Tribute to a Hero – Possum Bourne (1956-2003)
He was patriotic, loyal, and always flew the flag proudly for New Zealand. But Possum was so much more than a legend on gravel. He was a family man, a team owner, a successful business owner and a real through-and-through and down to earth Kiwi bloke!
His fun-filled spirit, genuine persona and unforgettable smile touched New Zealanders, his fine-tuned skills behind the wheel and competitive nature made him the man to beat in every event he entered.
Peter becomes Possum
It all started for Possum when he was born Peter Raymond George Bourne on April 14, 1953. He was brought up in north Waikato during his early childhood, before his family moved to the rural town of Pukekohe, just south of Auckland, a place he and his own family have called home ever since.
He was only 12 years old when his fascination with automobiles finally put him behind the wheel of a car – even if it was his dad’s, and his drive time was limited to negotiating it in and out of the garage to give it a wash! One would imagine, then, that the car stayed very, very clean.
On completion of his years at Pukehohe High, Peter found work as an apprentice motor mechanic at the local Austin dealership. Part of his apprenticeship meant attending night classes, and to do so his mother bought him a car to get to and from.
One evening after his class, he got to the top of his family’s gravel driveway when a possum ran out in front of him. He swerved to avoid the critter and hit a bank, which rolled and subsequently totalled the car. Peter was unhurt in the accident, his mum was less than impressed, and his mates loved it! They nicknamed him ‘Possum’, and from that day forward the name stuck.
A Natural Talent
Seeing a World Rally Championship event on television in the early 70s, and a Rally of New Zealand event first-hand a few years later, Possum became infatuated with the sport. An Vatanen and Walter Roerhl became idols of the young Possum Bourne, and through work acquaintances he soon found himself taking part in events and working on service crews through his new-found membership in the Pukekohe Car Club.
Possum entered his first event (the Woodhill Forest Rally) in 1979 in his self-built Rover V8-powered Mk1 Ford Cortina. He placed third overall after being seeded 61st to command immediate attention from fellow competitors and spectators alike.
With the help of the car club, Possum then entered his first Rally of New Zealand events in 1981 and again in 1982, in a Mazda. An ex-Rod Millen Mazda RX-3 was the next car which came into Possum’s hands, and he rallied that until his rallying exploits saw him helped into a brand new Subaru RX Coupe in 1983. From that day, Possum’s loyalty to the Subaru brand would stretch two decades.
The Subaru story
Subaru’s New Zealand distributor would use the 1983 Rally New Zealand as a test-bed for the new car and its new-found driver. When Possum won the Group A class there was little need for consultation – the rally project would continue.
The following year Subaru Japan added some factory c support to the challenge, and again Possum rose to the occasion with another first place in Rally New Zealand’s hotly contested Group A class: ‘85 was a similar story, and there was no stopping the now 29-year-old from Pukekohe. In 1986/7 Possum got his first overseas drive – it was in Africa, on the Kenyan round of the World Rally Championship.
Possum finished the gruelling Safari Rally, and by the end of the event placed 11th overall. The next year became a turning point in his now rapidly accelerating rally career, and increased backing from Subaru in Japan and New Zealand meant more drives for the Kiwi talent.
He placed ninth overall on the Kenyan WRC event, took fourth in the Malaysian round, and second in Australia for the Asia Pacific Rally Championship. 1989 would bring more success for Possum, and he was duly rewarded for his efforts with good finishes in the African and Australian rounds of the WRC, and a win of the local Ashley Forest Rallysprint.
The face of Subaru changed in 1990, and Possum was there to help the Japanese car manufacturer launch the Subaru Legacy. The full-time 4WD sedans, with high-powered 2.0-litre flat-four turbocharged engines, gained instant rally notoriety worldwide and helped Possum and co-driver Rodger Freeth take the ‘91 New Zealand Rally Championship and ‘92 Australian Group A Championship.
A factory drive
Perhaps Possum’s most memorable rallying moment came in 1993, when he joined the factory 555 Subaru World Rally Team run by Prodrive. He contested the Asia Pacific Rally Championship that year and won outright, but success was marred by tragedy when co-driver and long time friend Rodger Freeth died in a high-speed accident during the Australian Rally.
Possum bounced back; he had turned to Rodger for inspiration on special stage start lines, and from that day forth as a sign of utmost respect he made sure the plate ‘ROJ’ would always grace his rally car.
The world-conquering Impreza WRX made its first rally appearance in 1994 and Possum, now teamed with new co-driver Tony Sircombe, took out the Asia Pacific title for the second year running, a highlight being victory at the Hong Kong/Beijing Rally.
The next year had its up and down for Possum, and come the end of the season his 555 drive had faded.
The Aussie attack
In ‘96 Subaru Australia and Pirelli helped him to run his own team in the Australian Rally Championship, in which he was joined by Craig Vincent as co-driver. Possum and Craig won the
1996 Australian Rally Championship title and this was the start of a long line of back-to-back wins which would see him become the most successful rally driver in the Australian Championship.
