Remembering Jim Morton


by Mark Wicks 21 December 2014
   
 

Jim Morton's passing a few days ago has led to some wonderful memories of the man being published in professional circles as well as on social media.

I'd heard of Jim Morton well before I met him. He was a well known NSW karter when I started in the sport and he wrote about karting in the motorsport press. He was instrumental in organising the famous Castrol Kart Grands Prix that were televised from Oran Park and featured big-name international drivers. He almost got Ayrton Senna to compete in the 1985 race.

My first dealings with Jim were when Jason Bright and myself became the first Victorians to be part of Morton's DAP team in 1991. Neither of us wore the DAP red & yellow for much more than a year as we both chased our dreams and moved out of karts and into car racing.

Years later, when Jim was running the local Tony Kart operation and I was Editor at Large at KartOz Magazine, I conducted an interview with him for the mag's monthly KO'd column.

Normally, this was just a one page deal. But for Jim, he got two.

I've scanned that old KartOz article (issue #44, October 2000) in the links below. Read Jim's thoughts about karting topics of the time, how he got involved in the sport, 'talent spotting' for team drivers, and much more - including why Italian opera was played loudly in the pits on race morning...

While racing was a passion, Morton was also an astute businessman and built the incredibly successful Decina Bathroomware firm, which grew to be the largest bath manufacturing company in Australia.

“Made over one and a half million bath tubs over the years. Pretty proud of that I have to tell you” he wrote on Facebook just two weeks before his passing. “Even became a strong exporter into Asia in a time when almost all our competitors abandoned local manufacturing and went to China."

I hadn't spoken with Jim for a couple of years, but I sense he was at peace with his place in the world as he then added “Life has been pretty kind to us. You just need to dream big and believe.”


Above: Jim Morton with a bunch of his former racers, all competing in V8s in 2006 (clockwise from bottom left - Mark Winterbottom, Warren Luff, Alan Gurr, James Courtney, Jason Bright and Michael Caruso)
pic - speedcafe

Some further reading about Jim:

Jim's funeral will be at the Sunshine Beach Anglican Church, Bicentennial Drive, Sunshine Beach at noon on Tuesday December 23, followed by a wake where Jim has given specific instruction that it is to be a happy wake "with lots of Coronas".

Unfortunately, I wont make it to Sunshine Beach. But I will certainly enjoy a #Coronaforjim

 

Home



kartsportnews promo banner