Racing couple par excellence

By Nicole Williams
THE Evans name may not be a household name, but if you follow motorsport, it would not be the first time you have heard of Sue and Simon.
The Nar Nar Goon couple is one of the most successful rally crews in Australia.
But they were not always the power couple they are today.
Venturing into the sport in 1991, both as drivers, Sue crashed her Datsun in the first event and decided to support Simon from the sidelines.
“I crashed into everything,” Sue said.
Seven years later she became Simon’s co-driver, but it was a worrying start as Sue was unable to speak for the first four stages of her first event.
“I was totally useless,” she said.
“It was very daunting and I didn’t expect him to go as fast as he did. I worked it out eventually.”
Despite their slow beginnings, the husband and wife team soon hit their stride.
“You almost start to pre-empt what the other one is going to do,” Sue said.
As a couple, they have won four Australian rally championships and have been placed in many others.
Sue was also the first woman to be awarded the Australian Motorsport Personality of the Year in 2007.
Last weekend, the couple competed in the final round of the Australian Rally Championship for 2010 on home soil in Warragul.
Motorsport was a common interest for Sue and Simon, who met as teenagers at Pakenham Secondary College.
Sue’s father raced speedway and Simon’s father was also into rally driving.
But the family tradition doesn’t end there.
Simon’s brother, Eli, is involved in motorsport and their son, Jackson, also races.