around Australia too! So much fun. At the time my car was a ’92 Toyota 4runner and due to it’s age was gutless on the hills. So you can imagine the speed we were doing as we drove the track.. it was hilarious. Thanks for sharing and reminding me of those travel memories. 🙂
Our lap was very sedate this time with our daughter on her ‘L’ plates driving!
Thanks for sharing this interesting info about the Bathurst race track. As a kid, I spent many many hours watching the car racing with my Dad and brother, but didn’t know much about the venue itself … until now 🙂
We are all race fans in our family…it’s probably the one race of the year that we all try to watch!
Hello! Great to meet you.
I have never been to the race, but I have been to Bathurst MANY years ago and I did drive around it. But that would have been 20+ years ago in my early 20s.
I know plenty of people who do go to the race though!
Thanks for joining the Lovin’ Life Linky. So happy to see you here.
Thanks for having me 🙂
I didn’t realise the motorcycle grand prix started so long ago.
Yes…it’s been around for awhile now. Would be good to see the bikes back on Bathurst one day.