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(Sydney, NSW) Recently acquired fulltime appointee Tony Beuk has already made grand strides in the on-going development of Western Sydney International Dragway, with the Managing Director able to conjure up substantial media hype in relation to the ills of illegal street racing and WSID's timely conception as a safe alternative and a serious venue for the legitimate sport of Drag Racing. Stay tuned for more info on THAT soon. In the meantime, some people have asked who IS Tony Beuk and we thought it was time to let you know!
Tony Beuk is a Western Sydney man through and through, being born at Austral, near Liverpool in 1964.
"I Attended Austral Public, Liverpool Patrician Brothers, Fairfield Patrician Brothers as a kid, but I have to say I didn't particularly like school. Preferred soccer, rugby, surfing, skiing and going to Castlereagh," grinned Beuk on his scholastic reflections.
The first stint at uni Beuk majored in Applied Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics, trained with "Mad" Max Aspin as a stuntman, developed a theoretical paper on building a light sabre (use the force Tony!) and the future of walking machines, as well as help build a mates 45 DCOE Weber carbie 1380 offset bored Mini Cooper S.
So as you can see, Tony has had the eclectic mix of inventor, nerd, stuntman and rev-head!
.and what did Tony funnel those acquired skills into?
"My first job was on the family's poultry farm and my first paid job was as a Statistician doing market research, which then evolved into a computing role as most of the number crunching was not about writing on a blackboard, it was about theorising possible results."
At the revolution of the computing industry, it was time for Beuk to re-educate into a Computer Systems Engineer Degree. Such studies Beuk felt were so out of touch with reality and achieved Honors only to prove that education does have a point to it all. In between, Tony further diversified if you can believe it and helped rewire a few nightclubs, escorted people out of clubs as security, followed people as a licensed Private Investigator and tried to work out whether flying helicopters was as easy as it looked and I guess the fact he's alive today - it cant be that hard!
"I then Joined the Australian Labor Party, with the view that if you have any chance of making any difference, get involved or stop whining. I really never wanted to be a public person but ended up being just that!"
Entering a turbulent political career at Liverpool Council, detail to which is a novel itself, Tony Beuk faced the torch fire of public office when investigation after investigation took a significant personal toll. It didn't matter that the farcical investigations produced nothing, they simply muddied the waters. It was difficult not to be angry for Tony.
In January of 1997, a Junior Dragster friend - Joe Princi from J & C Mowers - asked if Tony Beuk would help Jim Read to get Championship Drag Racing back at Eastern Creek. Before knocking on Jim's door at Merrylands he had heard all the stories since Castlereagh, but he went in with eyes wide open and the stories in his wake.
"I reckon when Jim first met me, he probably thought who the hell is this bloke, probably worse!"
He kicked in as many doors as he could awakening the Government to the sport of drag racing. It was a tough ride to get the Dragway on the Government radar. It was not just one individual that made this Dragway happen, but with his ability to meander through the politics, and the unbelievable tenacity of Jim, that rollercoaster ride ended with the world-class Western Sydney International Dragway being built.
Some will say he is too connected to Jim Read - guilt by association so to speak. What he has to say is that like all of us we have different ways of doing things.
But in saying this, he worked out why Jim Read was so successful as Australia's Top Fuel champion not just once but many times over.
"He can be as loud as a Top Fuel, make one run without hurting the engine, make another pass exploding down the quarter, but always return to the ring for the next challenge. If passion brings madness, then he may just be mad. Either way he is a man I respect."
So where do we go from here Tony at WSID?
"As MD the focus will be on managing the operational challenges of Western Sydney International Dragway, continuing a program of facility improvements and upgrades, the greatest challenge is to make Drag Racing the number one motor sport by 2010."
Now that is both a bold and exciting statement in equal measure.
"An advocate of national structural reform, improved management, greater communication, sponsorship development, promotions and PR and participation, Drag Racing delivers a powerful product as the only true stadium motor sport. You have not seen lightning unless you have felt the thunder of drag racing."
Western Sydney International Dragway it needs to be remembered is only 3-years old. However its core products are developing well and the extensive spectator surveys show incredibly high satisfaction levels with the events staged at the venue so far.
With the addition of someone like Tony Beuk in an active role on a full-time basis, the further development of WSID can only be positive!
Who Is Tony Beuk? Only He Knows But We Can Tell You What He's Been Up To!
