Tassie man in the driver’s seat of the V8s
Launceston’s Shane Howard is pinching himself he’s landed the top job in Australian motorsport and is rapt he’ll be able to help steer the Supercars in to a new era.
TasWeekend
Don't miss out on the headlines from TasWeekend. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Shane Howard still has an autograph book that he used to cart around Tasmanian racetracks as a child, capturing the signatures of his motorsport heroes.
The now 62-year-old has fond memories of tagging along with his dad, the late Bert Howard, and watching him compete at Tasmanian tracks including Longford Circuit, Baskerville Raceway and Symmons Plains.
It was back in the days when some of the world’s biggest names in motorsport flocked to Tasmania to race in the European off-season, alongside some of Australia’s top drivers, with a young Howard in awe of Aussie legends like Jack Brabham and British Formula 1 drivers Jim Clark, Graham Hill and Piers Courage.
“I was a bit shy back then, but dad took me around with my autograph book, he went around and he helped me get those signatures from those great drivers,’’ Howard recalls.
“And I’ve still got [the autograph book], absolutely I have.
“To be in that environment was pretty special … to have those F1 drivers [in Tasmania] was just incredible.’’
That starry-eyed youngster had no idea he would go on to forge a successful career in motorsport management and would one day be at the helm of Supercars in Australia.
Howard was recently announced as the high-profile motorsport organisation’s chief executive officer, and officially stepped into the role on February 1.
The Launceston-born motorsport enthusiast has worked for Supercars in other roles for the past 20 years and he was selected from “a high-calibre list of professional business and sporting leaders from around Australia and the globe’’ to become the CEO.
He has been lauded for his strong knowledge of the sport and his strategic vision for the future of Supercars, keen to grow the brand as international borders begin to reopen, while also preparing for the new Gen3 race cars to hit the track in 2023.
Howard says much of that knowledge and passion stems from the formative years he spent hanging out at Tasmanian racetracks with his beloved dad.
“My dad was right into his racing, so I got introduced to it at a really early age,’’ he explains.
He recalls the moment his dad purchased his very first race car, a Molina Monza, from Victoria – and took his enthusiastic young son along for the adventure. “When he went over to test drive the car he took me with him and I was six or seven years old,’’ Howard recalls.
“He test drove the car – he test drove a couple of cars – and he decided on the Monza. That was a really glamorous car of the era and that was a pretty special race car.’’
As if that wasn’t exciting enough, the day got even more eventful.
“After the test drive he said ‘jump in’ so I jumped in the dickie seat – although it was not really much of a seat – so I had to get in and hang on for dear life,’’ Howard laughs.
“He took me for a blast around Calder Park Raceway … I think my goggles blew off down the straight, the wind was nearly blowing my eyelids inside out but I loved it and that was my first time in a race car and it was a pretty special moment with my dad.
“That’s probably one of my biggest childhood memories.’’ That experience sparked a passion inside Howard that has been impossible to extinguish.
He began racing cars when he was 16 – hitting Baskerville and Symmons Plains racing in Formula 2 and Formula 3 events – in a “great little car” his dad bought for him to race.
He then started work as an apprentice mechanic in Tasmania but later moved to Queensland and finished his apprenticeship there.
“I wanted to go and work in Formula 1 if I could,’’ Howard recalls of his ambition and the impetus to move to Queensland.
He even got a letter of introduction from his dad’s good mate Geoff Smedley, who had been working in F1 for Colin Chapman and the Lotus team, to help his cause.
“If I could make it there I was prepared to do anything – polish wheels, clean tyres or whatever I needed to do to become involved and Geoff recommended me for that,’’ Howard says.
But he ended up not needing that letter as the universe had other plans for him.
“I actually got to Queensland and I met my wife, I didn’t go on to Europe,’’ Howard explains.
“And so I stayed here and I was lucky enough to be offered a role with an engineering company that won the rights to build the circuit and all the engineering and construction management for the Indy race.’’
Eventually Howard – and his wife Bernadette – ended up working for Supercars, where he has now worked for more than 20 years.
