Brian Ferrabee is an adrenaline junkie and self-confessed racing car addict.
He was just eight years old when he experienced the thrill of his first grand prix in 1955 in Ardmore, New Zealand.
“I was absolutely besotted. The racing cars were the most beautiful things I had ever seen. I remember very clearly how beautiful they were,” he recalled.
“The early race cars are still the most beautiful things I have seen.
“My father was a racer, so I was condemned from the outset to be poor all my life. He was complaining about the cost then in the 1950s and we are still complaining about the cost today. Nothing changes.”
Brian has since spent over 40 years on the amateur racing circuit, racing in numerous categories but mostly production sports cars.
This involves taking a car you’d buy off the showroom floor and modifying it to make it into a race car.
“It is pretty much a full-time job when you are racing full time,” he said.
His favourite car is his Mazda MX5 which has taken him to many victories, including holding the Mt Cotton hill climb class record for ten years.
Another one of his big wins was the 2007 Cue Enduro National Championship.
“It’s the most fun you can have with your pants on. It’s all encompassing and addictive” he said of his passion.
“I set a lap record when I was 72. You can’t give it up. The adrenaline rush you get when you are side by side with someone at a couple of hundred miles an hour is incredible. The only thing you can concentrate on is keeping yourself on the track and making sure you avoid other cars and they avoid you.
“It’s a real community. It’s also an extremely good way of keeping fit in your advancing years.”
Sadly, Brian put his racing helmet away five years ago. “I’m too old,” he said. “I’m going to be 80 in six months’ time.”
But the lure of the racetrack and smell of burning rubber remains strong and today he is a regular race commentator, particularly enjoying the historic car races.
“I’m old enough now that I’ve experienced a lot of these cars firsthand before they were historic,” he laughed.
Brian began his working career as a nurse before moving to the pharmacology industry and importing medical products.
In his 50s he retired and began studying and investing in the stock market.
“There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t look at the stock market,” he said.
“It’s an intellectual challenge and a bit like motorsports; you can’t make up the results – you either made money or didn’t.”
Originally from Hamilton, New Zealand, he moved to Australia in 1977.
In 1982 he and Marilyn Campbell met and moved to New Farm.
Brian had never lived in a city and Marilyn had never lived in the country so he suggested they try country living for 13 years and after that time she could have the option to move back to the city.
They spent the 13 years living on acreage in Yatala and Marilyn converted to the country lifestyle, developing a passion for her garden.
In 2021 they found a land on Tamborine Mountain and spent two years living in a caravan while their house was built.
“We endured the tornado while in the caravan, which was a bit exciting” Brian recalled.
Brian said Tamborine Mountain was a good compromise at a time when he was feeling homesick for New Zealand.
“It’s perfect. We think we are living in paradise. The soil is much better here for gardening and the climate is cooler,” he said.
“We felt the local community was very active and progressive. It’s a small enough population that you feel part of a small community, which you simply don’t get in the city.
While Marilyn enjoys growing many of their vegetables, Brian confines himself to the cooking and eating of them.
“I know my areas of competency and that’s not one,” he laughed.
“I do all the cooking and food preparation and shopping.
“I have a lot of friends on the mountain, and we entertain a lot and enjoy going out to the lovely restaurants.
“I keep myself amused with the markets and still have an active motorsport life. I’m on the Motorsport Australia State Council and have written a report on the situation on amateur motorsport in Australia.”
