Reynolds is being hugged, high-fived and cheered by men and women old enough to be his grandparents, kids young enough to be his children and everyone in between.

“I knew this Bathurst was big for drivers and teams, but I had no idea it was this big for fans,” he said.

“The response has been amazing – I’ve never been involved in anything like it.”

It has been a busy two weeks for the Albury-born Supercar driver since taming the iconic Mount Panorama circuit, lots of media work, appearances and, in the midst of it all that, he has had to turn his focus to the resumption of racing this weekend.

“We were pretty quick this morning ending up sixth,” Reynolds said.

“We didn’t get to do our last run, but the car feels good.

“It’s always good to be up there in the first practice sessions so you aren’t chasing speed all weekend.

“Now we can just look for incremental improvements and make the car a bit nicer to drive.”

The Gold Coast is the last of the endurance races for 2017 where the regular drivers share their cars with a co-driver.

Reynolds is again partnering with Bathurst-winning teammate Luke Youlden.

“I’ve got a lot of confidence in Luke and not just because of last weekend – he’s proven himself over many years in the sport, so we should thereabouts in the races on Saturday and Sunday,” Reynolds said.

“The Gold Coast track is the polar opposite to Bathurst being a tight street circuit, lined with concrete barriers that usually spell the end for anyone who gets too close.”

The Supercars have 102-lap races on both Saturday and Sunday.