The mountain

[DAVID PATERSON]

When was your first trip to Mt Panorama? How old were you? Was it a race meeting or were you just looking around? What did you think, when you first saw it?

[DarthFalcon]

Every time I've been to Bathurst for work or play I've driven around the circuit - the first time I drove up the road I was struck by just how steep it is - and how much fun the top can be - even at 60! And then how hard it is to stay on 60 on conrod! And how smooth the track is - it must be the best 6km public road in Australia! And I started noticing the houses alongside and their driveways that open onto the track - and wondring what it's like to live there (especially in October!)

The first lap I did was pretty cool - cause I knew it so well from watching it all those years on the tv. It was full of 'oooohs' and 'aaahhhhhs'.

The thing that stuck in my mind at the first race meeting I went to was how feral people on top of the mountain are!

[275 GTB-4]

Originally posted by DAVID PATERSON
When was your first trip to Mt Panorama? How old were you? Was it a race meeting or were you just looking around? What did you think, when you first saw it?

Must have been about 68-69 in a Mini, completely sideways out of Forrests Elbow (whew, got away with that one!). Climbing the mount in a std one litre mini requires patience though!!

[Mattracer]

1987 around December then for the 1997 "media day". What an awesome place, driving around the circuit for at least five laps the day before, it was truly a memorable experience. My car has plenty of power but Mountain Straight is fairly steep and after Griffins is REALLY steep. The Dipper was wild, even at 40ks and then Conrod open up before your eyes-what a wonderful sight that is!!

The cars seem so different watching them at Bathurst than at other circuits. Magic place...

[DAVID PATERSON]

In May 1994, I was 24 and my Dad had just bought a VN Berlina with FE2 sports suspension and the 180kW HSV motor, so we decided to give it a run and drove down to Sydney to visit my sister. One day while she was at work, we decided to take a day trip to Bathurst, neither of us had ever been.

Of course we parked the car on pole position and took photos of each other sitting at the wheel. Then we each did about a dozen laps, carefully sitting on 60 km/h. Even at that low speed, we were amazed by how steep it is going up, how awesome it is across the top and how tricky coming down. In a street car, the dipper is just 40km/h! Of course, we visited the museum at Murray's corner and then did several more laps. A really great day!

[xr6turbo]

1996 Race ......pitcrew(didn't do much but thats what my pass said i was) formula ford for shane beikoff.....i was 24 and had never been there before...my best memory would be driving into the circuit in the morning in shane's EB GT and driving up pit straight taking the racing line and turning into turn 1,before heading into the pit paddock...

[Peregrine]

Although I am sure that I would have done many laps of The Mount in the back of Dad's XY before my memories started,the first actual memory I have is of the Hardie Ferodo 1000 in 1977. But my most vivid memory was of the Holden fans all booing cars 1 and 2 and throwing beer cans at them on their victory lap, which became the catalyst for banning victory laps.....

[Bigguy]

At the '65 (I think) Easter meeting, I crewed for Terry Allan, who had the ex Brian Muir S4 Holden. Best memory for me was warming up the car by driving round the paddock. I don't know what Brian did to the gearbox, but the gear change doubling down to first on the move was like slicing butter!

[GROUPA]

First time I went was 84 then 87 for WTCC...drove it in 1991 and walked it as well...it is so step

[brno86]

First time was in 1981 as a young kid and being able to drive around the circuit of a night without any dramas riding shotgun with my old man.Practice started Wednesday so it meant a couple of days off school. Drivers use to have tea in town at the the Acropole,or across the road, so you found out what went on at tea time. Met Bill France Jnr & Chris Economaki the year later, real gentleman. Different days indeed.

[pplater]

First time driving was at last year's B24... click on my name to see a photo from it.

GTR, do you remember a story I wrote on the road car forum?

I can't find it. You replied a few times to me about it though... If you turn it up, place it on here.

[mayhem]

First trip to Mt Panorama was to the drive-in......

[brno86]

Soon to be the site of the Bathurst Kart Club

[mountainstar]

As an american, Bathurst was pretty much unknown back in the 80's. When I was 16 I started reading car magazines all the time and I think it was usually mentioned in Road and Track. It wasn't until I was 18 in 1993 that the now defunct TNN Network decided use some ATCC footage to fillout it's weekly sunday morning racing program. That's the first time I actually saw bathurst and saw Larry Perkins win that year. That program changed the course of my life, so it's funny how the small things in life can have a big effect.

I was finally able to visit last year and spent a day there as happy as I could be. There is something special about the place I can't explain. I've been to heaps of circuits in the USA, Canada and the UK and I've seen some nice ones, but there is nothing like bathurst.

[racer69]

First went there in 1989 for a look......

...First saw cars there at the 1994 Tooheys 1000 Media Day...

...First race i saw there was the 2002 Bathurst 24 Hours.

[zonda]

2003. Bathurst 24hr. Was there as part of the Media. Fantastic crowd, sitting up top and not a problem of drunken bogans harassing people.
Hearing GT3's scream accross the top at 1:30am in the morning, and then seeing tail lights streem down conrod. By far the best race i have ever been to, regardless of how bad the weather was.

dave.

