Peter Brock was a larger-than-life motor racing champion who conquered Australia’s greatest race and toughest track on nine occasions.

He was loved by men and women, young and old.

He was adored by thousands of Australians who had never watched a race and introduced thousands more to the sport for the first time.

He was the headline act during a golden era for Australian motor sport and he inspired a new generation to follow in his footsteps.

Australian motor sport – and sport in general – might not see his like again.

But it was Brock’s tireless promotion of Bathurst and Mount Panorama that is his greatest legacy in our region.

It was during Brock’s reign that the Bathurst 1000 grew from a race for the diehards into one of the genuine events on the Australian sporting calendar – rivalling the Melbourne Cup, NRL and AFL grand finals and Boxing Day at the MCG.

And every chance he got, Brock spoke of his love for Bathurst and his love for the Mount.

He was a marketing machine and he always wanted to see the Bathurst 1000 revered on the national level.

He had time for his fans and he knew that racing drivers had an important role to play in building their sport’s appeal.

That legacy is still seen in today’s drivers who, as a group, remain the most articulate and most approachable of all Australia’s sporting stars.

The whole of Australia was shocked and saddened by Brock’s death but here in Bathurst we felt we had lost one of our own.

Record crowds descended on Mount Panorama just a month after his death for the 2006 Bathurst 1000 and a bumper crowd is expected again this year to mark 10 years since his passing.

Even in death, Peter Brock continues to deliver for our region.

The Bathurst 1000 winners’ trophy now bears his name and an iconic statue depicting Brock atop one of his Commodores stands at the entrance to the National Motor Racing Museum.

His name has always been associated with Bathurst and always will be.

Gone, but not forgotten.