He was appointed as event manager in 2001 by Supercars founder Tony Cochrane, while Bernadette started the Paddock Club, managing the organisation’s premium corporate experiences as well as working as executive assistant to Cochrane.
Bernadette is no longer an official Supercars employee but Howard jokes that she is “obviously still my chief adviser’’.
Howard was elevated to chief operating officer and filled in as CEO on numerous occasions before being chosen to take on the role permanently, to guide Australia’s number one motorsport through Covid and into its new Gen3 phase in 2023.
The announcement comes following the sale of the business by Archer Capital to Racing Australia Consolidated Enterprises Ltd (RACE) – a consortium led by Supercars chairman Barclay Nettlefold.
Nettlefold says Howard is the perfect person for the job.
“Shane is an outstanding leader with a proven track record in guiding Supercars’ operations,’’ he said when announcing Howard as the organisation’s new chief executive officer.
“With Gen3 hitting the track in 2023 and international borders beginning to reopen, he has a clear strategic vision for the future of Supercars.”
Howard says it’s a “very exciting time for the sport” and he’s “really looking forward” to helping lead Supercars in an exciting new direction.
“This is an amazing opportunity and I’m very proud to be moving into the chief executive role at an organisation I have been a part of for more than 20 years,” he says.
“Over that time, I have worked with some of the most incredible minds in sport and entertainment who have helped us grow the organisation to where it is today – one of Australia’s most popular sports.
“The fans have always been at the heart of what we do.
“Our goal is to move forward and continue to innovate and expand our events as well as our footprint in media and the digital landscape.
“I share the passion of our staff, teams, sponsors and key stakeholders who want to see the sport continue to grow.
“I am excited about our future under the new ownership group and have full confidence in our management team that is experienced in delivering world-class events for one of the top touring car categories in the world.”
Howard wants to see a focus not just on racing, but on the whole fan experience, whether that be fans at the racetrack or those at home watching on TV or following on social media. He is inspired by the success of Formula 1 elevating its profile in recent years and is keen for the same sort of results for Supercars.
He’s also excited by the arrival Gen3, which will see the debut of the Chevrolet Camaro as the new General Motors product to replace the defunct Holden brand and its ZB Commodore.
The new Ford Mustang will also be making its Gen3 debut, with the newer race version designed to look more similar to its road car equivalent. The new era of cars will remain fast and loud but promise to provide a new look, more entertaining racing and be more cost effective.
Howard says the Gen3 cars aim to give a nod to Supercars of the past while driving the brand firmly into the future.
“They’re a very sexy race car,’’ he says of the new prototypes, which will make an appearance in Tasmania in March for testing, in the lead up to racing in 2023.
“With the Camaro and Mustang, they’re beautifully engineered race cars and we’re testing them as we speak, they’ll be tested throughout this year. We’re aiming to do about 7000km in testing for those cars to get them bulletproof and ready for racing next year.
“We debuted the cars at Bathurst (in December last year) and the fan appeal and reaction from fans was outstanding. So I think Tasmanian fans will be really looking forward to seeing those cars.
“Our prime focus is to entertain people – that’s our focus, that’s what the business is there to do.’’
He’s hopeful the Gen3 platform will attract other manufacturer interest and also hopes to go back to doing some international races.
“Supercars competed in China, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Texas previously and I think with the new Gen3 platform that we will have a lot of interest to consider a couple of overseas opportunities,’’ Howard says.
Many would consider stepping into such a high-profile role in the midst of a pandemic to be a daunting undertaking, but Howard is embracing his chance to take the wheel.
He admits it has been a tough couple of years for motorsport, with rules and plans constantly changing. But he’s hopeful that moving forward, and with borders reopening, that 2022 will be a successful season.
Thirteen rounds of racing are expected to be held between March and November this year, kicking off in Sydney on March 4-6. The second round of the Repco Supercars Championship will be held in Tasmania, with the SuperSprint event at Symmons Plains Raceway on March 26-27.
Howard is excited to see Supercars return to Tasmania, on both a personal and professional level.
“I love coming back to Tasmania, it’s got such a rich motor racing history and heritage, it’s got a strong competitor base down in Tassie and our teams and sponsors love being there,’’ he says.
