WINTON: THE MOUSE THAT ROARED – 60 YEARS OLD TODAY
Winton Raceway is 60 today, it’s first race day was Sunday November 26, 1961.
AA wishes many happy returns to all at the Benalla Auto Club which has guided the venue from a small club circuit to national prominence.
From the very beginning, right through until the present day with many historical photos included.
On that first weekend local boy, Barry Stilo set the lap record at 1m 24.2s aboard his Holden-engined Faux Pas.
The present club (original) circuit record is now Mark Larkham’s Reynard 90D’s 52.99 sec, again Holden powered with neat symmetry.
Crowd favourites Brian Sampson, Peter Macrow and Bryan Thomson raced that weekend, all did tens-of-thousands of Winton laps in long careers. Thommo shares his recollections with us.
In the current issue we look back at some of the most memorable moments including when a Formula 1 World Champion raced at the venue as well as some iconic Australian Touring Car Championship/Supercars races.
Living Legend, John Bowe bagged his first Australian Touring Car Championship race victory at Winton aboard a Dick Johnson Racing Ford Sierra RS500 in 1988. JB gives us his Benalla memories as a regular since 1979.
As well as Bowe and Thomson we speak to the legendary Kevin Bartlett and long-time Benalla Auto Club President Bruce Robertson to get their views on the precinct.
Norm Beechey was the first ATCC champion to race at the Benalla favourite, but he was far from the last, the most recent Supercars victor was Scott McLaughlin who in his DJR Ford Mustang GT in 2019.
The BAC’s triumphs are the result of astute management.
AA summarises Winton’s sixty years of sporting and commercial success from circuit patriarch’s Bruce Watts’ 1957 twinkle-in-the eye to the present in an extensive four-page feature.
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