UTE, I am blue oval and have been for a very very long time,
To tell you the truth since I have been into motor sport.
If this is the wrong place for this message then the Mods can move it, but I started as a Ford fan in 1982, when my Dad sat me down (it was a big thing that he was home from working shift work), and we watched the Hardies Heroes.(now used the world over as the one hot lap qualifying dash)
A Green XE Falcon Flew up and over the mountain, but unfortunately hit the edge at Forrest Elbow and threw the car into the Trees.
I was a Fan of Dick Johnsons since then, and when he retired I started following his co-driver for 2 Bathurst wins, John Bowe.
Now I work for OzEmail, and John, drives for the OzEmail Racing Team.
A further on that accident, the previous sponsorship manager at OzEmail was 12 years old when it happened (I was only 6 so hey) but he was good mates with Kevin Bartletts Son, and both went down to Bathurst with Kevin who was co-driving car #17 that weekend.
I have been told that the car that ended up in the trees was not repaired, but replaced with the XE of another Ford Sponsored Runner. They then tried to find a ford dealer that had a V8 XE for sale between Lithgow and Dubbo to replace the one they were now using as #17. Unfortunately none were available, so they had to replace the Ford with a Holden Commodore.
Supposedly according to Channel 7 the biggest story of the weekend was that over night #17 was re-built and supposedly the paint was still drying on it when it was rolled onto the grid. The Real Story is that #17 was painted dried (using the HDTs Paint Dryers) and had all the sponsors stickers on it by at 2am. The bigger story was that this Commodore that was bought, was Panel beaten to look like a Falcon, and until you got into it you would never know. Ford didn't know until 5 years ago. The Commodore only made 50 laps and retired due to break fade.
Yes we are on the way to the Championship in 2004, and I hope to be at the Creek to see Marcos Take it again in December, but it still would have been nice to have my team BJR or my Make Ford take out the 1000, instead of the only lone Commodore on the lead lap.
:-# 
