John Bowe is arguably one of Tasmania’s most famous motor racing sons.

Bowe has won four Australian championships and Australia’s Great Race - The Bathurst 1000 (twice) in a career spanning more than 25 years on the track. Starting as a 17 year-old in his father’s race car, Bowe captured the Tasmanian Formula Vee Championship in only his first year before progressing to greater heights and successes. In the years that followed he tried his hand at Formula Two and Formula Ford, making his big break interstate in 1979, in Formula 5000 ranks. After several years competing prominently in national and international competition he went on to finish second in the Australian Drivers Championship in 1982 and 1983, taking out the title in 1984 and 1985 by winning every race of the season both times. In 1986 he moved to sports cars and won every race of the season again to take out the Australian championship in yet another class, setting numerous lap records around the country, many of which still stand. That same year he joined Team Volvo Australia (touring cars), and the following year saw him second in the sports car championship again, as well as teaming up with Glenn Seton at Bathurst in the Peter Jackson Nissan Team. The following year (1988) Bowe took on touring car racing full-time when he was signed by the high-profile Shell Ultra Racing Team to partner colourful Queenslander Dick Johnson. Bowe went on to finish second in the Australian touring car championship behind Johnson and later that year partnered his team leader to a second place at Bathurst. He repeated his touring car runner-up effort to Johnson in 1989 and then went on to achieve arguably the greatest result of his motor racing career when he and Johnson won Bathurst after leading the race for every lap. Bowe and Johnson capped off a memorable year by winning the Pukehoe 500 in New Zealand. The same year Bowe was named Caltex Mercury Tasmanian Sports Star of the Year and 1989 Tas-TV Tasmanian Sportsman of the Year. In 1990, Bowe continued his competition in the national limelight, finishing fifth in a tough touring car championship, and partnering Dick Johnson to third place in the Wellington 500 in New Zealand. Bowe continued to be a leading star of Australian touring car racing, teaming up with Johnson to win the 1994 Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000 in the same year. Later that year Bowe was named Australian Motor Sportsman of the Year and circuit racing driver of the year. In 1995 he realised a lifetime dream when he won his first Australian touring car championship, and finished second in 1996 defending his title. Bowe has also won numerous touring car rounds and support events on major international programmes such as Grands Prix.