Motorsport: For the Johnson boys, Mt Panorama has become a family affair

BATHURST: Steven Johnson was never allowed to go to Bathurst as a child.

Instead, it was from the family living room on television he watched his father Dick build his Bathurst 1000 legend. Tomorrow, Dick will watch son Steven - a driver for the Ford team his father helped create - attempt to follow in his footsteps and win Australia's greatest motor race.

"I wasn't allowed here as a kid and I understand that now as a parent myself," said Steven, who will drive with James Courtney as one of the leading chances in tomorrow's race.

"It's very hard to come here and do your job. You've got to have 100 per cent commitment and concentration.

"Obviously I always wanted to come but I didn't get a guernsey until 1992. I was 17 - working here with the guys in dad's team - and my first race [drive] was in '94."

These days father and son make up for lost time. They have a ritual - driving to Mt Panorama together from their Queensland base for the race every year.

It's a chance to spend quality time together. They talk about life, talk about family, talk about cars, not so much about the race ahead, and catch up one-on-one amid a hectic V8 Supercar lifestyle which still keeps both extremely busy.

If Peter Brock was the king of the mountain, Dick Johnson was its clown prince - a three-time Bathurst winner universally loved and famed for his brilliant one-liners in both victory and defeat.

Johnson's laconic wit resonated with the battler, giving Australia gems such as when his team had spent the night rebuilding a car written off on Saturday ahead of the Sunday's race.

"We'll be using the warm-up lap to dry the paint," Johnson said.

But it was in his most anguished moment that he provided one of Bathurst's most memorable. Johnson's privately-funded Falcon hit a rock on the track in 1980 while leading the race. Shattered and broke, his emotional outpouring led to an impromptu wave of financial support from the public.

The next year, he teamed with co-driver John French to win the race - arguably the most popular victory in Bathurst 1000 history.

For Johnson, the mystery of how the rock got on to the track - variously claimed to have been deliberately rolled by Holden fans or accidentally finding its way there - was solved for good 18 months ago.

It followed an email and subsequent long conversations with a couple who used to live at Mt Panorama.

They claimed they had witnessed two drunk spectators skylarking, and one accidentally dislodged the rock so it rolled on to the track.

Steven's best result at Bathurst is a third place in 2007, among numerous top 10 finishes. With he and co-driver Courtney enjoying outstanding V8 seasons, it's arguable they have their best chance tomorrow.

- AAP