Ian Harrington was born in Melbourne and transferred to Launceston in 1965 as state manager of Emoleum, and after a short return to Melbourne eventually settled in Tasmania, setting up his own business, Roadways Asphalt Services, in Hobart with just two other employees. At the time of induction, the Ian Harrington Group had over 100 employees and four businesses.

Following a meeting at Baskerville in late 1973 with Garth Wigston, then president of the Hobart Sporting Car Club, to provide a quote for repairs required to the race track, Ian began a long friendship with Wigston and an even greater obsession with motorsport. During the conversation, Ian asked how to get into “this motor racing game,” and after many discussions a brand new Holden L34 Torana was purchased.

Garth ended up with the driving duties, initially in Tasmanian state events, and Roadways Racing was born. Preparation of the car was handed to Gown Hindaugh in Melbourne, beginning a long association with Bruce Hindaugh, who besides preparing the car also co-drove at Bathurst in 1976 and 1977.

The team’s first race meeting was at Baskerville in February 1975 but it didn’t get off to a good start with a major blow up at the end of the back straight. Despite this, the team went on to compete in the Australian Touring Car Championship and all major endurance races from 1976 until 1985, expanding to a two-car team with Holden A9X Toranas in 1978 and 1979, then switching to a Commodore in 1981 with Ian’s son Steven behind the wheel, and again expanding to two cars in 1983 and 1984.

STP became major sponsors for the endurance races in 1982 and 1983, and Alan Grice joined the team. At Bathurst that year, the team’s two cars finished third and fourth. In 1986 Roadways signage adorned the front of the race-winning Chickadee Commodore.

Ian and his wife Kara, married in 1959, had three sons Steven, James and Samm, and a daughter Jencie. All three sons enjoyed karting, with Ian and Roadways heavily supporting the Southern Tasmanian Kart Club. Steven went on to race street cars, sports sedans, touring cars, British Formula 3 and AUSCAR, while James and Samm competed successfully in Formula Vee.

Ian was a strong supporter of street car racing in Tasmania and made a couple of appearances in his own Holden A9X Toranas in 1978 at Baskerville. He also supported many drivers through Roadways Racing including Garth Wigston, Bruce Hindaugh, Charlie O’Brien, Wayne Negus, Bruce Gowans, Daryl Wilcox, Steven Harrington, Alan Grice, Colin Bond, and James and Samm Harrington.

Ian was President of the Hobart Sporting Car Club in 1978, 1979, 1981 and 1982. When the Baskerville property came up for sale in 1983, Ian along with Don Elliott, Ralph Bottomley and the HSCC formed a partnership to purchase the circuit, protecting it from property developers.

Ian fought hard during his association with the track to secure a round of the Australian Touring Car Championship for Baskerville, but even as the owner of a professional touring car team this proved unsuccessful. Roadways has carried out general track maintenance at Baskerville since that first discussion in 1973 and in 2016 completed the first total resurface of the circuit since its original construction in 1958.

Ian Harrington passed away in 1997, but the Tasmanian motorsport community remains indebted to his hard work and dedication to the sport.

Written by Andrew Lamont