Motorsport legend John Harvey recognised with Australia Day OAM

One of motor sports racing legends has been honoured, more than 30 years after he retired from a long and prestigious competitive career.

Peter Brock and John Harvey, 1981.

While having put the brakes on his competitive racing career more than three decades ago, legend John Harvey hasn’t forgotten the terrific times he had on the track.

Now 81, the legend of racing has been recognised for his service to motor sports with an Order of the Medal of Australia.

And while he says he is too old for racing now, he’d still love to get out on the track.

Mobil Holden Dealer Team’s John Harvey with racing drivers Peter Brock and Dick Johnson before final race of deciding round of 1981 Australian Touring championship at Lakeside.

A one-time Bathurst winner, Harvey had a long and prestigious racing career, which started in the 1950s as a speed racer.

As a teenager Harvey’s inherited a love of racing from his father.

He said his father had always held an interest in the sport and while he never raced he had plenty of friends in the industry.

“He had friends involved and access to pit areas,” Harvey said.

“We went to races together – day and night meetings – I got to meet some people.”

Legends of Bathurst dinner at Adelaide Motors BMW. John Harvey, Larry Perkins, Ian Tate, Jim Richards, Allan Moffat, Colin Bond, and Fred Gibson.

The young racing enthusiast started a motor mechanic apprenticeship — not his job of choice — but as a way of getting to know how a car works.

It wasn’t long before the friends he made helped him on his way.

“I showed some promise from the beginning,” he said.

Peter Brock receives his Bathurst 1000 winners’ trophy from Prime Minister Bob Hawke with co-drivers Larry Perkins and John Harvey.

After a couple of year on the dirt track, Harvey moved to road racing with a number of titles under his belt including the Bathurst 1000 in 1983, Toby Lees Series in 1973, Australian Sports Car Championship in 1971 and 1972, Australian one and a half Litre Championship in 1966 and the inaugural Solar World Challenge Race in 1987 — which he called a terrific experience.

Harvey said it was a great achievement to have survived without a scratch.

One accident, which Harvey brushes off as “not serious”, kept him in a Sydney hospital for two weeks.

John Harvey in the General Motors solar car Sunraycer at Adelaide Oval, after winning the World Solar Challenge in 1987.

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But it didn’t keep him out of the drivers’ seat, getting back on the track after a five-week break, he said.

“I was one of the lucky ones,” Harvey said.

Harvey raced with Peter Brock during his time in the Holden Dealer Team.

“Peter Brock and I were partners for a long, long time,” he said.

“Peter and I got along well together. It was a huge success”