“There’s something very special about the Tassie race. The Symmons Plains track is very short – it’s such a short, fast lap – and it’s got the hardest braking area on any of our circuits. And the cool thing is, it’s got an amphitheatre feel to it, it’s a great track for our fans, our spectators. We’ve had great crowds at [Tasmanian] events, it’s enormously strong … fans love to get up close and personal with drivers and teams, the back of the pit garages is always very busy.
“We really love and enjoy going there and our aim is to continue racing in Tasmania for a very, very long time. We’ve had very good support from the government.’’
The state government has provided a five-year package, worth $5.6m, to get Supercars to Tasmania from 2019 to 2023, as well as $1.75m for improvements at Symmons Plains Raceway.
Pre-covid, more than a million people watched the Tasmanian leg of Supercars on TV in Australia, as well many thousands in more in 83 countries via 16 different international broadcast partners. Figures show that interstate visitors coming for the event stay an average of six nights and, based on pre-covid numbers, will inject about $7m into Tasmania’s visitor economy, supporting local accommodation and hospitality venues as well as many local event suppliers.
Howard is also looking forward to getting to Tasmania to visit family and friends he hasn’t seen for a while due to the pandemic.
He’s currently based on the Gold Coast, where he has about 40 staff, with another office in Sydney with a similar number of staff.
“One great thing is I get to come back and see my family and friends,’’ Howard says of Supercars coming to Tasmania.
His dad died in 2016 and his mum, Pat, still lives in the Launceston suburb of Newnham. Many of Howard’s 16 siblings also live in Tasmania.
“Mum and Dad are very special people,’’ he explains.
“I’m their only biological child … after they had me they couldn’t have any more children. So they adopted 16 children.
“I’ve got a lot of brothers and sisters adopted from all around world … including Vietnam, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Africa, India, China, New Zealand and Australia.’’
His siblings are now aged from their mid 50s through to their early to mid 20s, and most are still based in Launceston.
His parents have won many awards over the years – his mum was named Barnardos Mother of the Year in 1996 as well being honoured with an Order of Australia Medal in 1999 for services to the welfare of adopted children.
Howard, who is a father to 32-year-old daughter Jessi, recalls it was a “pretty special” childhood, but laughs that it was also “chaos’’ much of the time.
“It’s good to get back, I have a lot of great memories,’’ he says.
And many of those relate to motorsport.
“I have really fond memories of when the touring cars came to Symmons Plains and Baskerville and the big crowds they used to get to the racetrack,’’ he recalls. “And I used to love it because while Dad was racing, I used to go around collecting all the empty cordial bottles and throw them in the back of the trailer. Then he’d take me into the old Kool Spa factory and cash them in. It was a big money spinner, that’s for certain. It was my first commercial venture in motorsport. It’s slightly bigger business now.’’
Looking back at his childhood, as the kid watching Dad race and getting autographs from his motorsport heroes, Howard says it’s hard to believe he’s landed the top job of driving Supercars into a new era.
“It’s a bit surreal,’’ he says, when reflecting on the trajectory. “I mean, when you’re on the journey you don’t really think about it.
“But I’m proud of what I’ve achieved and I think it goes back to the grassroots of how it started for me and the passion of motorsport. If you’re lucky enough to work in an industry that is your passion you’re a pretty lucky person.’’•
The second round of the 2022 Repco Supercars Championship – Tasmania SuperSprint – will be held at Symmons Plains Raceway from March 26-27. Single-day tickets start from $44 for adults, $34 concessions or two-day tickets start from $66 adults, $44 concession.
Kids 12 and under are free when accompanied by a paying adult.
Visit supercars.com
Join the conversation
Classic catches keep coming at Hursey’s
The Sunshine Coast’s Big Pineapple and Coffs Harbour’s Big Banana can move aside, Stanley does the Aussie thrill of ‘big things’ best at Hurseys, and serves a seafood feast to boot.
Read more
Tassie project celebrates cultural diversity and remarkable stories
From chance encounters with strangers to educational opportunities and falling in love – migrants and refugees share heartfelt tales of how they came to call Tassie home.
Read more