It has broken many hearts but is still the event the V8 Supercars faithful loves the most.

What makes the Bathurst 1000 so special?

Judging by crowd numbers, Mount Panorama is Australia’s most adored 6.231km section of public road.

A record 200,000-plus fans over four days are expected to make the annual pilgrimage to witness traditional rivals Holden and Ford thwart the return threat of Mercedes and Nissan in the Great Race.

And V8 Supercars CEO James Warburton expects hundreds of millions around the world to tune in.

But perhaps the best guide to the Bathurst 1000’s appeal comes from the ones who have walked away from the mountain devastated, only to yearn to return.

For all the Peter Brocks, Marks Skaifes and Jamie Whincups, there are the hard luck stories.

One of the more memorable is Glen Seton’s tale.

The stars appeared to have aligned for Seton to finally break through for his maiden Bathurst win in 1995.

It was 30 years after his father Bo had triumphed on the mountain, Seton had just turned 30 and his car No.30 was leading with nine laps left.

Then his engine blew.

Seton is not sure how long it took him to recover from the heartbreak but he kept coming back for more.

He never cracked it, finishing second twice and third once before walking away.

The mere mention of Bathurst should by rights send Seton into a foetal position but he can only speak of it fondly.

“It means the world to me as a race driver,” he told reporters.

“It’s the grand final of Australian motor racing.”

Maybe the drivers’ love-hate relationship with Bathurst is summed up best by Ford great Dick Johnson.

He won the race three times but this week Johnson has opted to commemorate one of his worst nightmares on the mountain.

The Johnson team’s two Fords this weekend have adopted his famous “Green Meanie” racing colours first displayed at the 1983 Great Race.

It also commemorates 30 years since Johnson crashed out in Bathurst qualifying, hitting trees at 150kph and forcing his crew to frantically find a new vehicle to race with barely 24 hours later.

“The 1983 race was an amazing weekend. Building a new car from scratch in the garage and again seeing the generosity and passion of people to see DJR succeed was full bore,” Johnson told reporters.

“I hope again I can bring back some good memories for all those passionate fans.”

But perhaps the final word on Bathurst’s appeal should go to Ford threat Mark Winterbottom.

In 2007, the man dubbed Frosty was running hot, leading by 20 seconds with 12 laps left.

But a safety car and falling rain turned the 1000km epic into a final 10-lap sprint in the wet.

Winterbottom slid off and found the sand as Whincup and Craig Lowndes surged to victory, part of their Ford three-peat from 2006.

“That’s why Bathurst is so special – it’s never over until that last corner,” Winterbottom said.

AAP lc/sc