Where are they now – Aaron Noonan (SPC 1994-99)

The College recently reconnected with Old Collegian Aaron Noonan (SPC 1994-99) who has forged a very successful career in motorsport media and travelled the globe covering some of the most popular sporting events around the world.

 

 

Where has life taken you since leaving SPC?

I’ve been based in Melbourne since I finished at St Pat’s at the end of 1999, forging a career in motorsport media. It’s taken me over a few different roles in print media, public relations and television and next year, 2024, marks my 25th year working professionally full-time in the sport.

Working in this industry has taken me to all sorts of places around Australia and also overseas – the United States for the Indianapolis 500, France for the Le Mans 24 Hour, many trips to New Zealand, some time in England and Germany, to races in the Middle East in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain, and even a trip to Iraq in 2007 with V8 Supercar drivers to visit Australian troops serving there. That last one was an eye opener indeed!

Immediately after finishing at SPC, I spent a few years working at a magazine – Motorsport News – that gave me an opportunity to start in the industry while I was still at school, and then spent a few years working as a media manager for Holden Motorsport in V8 Supercars with a range of teams and drivers.

An eight-year stint as a television commentator and reporter with V8 Supercars and Channel 7 followed and for the last decade I’ve been running my own media agency specialising in motorsport with a team of six staff based in Cheltenham.

We run a news website, publish a range of books and podcasts under the banner of V8 Sleuth and do a range of other service work for racing categories, teams, drivers and sponsors. I’m also continuing to commentate Supercars, this year covering the championship for SEN radio.

I met my now-wife Jaylee in 2015 (we got married in early 2018) and we work together in our business and live in the south-east suburbs of Melbourne.

Life, business and travel mean it’s been hard to stay connected regularly with friends from school days, but it can be months and, sometimes, years, between chats with guys from SPC and the conversations just pick up straight away from where they left off.

 

What are your fondest memories of your time at St Patrick’s College?

Fondest memories of time at SPC are undoubtedly the fun and excitement of boat race assemblies, playing a few fun bit parts in college-produced musicals, down ball world championship tournaments at recess and lunchtime, and the passion and care of amazing teachers we had during that time, some of whom I’m still in touch with to this day.

Which teacher from your time at SPC had the greatest impact on you?

Undoubtedly my Year 12 home room, English and Literature teacher Mary Purcell had the greatest impact on my time at SPC, and not just me, but many of my classmates. Mary went above and beyond and found a way to connect myself and many of my classmates to reach higher and expand our brains. Her dedicated coaching and love of public speaking and debating opened the door to many of us enjoying great success in these fields in our senior years at the College. It’s entirely fitting that the Ms Mary Purcell Debate is part of the Purton Oratory competition each year.

How has your education shaped your professional life?

My education has totally shaped my professional life – I focused very heavily on written subjects – English, Media Studies, Australian History – that have all ended up linking very well with the work I do today. It was during my time at school I started to figure out what sort of work I wanted to be involved in, so many of my subject choices were linked to where I felt I was going to be going – I remember teeing up radio interviews with drivers on the pay phones down near reception at school during lunch breaks for the radio show I was doing on 3BA at the time!

If you could pass on one message to the students of today, what would it be?

If I could pass on one message to the students of today – as much as you are told and reminded during your time at school that this part of your life is something to savour, you won’t understand it until down the track. And that’s OK. But ‘have a crack’ at as many things as you can while you’re there, whether it be academically, sporting, arts, whatever. You won’t like them all, they won’t all like you but you’ll learn something from each of them. It’s the journey that is the reward, not the destination.