[marcus]

gee must have been about 93 or 94.
a mate had just done up an LJ Torana and we went for a drive the first weekend he got it back from the painters , we cruised up to bathurst , there was 3 of us in the car and we had a tent and a few odds and ends.

as the car was fairly low and he had some expensive tires on we decided to dump the tent , so at hell corner (turn one) we went up the escape road and there is an old gum tree there and we unloaded the tent , esky and even the spare tire behind the tree.

While we were doing this we heard an allmighty screach of tires and turned around looking back at turen one to see a marked policecar completely sideways around turn one and dissapeared up the mountian (we never saw him again)

well that set the blood racing thats for sure
it started to sprinkle with rain as well just slicking up the track slightly

3 grown men driving around Bathurst for the first time in their lives in an LJ Torana on a slick track certainly was interesting , as someone mentioned above there was loads of "OHHHHS" and "AHHHHS" and the occasional "Holy mary mother of god" comment until we got to conrod and the driver opened it up , twas all good to flogging down conrod swinging into the chase and brilliantly locking up the brakes and doing a complete 360 spin off onto the grass.

that brought out more expletive comments

we relaxed then and just enjoyed the place.

was a great day thats for sure

[v8man]

First time was in 72, my first year as a scrutineer and went every year until 87. I think the best way to experience a drive around the mount is towing a caravan, now thats an experience coming down the hill

[Average Punter]

My first lap was as a Sydney Uni student in 1983 heading for a 21st in Orange. I had a '62 1200 Beetle and had to change into first to get up The Cutting...

First race 1985. I still remember the sound of those Jags coming up the mountain and the sight of Brockies Mobil Common-dore across the top of the mountain with no front or rear windscreen.

Another year I was showing off in a girlfriend's Corolla and ran right off the track at the left hander in The Chase...(she's just written a novel called Malicious Intent. How appropriate...)

Favourite moment?
The collective drawing of breath from the crowd when a young tacker named C Lowndes drove around the outside of one J Bowe at Griffins in 1994.

[peckstar]

first memory was 77 , i was 8 so i really only remembver the finish.

First time there was 87, have been every year since.

We sit in the grandstand now (no 9 back row this year)

there was 7 of us in two cars a HX wagon with Brock heads and was pretty hot and 351 falcon. both owners had just completed major work on them, it was long trip and both cars had problems ( curse those wheel nuts popping off) 45 minute stop at wagga to de lip the guards on the falcon as the wheels were rubbing (big hammer)

But to get that first view of the track on sat morning was awesome and after all this time still love that first view. we get there about 3am now and just the lights in the distance from the mountain still send a chill up the spine

jsut wish leaving could be just as exciting ( 5 years since its been that good) hopefully this year will be different

[D.R.T.]

The first time I ever went there, I was 5, so you I can't recall to much of it, just remember standing in the pits.

First ever race I went to see there was the Bathurst 1000 in 2002, went back a few weeks later to see a real race.

[Bigguy]

In 1999, after setting up for a full grid photo , I once took about 40 WRXs around the track in a convoy, while our police escort waited discretely back down the road from Murrays (see no evil, hear no evil...).

[AussieV8]

My first visit would have been in 1975 with my Uncle as he is mates with Gary Cooke. I then drove up there myself on "P's" in 1980 in my RX3 coupe. I have visited on a number of occasions never missing the Moffat Mazda days and all the 12hrs seeing the RX-7's 3yrs in a row..but going to the first 24hr was something else.

[275 GTB-4]

Originally posted by Bigguy
At the '65 (I think) Easter meeting, I crewed for Terry Allan, who had the ex Brian Muir S4 Holden. Best memory for me was warming up the car by driving round the paddock. I don't know what Brian did to the gearbox, but the gear change doubling down to first on the move was like slicing butter!

OK Bigguy, you must have the odd story up your sleeve, let us have em!!

What sort of tyres did the S4 use and did they last the whole race?

Did she have sintered iron linings all round?

H/D shocks?

H/D springs?

Engine balanced?

etc etc

[Bigguy]

Originally posted by 275 GTB-4
OK Bigguy, you must have the odd story up your sleeve, let us have em!!

What sort of tyres did the S4 use and did they last the whole race?
Did she have sintered iron linings all round?
H/D shocks?
H/D springs?
Engine balanced?
etc etc

He tried Baggy Firestones, but the rears rubbed on the springs and one blew at the top of the mountain, sending the car into a spin (Dave Price - Melinda's dad was at the wheel), and poor Midge Bosworth clipped him and wrote off his until-then immaculate FJ.
Those sintered brake linings were pathetic by today's standards, but seemed to work.
I recall that the rear axle housing had been "sat on", so the rear wheels had negative camber. Can't remember much more, except the Webers sounded like they could suck you into the engine if you stood too close!
I could go on about travelling round Melbourne in Terry's own highly-modded EH for two weeks before he put it on a trailer... I reckon we gathered enough material to do an "Australian Graffiti" script!

Driving a 15 second 1/4 capable car on the road in 1965 was a unique experience...