Motoring World Mourns One Of Its Finest
Sydney Morning Herald
Sunday September 19, 1993
Rodger Vincent Freeth, killed in a high-speed crash on Saturday, is the second prominent New Zealander to die competing in a motor sporting event in Australia during the past 12 months.
The tragedy, on the opening day of Rally Australia near Perth, follows the sudden death of former world Formula One champion Denny Hulme, who suffered a heart attack at the wheel during the 1992 Tooheys 1000 at Bathurst.
By any measure, Freeth, born on December 24, 1953, was a remarkable figure in Australasian motor sport, somewhat unusually combining academia and speed, and making a success of both.
The doctor of astrophysics, 39, who died partnering fellow-Kiwi Possum Bourne, was New Zealand's most versatile motor sporting competitor.
The close-knit international rally community is reeling from his death, the first in a world championship event since driver Henri Toivonen was killed in 1986.
Freeth started motorcycle racing while at university, and on two wheels went on to win 14 NZ championships and two Arai 500 endurance races at Bathurst.
Fascinated by rallying, but conceding he was not comfortable driving on dirt surfaces, he quickly became one of the best co-drivers or navigators in international rallying.
He linked up with Peter "Possum" Bourne in 1987, the two men developing into one of the best combinations in rallying in the South Pacific. Firm friends, they raced together as far afield as Britain and throughout Asia.
Freeth's blend of meticulous preparation and steely nerves made him an ideal rally co-driver, often urging Bourne to go faster if he believed his mate was taking things too easy.
Concurrent with his rally commitments, Freeth took up racing powerful sports sedans, another branch of motor sport which brought him national success.
Two years ago, Dr Freeth gave up his position as a lecturer at Auckland University to concentrate on motor sport full-time.
When Bourne moved to Australia last season, Freeth joined him in Subaru's Australian rally championship campaign.
At the time of Freeth's death, he and Bourne were leading both the Asia-Pacific and Australian championship.
In February this year, Freeth set a new NZ land-speed record of 312 km/h, driving an IndyCar along a narrow and bumpy tree-lined country road. It was his way of filling in a free weekend.
© 1993 Sydney Morning Herald