Australian touring car legend John Bowe has completed his first international race meeting in 25 years with two top three finishes at Laguna Seca, California.
Bowe, competing in the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, drove a 1965 Corvette Singray Coupe to pole position before finishing second and third in the two races.
It was the first race meeting that Bowe had competed in outside of Australia and New Zealand since his one-off race at Silverstone with Dick Johnson in a Shell Sierra.
Bowe’s efforts in the second race were widely applauded after his entry was forced to the back of the grid for an engine irregularity. The two-time Bathurst 1000 winner drove his way through the 38 car field to finish third.
“It was a great experience to come here and to do it – to see the place, see the track, see how it’s run. To be honest, the bonus was racing,” Bowe told Speedcafe.com.
“I love racing, and that’s the reason I came, but I would love to come here again. Anyone who is into motorsport or vintage racing, this event is definitely a must-do.
“When I got to the dummy grid for the second race, I was in the car and they came up and told me that I’m starting from the back of the grid because there was an issue with the manifold.
“They told me that it was not the right manifold for the year of the car. It was a 1967 manifold. Apparently, it offered no performance advantage, but it was what it was.
“I had a terrific race and ended up getting up to third place, so it was probably more fun starting at the back and running through the field.
“It was just fun, really fun. As Peter Brock used to say, I was just having a red hot go.”
Bowe’s next racing mission will be at the Muscle Car Masters for the next round of the Touring Car Masters on September 1-2.
See below for a photo gallery of JB’s Laguna Seca adventure. Images courtesy of Jill Savy.