1997 was more of the same, with the second ARC title in a row for Craig, and likewise for 1998 – that was three in an row! The following year also marked the inaugural running of the Queenstown Gold Rush Hillclimb event (today called The Race To The Sky) something Possum took an instant liking to. He finished third overall in that event alongside Pikes Peak superstars ‘Monster’ Tajima from Japan, and ex-pat Kiwi now residing in the USA, Rod Millen.
1999 came and went, with Possum staying on top of the ARC and bagging another, making it four! The next year was a busy one, with 11 events calendared for the year, and Possum looked forward to attacking the Asia Pacific Championship that he had not contested since his last year with the 555 team in ‘94.
Backed by Subaru on both sides of the Tasman, his older Group A machine was used for those events while his newest acquisition to the fleet, a WRC98 Impreza, was used for ARC rounds and Rally New Zealand. Possum scored outright wins in both championships, putting him back in the APRC scene and taking his ARC win tally to five.
Things got quicker in 2001 when Possum took hold of the state-of-the-art ex-Prodrive Subaru Impreza WRC 2000 which had taken Juha Kankunen to fifth overall in the British RAC rally just a few months earlier.
That car was used to contest the Australian Rally Championship with Grant Vincent, while a ‘new age’ Impreza in Group A trim satisfied Possum and new co-driver Mark Stacey in the Asia Pacific Championship. Possum left the competition in his dust during the Australian rounds, and by season end had convincingly bagged his sixth trans-Tasman title.
The year also saw Possum’s first win at the Silverstone Race to the Sky, after he ousted Japan’s ‘Monster’Tajima from his throne with a lightning quick eight minute, 37-second climb to the top of the mountain in a unrestricted WRC98 Impreza.
In 2002 Subaru Australia supplied Possum (now a six-time consecutive winner of the Australian Rally Championship) with a Group N specced car in an effort to close the gap in the championship that Possum had dominated in his Group A machines. Against the obvious odds he pulled one out of the bag, taking the ‘02 Aussie Championship (his seventh now!) and an overall win in the Japanese round of the Asia Pacific series.
A chance at a WRC Championship
After the seven straight victories in Australia, in December 2002 Subaru Japan rewarded Possum with the opportunity of a factory-backed drive in six of the seven legs of the 2003 World Production Car Rally Championship. It was something he had always dreamt of doing, and he had a very good chance of winning! Possum went into the season with co-driver Mark Stacey and an all-new Group N Subaru Impreza STI.
His crack at the World Production Car Rally Championship started in February, and he took the dedicated team to the frozen lakes and snow-laced roads of Sweden where he finished fourth in class, after being seeded ninth. The fact this was the first time Possum had encountered these white-out conditions shows the extent of the man’s talents, and his ability to adapt to conditions while driving no less than ten-tenths.
The next calendared World Championship event meant a lot to Possum. It was his home event, but luck was against the team on Rally New Zealand in early April, and Possum and Stace retired early on day one with mechanical problems. The event would become Possum’s final: his favourite event of them all, The Race To The Sky in Queenstown’s Cardrona Valley, would follow just two weeks later.
Possum remembered
New Zealanders, Australians and rally enthusiasts around the world mourned Possum’s death on April 30, 2003, with over 3000 people packing out the Pukekohe Indian Association Hall for his final prize giving. Just days before his death his Subaru team-mates Cody and Greg, Dean and Glen had emblazoned their cars with ‘Doing it for Possum’ signage on the Rally of Canberra, a race Possum was to have entered after.the Cardrona Valley event.
With a first and third placing for the Subaru team, they did him proud. The World Rally Championship’s leading drivers also paid tribute to a legend, stopping for a minute’s silence prior to the start of Rally Argentina. As a further sign of respect Subaru’s leading drivers, Petter Solberg and Tommi Makinen not only carried ‘Possum Bourne Motorsport‘ signage on their vehicles, they both donned black arm bands in remembrance of a true legend and a great ambassador of the sport.
A star, for a star
Since 1979, over one million stars have been named through the International Star Registry to honour individuals and reward excellence. It was a fitting gesture, then, that Possum’s Subaru team-mates Stace, Cody and Greg, and Dean and Glenn along with their partners, registered a star for our fallen hero.
Possum can be located under Aries, RA2h30m48,22s D12 degrees 394.5.1″ Magnitude 12.4. A visit to your local observatory or planetarium with those co-ordinates will help you locate his star. Possum is survived by his mother Peggy senior, his wife Peggy junior, children Taylor, Spencer and Jazlin, and a wonderful family.
He will be remembered not only for his world-class talents behind the wheel, but even more for the fact that he was one of the nicest guys you could ever have the pleasure of meeting. His down-to-earth nature and uplifting personality will never be forgotten.
Possum Bourne Family Education Trust
An Education Trust has been set up for Possum’s children TaylorSpencer and Jazlin, and contributions can be made to BankojpNew Zealand. King Stree Pukekohe. A C 02-0404-0004809-30, or through any branch .of the Bants of New Zealand nationwide. For any Australian readers wishin make donations in Australia, you can dcv so through any Westpac Bar A/C: Possum Bourne Family Education Trust, BSB number: £32349. account number: 203886.
Source: Performance Car