WHO IS BOB JANE?
The stocky 72-year-old is one of Australia's great business success stories,
rising from virtual poverty as a child to watch over a private empire
believed to be worth in-excess of $500 million. Jane's big 'start' in
business came through success in car dealerships, although the former
motor racing champion struck it big in the late 1960s/early '70s with
the beginning of his retail chain of discount tyre stores, Bob Jane T-marts.
Today, Bob Jane T-marts has more than 150 stores nationally (we've
only got a population of 19m down here), with a turnover believed to
be around half a billion dollars annually.
Despite still looking like your average 'bloke,' Jane still is surrounded
by the trappings of his wealth, with luxury motor yachts, modern helicopters
and an incredible stable of luxury cars surrounded by dozens of valuable
properties.
In recent years, Jane has battled with prostate cancer, although he
has resisted any attempts to hand control of his empire over to anyone
else within the family or organisations, despite saying he would do
so.
His relationship with drag racing has been controversial for many years,
with Jane splitting in the past from the sport and ANDRA a number of
times, attempting to set up his own sanctioning body.
Hopefully, this latest 'concern' will again be a passing fad and the
sport and the industry which relies on it can get back to business as
usual.
A LITTLE ABOUT CALDER PARK AND ADELAIDE INTERNATIONAL
Bob Jane didn't build either Calder Park or Adelaide International Raceways,
but the tyre retailer has been in control of both facilities since the
late 1960s and late '70s respectively.
While Calder Park was always considered to be the jewel in the crown,
AIR was actually built as a 'super track' in the early '70s and opened
with much fanfare, with the NHRA World Champion Fullerton and Doheny
'Trojan Horse' nitro Funny Car and the 'Courage of Australia' Rocket
car headlining the track's first event.
Aside from that race, Calder Park has really always held the limelight.
Situated just 15 miles from the center of Melbourne (population of 3,000,000),
Calder Park is the home of the annual Australian Nationals and the site
of the first ever four-second elapsed time outside the US, Graeme Cowin's
4.895 run on December 18, 1993.
Sadly, in recent years, both tracks have really fallen behind in regards
to world standards, but their racing surfaces have still been able to
help produce some tough numbers from some tough racers.
Both tracks have also played host to some of the sport's best known
and great racers, including Al Hofmann, Tim Grose, Gary Densham, Scotty
Cannon, Glenn Mikres, Mike Dunn, Marvin Graham, Kirk Kuhns, John Scalpi,
and Johnny Rocca amongst others.
Hopefully, Australia's own greats like Jim Read, Gary Phillips and
Victor Bray will again soon get to race on their all-tarmac quarter-miles.
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