I can't think of any more Aussie 'Legends' who could be next in line to
bite the proverbial dust.
Paul Hogan lives in Malibu now -- so could be considered a converted
Seppo ?!?!?
Mel Gibson lives in Malibu (although Mel was actually born in
Peekskill, NY) -- so not really an Aussie ?!?!
Nicole Kidman was born in Honolulu, Hawaii -- so not really an Aussie
gal ?!?!?
Anthony LaPaglia *was* an Aussie at one stage -- but now can be found
living 'without a trace' in Seppoland
The crocodile hunter iz dead -- & now "Brockie" has sadly bitten the
proverbial dust
Oh well, there's always your dear ol' Uncle Wally !!!
HOOROO
UNCLE WALLY
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Brock
Peter Geoffrey Brock (February 26, 1945 =E2=80=93 September 8, 2006),
otherwise known as "Peter Perfect", "King of the Mountain" or simply as
"Brockie", was a prominent Australian motor racing driver. He is
considered to be a legend in Australian motor racing sport and is
closely associated with Holden motor vehicles despite varied
associations with other marques.[citation needed] He is noted for being
the nine times winner of the Bathurst 1000 endurance race, the nine
times winner of the Sandown 500 touring car race, and the three times
winner of the Australian Touring Car Championship.
Brock's business activities included the Holden Dealer Team, which as
well as providing Brock's racing machines produced a number of modified
high-performance Holdens.
Contents [hide]
1 Early years
2 Racing career
3 Media work
4 Personal life
5 Death
6 References
7 External links
[edit]
Early years
Brock was born in the Victorian country town of Hurstbridge, and in
fact continued to live there throughout his life.
[edit]
Racing career
During his early career, Brock raced some "wild and woolly" creations
including the famous blue 6 cylinder Austin A30. Brock rose to public
attention in touring car racing, winning the Bathurst 500 or its
decimal era equivalent the Bathurst 1000, Australia's and one of the
world's pre-emininent endurance races, a total of nine times through
the '70s and '80s. As the lead driver for the pseudo-factory Holden
Dealer Team, in a succession of both 6 and 8 cylinder Holden Toranas
and later V8 Commodores the smooth-talking, clean-cut Brock became a
household name transcending motor racing, and was probably one of the
best-known modern Australian/New Zealand racing drivers (ranking
alongside Sir Jack Brabham, David Brabham, Vern Schuppan, Jim Richards,
Colin Bond, Allan Moffatt and Alan Jones).
Brock and the Holden Dealer Team became involved, with full factory
approval and assistance, in producing a number of high-performance
modifications to the Commodores from 1980 to 1988, some of which were
"homologation specials" built as a basis for modifying into race cars.
It was around this time that Brock began his run of six Bathurst 1000
wins in seven years, including his victory in the 1979 event, which he
won by a record six laps. He won a total of nine Bathurst 1000 events
and one Bathurst 24 hour event.
Brock also worked with the Victorian authorities on promoting the
campaign against drink driving. The most obvious sign of this
association was the racecar number "05" which related to the 0.05%
blood alcohol limit in Victoria. Most cars he raced in, regardless of
the motor racing division, bore this number, including the one in which
he died.
Brock developed an interest in New Age-style spirituality through
practitioner Eric Dowker. Brock began publicly supporting, and
eventually began to fit to HDT specials, a device called the "Energy
Polarizer", containing strong permanent magnets, which, it was claimed,
improved the performance and handling of vehicles through "aligning the
molecules". The overwhelming majority of the Australian motoring
community regarded the device as pseudoscience.[1] Brock also
recommended tyre pressures of 22psi (150kPa) for his polariser-equipped
vehicles, a level which many regarded as near-dangerously low. Holden,
fearing the consequences of being associated with the device, cut ties
with Brock and set up an alternative racing/modification operation,
Holden Special Vehicles.
Brock continued to race in privately-supported teams for some years
afterwards, but returned to the factory Holden Racing Team in 1994.
Brock retired from full-time driving in 1997.
After his 'retirement' he made two returns to Bathurst (2002 and 2004)
and competed in the Nations Cup for highly modified and exotic cars in
2004. In 2002, he returned to top-level touring car racing as a team
owner with the entry of "Team Brock" into the V8 Supercar category.
However, he sold his share in the team to Kees Weel at the end of 2003.
He occasionally competed in various enthusiast-level motorsport events
such as the Targa Tasmania. The team's vehicles are actually
constructed by Holden Special Vehicles. His smooth on-camera persona
and familiarity to older Australians continued to sell products,
including Mobil Oils and Bridgestone tyres, and the huge controversy
(at the time) of the Energy Polarizer was largely forgotten.
[edit]
Media work
Owing to his extraordinary success on the racing track, Brock became
the highest-profile Australian racing driver and undertook several
media commitments. When not racing, he often appeared on New Zealand
television screens as a presenter, hosting motoring shows, notably
TV3's Police Stop (1996-1998) and TVNZ's Love that Car (2000).
He was due to star in racing film King of the Mountain alongside
Shannon Noll in early 2007.[2]
[edit]
Personal life
Brock married Heather Russell in 1967, however this marriage ended in
divorce only two years later.[3]
Several years later, Brock met 1973 Miss Australia pageant winner and
Channel Seven weather presenter Michelle Downes. They married in April
1974 but this marriage was to be even shorter than his first, ending
after only one year.[3][4]
Brock next entered into a relationship with Bev McIntosh, the wife of
one of his motor racing team.[3] After his two failed marriages, Brock
was hesitant to marry McIntosh.[3] Despite the couple never marrying,
she took on his surname and they had three children together: James,
Robert and Alexandra.
Bev wrote Peter's biography[5] herself in 2004 after finding most
potential authors had incorrect preconceived notions about him. She
also expressed a desire to show his human side, to encourage others
that they, too, can achieve their goals.[6] "Even Allan Moffat said
it's okay for him =E2=80=94 it's us mortals that have the problem," she
said.[6]
Brock split with Bev in May 2005, after 28 years together.[7]
After splitting with Bev, Peter began a relationship with Julie
Bamford,[8] who he had met through former partner Bev some 20 years
previously.[9] Bamford's estranged husband Ron McCurdy, who had once
been a close friend of Brock, assaulted Brock after a chance meeting
outside Brock's Foundation office.[9][10]
[edit]
Death
Peter Brock's Daytona Coupe - the day before the accident.Peter Brock
was killed in a racing accident at the age of 61. The Confederation of
Australian Motor Sport[11] and Western Australian Police confirmed that
he lost control of his vehicle on a bend[12] and collided with a tree
whilst driving in the Targa West '06 rally at 11.50am[13] on September
8, 2006, near the township of Gidgegannup, 40km north-east of Perth.
Brock and his co-driver Mick Hone were in a 2001 Daytona Coupe[14].
Hone was taken to hospital in a stable condition.[12][15]
The editor of Wheels Magazine, Ged Bulmer, said that Brock would be
remembered for his nine victories in the Bathurst 1000, for "He had a
long and very successful career there, he was the 'King of the
Mountain' as he came to be known."
Video footage of the crash was captured both by a fan, as well as the
in-car cameras. The tapes are currently being reviewed by police to
help determine the cause of the accident.
His death came just four days after that of popular Australian TV
personality Steve Irwin, who was killed by a stingray off the
Queensland coast while shooting footage for a documentary.
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