“We used to ride the pushbikes to Mount Druitt like a junior Wild One mob,” said Colin Bond, recalling his first experience of motor racing. He clearly remembered the three cars that made the biggest impression on him as a kid… “Don Gibson’s Dodge, Myers’ Holden and Brabham’s Redex Special.”
The first two were the standout sedans of the fifties era. Jack Myers’ 48-215 Holden was the first touring car to crack the ton down Con-Rod Straight at Mount Panorama and was electronically timed at 105mph on the main straight at Orange. His secret was a set of three SU carbies, a finned rocker cover and a hot camshaft, yet Myers drove his cream-coloured Humpy to the track with just a box of tools in the back seat in case of emergency.
Myers’ main competition at the time was equally extraordinary.
Don Gibson converted a black 1938 Dodge D8 De Luxe into a weekend racer, and despite its sidevalve six-cylinder in a mild state of tune this car was also a regular winner at Mount Druitt. It is remembered by those who saw it for its alarming degree of body roll. The success of the Gibson Dodge made a lot of people realise that big sedans had a natural advantage on Australian tracks and spectators loved to see them race.
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