Friday in Melbourne Australia the Australian motor industry fare welled one of its genuine all-rounders when hundreds of mourners turned out for the funeral of Adrian. Mr Ryan, 77, who died after a short battle with cancer, had a career spanning more than four decades in the industry, most notably with Ford Australia, the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce (VACC) and Repco.
Mr Ryan added his public relations pizzazz and writing skills to numerous motoring events, from major Ford car launches to the 1979 Repco Around Australia Rally and the Melbourne International Motor Show.
His enthusiasm for motor racing was probably only exceeded by his love for all things Ford, starting with his beloved restored red Ford Mustang convertible and 1965 Falcon Squire ‘woodie’ wagon – one of fewer than 100 ever made.
When he wasn’t working at his various day jobs in the motor industry, he was immersed in numerous other motoring activities, including writing for Racing Car News and many other publications in Australia and overseas, broadcasting weekly motoring programs on Radio Bay FM (Geelong) and 3SR (Shepparton) and getting involved at various car club and historic car events.
For many years, Mr Ryan was the voice of motorsport at Victorian race circuits, providing knowledgeable trackside commentary for race fans at Sandown, Calder, Phillip Island and Winton, as well as Bathurst. He even lent his talents behind the microphone to TV broadcasters at various networks over the years.
In the 1950s, he ventured on to the other side of the safety fence to race, forming a race team, Ecuri Shepparton, with racing driver Bryan Thompson, who went on to become one of the stars of Australian motor sport from the 1960s to the 1980s.
At Bathurst in the 1960s, a Ford Cortina driven by Mr Ryan crashed over the old wooden fence on top of Mount Panorama – an event that helped to convince him that he might be better suited to the commentary box.
His work career included a couple of stints at the VACC, first as advertising and PR director from 1973 to 1978 – a job that included editing the VACC Journal – and more recently as a consultant publicist for the Melbourne International Motor Show through his Park Road Media agency, from 1996 to 2004.
Source: http://goauto.com.au/mellor/mellor.nsf/story2/B7AE3EA2C999E846CA25765B00829BC3
1 Comment | Add your own
..]other nice source of information on this issueis ,cars.blogs.ozfreeonline.com,..]
Post a Comment