Andrew Cowan

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For other people, see Andrew Cowan (disambiguation).

Andrew Cowan
RAC Rally

Andrew Cowan (13 December 1936 – 15 October 2019) was a Scottish

Mitsubishi Ralliart
until his retirement on 30 November 2005.

Early years

Cowan was raised in Duns, a small town in the Scottish Borders, where he established a longstanding close friendship with future Formula One world champion Jim Clark, also a young farmer and the same age as himself. According to Cowan their lifestyles were a great help in their subsequent careers: "We each had to have a car. We were able to drive in fields, off road, and of course through all the twisty roads around here where there was practically no traffic in those days. That definitely refined our driving skills. We had advantages that other drivers didn't."[1]

Both men were active in the

RAC Rally, eventually finishing 43rd of over 200 starters in a Sunbeam Rapier. Impressed by his success, his father bought him a newer, more powerful Rapier as a replacement, and behind the wheel of his new vehicle, he won the 1962 Scottish Rally, an achievement he later declared to be his "Most Important Moment". He returned the following year to successfully defend his title,[2] and as a result the Rootes Group invited him to become their 'works' driver.[1][3]

Behind the wheel

Hillman Hunter to victory in the 1968 London–Sydney Marathon

Once established as a professional driver, Cowan had many notable successes with both Rootes and subsequently

Paris-Dakar Rally where his best result was second overall in 1985.[5] He retired as a driver in 1990.[1]

For his achievements in 1977, he was awarded the British Guild of Motoring Writers' Driver of the Year Award, the Jim Clark Memorial Trophy for "outstanding achievement by a Scottish driver", and the British Racing Drivers' Club's John Cobb Trophy for a British driver of outstanding success.

Behind a desk

In 1983,

1998
.

In 2003, Mitsubishi Motors officially took over the business and renamed it Mitsubishi Motorsport, although Cowan remained as "Sporting Advisor" for the next two years until his retirement aged 69.[6]

In September 2008, Cowan took part in the Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally, a round of the Scottish Rally Championship. He was one of a number of former rally drivers to take part in the event in memory of McRae, who died in 2007.

Death

Beset by poor health in his later years, Cowan died in Borders General Hospital in Melrose on 15 October 2019, succumbing to illness after initially being admitted for a fall where he fractured his hip.[7][8][9]

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d "Borders farmer who cultivated speed, honour and Mitsubishi", Rick Wilson, The Scotsman, 23 December 2005
  2. ^ RSAC Scottish Rally – Previous winners Archived May 1, 2006, at the Wayback Machine, ScottishRally.co.uk
  3. ^ "Andrew Cowan", The Imp Site
  4. ^ Pictorial account of the 1968 London – Sydney Marathon, Bill Kneipp
  5. ^ Profile and international competitive record of Andrew Cowan Archived January 4, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, RallyBase.nl
  6. ^ "Mitsubishi Motors Takes Over Andrew Cowan Motorsports", Carpages.co.uk, 6 April 2003
  7. ^ "Obituary: Andrew Cowan". wrc.com. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  8. ^ "Vale: Andrew Cowan, 1936-2019". 17 October 2019.
  9. ^ "Obituary: Andrew Cowan, Scottish rally driver who won the London-Sydney Marathon twice". 17 October 2019.
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