(Sydney, NSW) Recently acquired fulltime appointee Tony Beuk has already made grand strides in the on-going development of Western Sydney International Dragway, with the Managing Director able to conjure up substantial media hype in relation to the ills of illegal street racing and WSID's timely conception as a safe alternative and a serious venue for the legitimate sport of Drag Racing. Stay tuned for more info on THAT soon. In the meantime, some people have asked who IS Tony Beuk and we thought it was time to let you know!
Tony Beuk is a Western Sydney man through and through, being born at Austral, near Liverpool in 1964.
"I Attended Austral Public, Liverpool Patrician Brothers, Fairfield Patrician Brothers as a kid, but I have to say I didn't particularly like school. Preferred soccer, rugby, surfing, skiing and going to Castlereagh," grinned Beuk on his scholastic reflections.
The first stint at uni Beuk majored in Applied Mathematics and Mathematical Statistics, trained with "Mad" Max Aspin as a stuntman, developed a theoretical paper on building a light sabre (use the force Tony!) and the future of walking machines, as well as help build a mates 45 DCOE Weber carbie 1380 offset bored Mini Cooper S.
So as you can see, Tony has had the eclectic mix of inventor, nerd, stuntman and rev-head!
.and what did Tony funnel those acquired skills into?
"My first job was on the family's poultry farm and my first paid job was as a Statistician doing market research, which then evolved into a computing role as most of the number crunching was not about writing on a blackboard, it was about theorising possible results."
At the revolution of the computing industry, it was time for Beuk to re-educate into a Computer Systems Engineer Degree. Such studies Beuk felt were so out of touch with reality and achieved Honors only to prove that education does have a point to it all. In between, Tony further diversified if you can believe it and helped rewire a few nightclubs, escorted people out of clubs as security, followed people as a licensed Private Investigator and tried to work out whether flying helicopters was as easy as it looked and I guess the fact he's alive today - it cant be that hard!
"I then Joined the Australian Labor Party, with the view that if you have any chance of making any difference, get involved or stop whining. I really never wanted to be a public person but ended up being just that!"
Entering a turbulent political career at Liverpool Council, detail to which is a novel itself, Tony Beuk faced the torch fire of public office when investigation after investigation took a significant personal toll. It didn't matter that the farcical investigations produced nothing, they simply muddied the waters. It was difficult not to be angry for Tony.
In January of 1997, a Junior Dragster friend - Joe Princi from J & C Mowers - asked if Tony Beuk would help Jim Read to get Championship Drag Racing back at Eastern Creek. Before knocking on Jim's door at Merrylands he had heard all the stories since Castlereagh, but he went in with eyes wide open and the stories in his wake.
"I reckon when Jim first met me, he probably thought who the hell is this bloke, probably worse!"
He kicked in as many doors as he could awakening the Government to the sport of drag racing. It was a tough ride to get the Dragway on the Government radar. It was not just one individual that made this Dragway happen, but with his ability to meander through the politics, and the unbelievable tenacity of Jim, that rollercoaster ride ended with the world-class Western Sydney International Dragway being built.
Some will say he is too connected to Jim Read - guilt by association so to speak. What he has to say is that like all of us we have different ways of doing things.
But in saying this, he worked out why Jim Read was so successful as Australia's Top Fuel champion not just once but many times over.
"He can be as loud as a Top Fuel, make one run without hurting the engine, make another pass exploding down the quarter, but always return to the ring for the next challenge. If passion brings madness, then he may just be mad. Either way he is a man I respect."
So where do we go from here Tony at WSID?
"As MD the focus will be on managing the operational challenges of Western Sydney International Dragway, continuing a program of facility improvements and upgrades, the greatest challenge is to make Drag Racing the number one motor sport by 2010."
Now that is both a bold and exciting statement in equal measure.
"An advocate of national structural reform, improved management, greater communication, sponsorship development, promotions and PR and participation, Drag Racing delivers a powerful product as the only true stadium motor sport. You have not seen lightning unless you have felt the thunder of drag racing."
Western Sydney International Dragway it needs to be remembered is only 3-years old. However its core products are developing well and the extensive spectator surveys show incredibly high satisfaction levels with the events staged at the venue so far.
With the addition of someone like Tony Beuk in an active role on a full-time basis, the further development of WSID can only be positive!
