Finke Desert Race
Encyclopedia
The Tattersall’s Finke Desert Race is an off road, multi-terrain two-day race in Northern Territory
, Australia
through desert country from Alice Springs to Aputula Community. The race crosses the Finke River
, believed to be the oldest river in the world. The race is held each year on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend (second weekend in June).
The Track is divided into 5 sections:
In 1974 the defunct Alice Springs Motor Cycle Club was hi-jacked by a small group of people with an interest in resurrecting the club and conducting motor cycle events under that club's banner.
The group consisted of Ralph Tice an American from the space base at Pine Gap and locals Barry Taylor, Peter Kittle and Peter Gunner there was another committee member an American his name now eludes me.
The club began conducting events aimed at giving the ordinary bike owner that had achieved some skill with his machine the chance to compete and win, the concept was an outstanding success and membership grew to such a degree that events such as hill climbs, Mexican motor cross’s and Hares and hounds had to be held every month.
A meeting was held to discuss the possibility of bringing the long proposed endurance race to Finke and back into reality, this meeting was held at night in the kitchen of Peter Gunners home, all the committee were present as was Mr Viv Johnston who had being invited along to convey to us the reasons that had stopped his own motor cycle group group from going ahead with a similar event; money was the main reason, the argument being that aerial searches for lost contestants could involve sums as high as twenty thousand dollars.
What we needed was motivation and this was supplied by Barry Taylor arranging for the printing of the very first posters in brilliant red lettering on a white background and our subsequent pride in plastering them all over town and other far flung centres.
We had a destination, we knew we would have contestants but we didn’t have a course.
A Suzuki four wheel drive was borrowed from Paul Delahunty along with a car trailer and with it hooked behind a Falcon utility, Barry Taylor, Peter Gunner and Benny Gunner as well as several hundred triangular flags cut from builders orange plastic sheeting, a staple gun, crow bar and shovel set out via Kulgera to Finke to mark the course.
We unloaded the Suzuki and drove up the track to where the proposed course first became a challenge to follow, the railway was still in operation and the fettlers still inhabited the camps that had not fallen into ruin.
Over forty years of operating a rail service had given the Commonwealth a vast area of desert in which to deposit sleepers, lengths of rail and other surplus equipment. There was no recognised road and what did exist was prone to unexplained deviations and turnoffs.
The one stable feature was the overland telegraph line, so we festooned poles and sleepers with stapled orange flags all the way to the Finke River and the course was born.
This was a deadly serious endurance event in which the possibility of severe injury was high, the course as a pre-raced track was non existent and as was conveyed to the entrants at the first pre race meeting they were totally responsible for everything to do with their own welfare, a recommendation was made that they carry every basic need including water, to be decent fellows and check on any riders they found sprawled along the way. The pre-race inspection performed had one aim only, to determine whether the machine looked capable of taking its rider safely there and back.
Volunteers loved the event and many people took part in organizational tasks. Some stand out Peter and Kath Healy who travelled to the finish line the day before the race and set up camp in the town's rubbish dump and helped to direct arriving riders to the camp site.
These good people continued to do this service each year and for a considerable length of time, Dave Baldock and his trusty vintage Land rover supported stranded riders, the Amateur Radio group handled communications.
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
through desert country from Alice Springs to Aputula Community. The race crosses the Finke River
Finke River
The Finke River is one of the largest rivers in central Australia. Its source is in the Northern Territory's MacDonnell Ranges, and the name Finke River is first applied at the confluence of the Davenport and Ormiston Creeks, just north of Glen Helen. From here the river meanders for approximately...
, believed to be the oldest river in the world. The race is held each year on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend (second weekend in June).
The Track
Encompassing about 229 km each way the Finke Desert Race is a gruelling and tough event. Travelling through many Properties on its way to end up crossing the Finke river just north of Aputula.The Track is divided into 5 sections:
- Start/Finish Line to Deep Well (61 km)
- Deep Well to Rodinga (31 km)
- Rodinga to Bundooma (43 km)
- Bundooma to Mt Squires (45 km)
- Mt Squires to Finke (49 km)
History
The concept of an endurance event that would test the ability of riders and the reliability of their machines was mooted on several occasions by people with an interest in such an event and the logical destination was to the Finke River and back.In 1974 the defunct Alice Springs Motor Cycle Club was hi-jacked by a small group of people with an interest in resurrecting the club and conducting motor cycle events under that club's banner.
The group consisted of Ralph Tice an American from the space base at Pine Gap and locals Barry Taylor, Peter Kittle and Peter Gunner there was another committee member an American his name now eludes me.
The club began conducting events aimed at giving the ordinary bike owner that had achieved some skill with his machine the chance to compete and win, the concept was an outstanding success and membership grew to such a degree that events such as hill climbs, Mexican motor cross’s and Hares and hounds had to be held every month.
A meeting was held to discuss the possibility of bringing the long proposed endurance race to Finke and back into reality, this meeting was held at night in the kitchen of Peter Gunners home, all the committee were present as was Mr Viv Johnston who had being invited along to convey to us the reasons that had stopped his own motor cycle group group from going ahead with a similar event; money was the main reason, the argument being that aerial searches for lost contestants could involve sums as high as twenty thousand dollars.
What we needed was motivation and this was supplied by Barry Taylor arranging for the printing of the very first posters in brilliant red lettering on a white background and our subsequent pride in plastering them all over town and other far flung centres.
We had a destination, we knew we would have contestants but we didn’t have a course.
A Suzuki four wheel drive was borrowed from Paul Delahunty along with a car trailer and with it hooked behind a Falcon utility, Barry Taylor, Peter Gunner and Benny Gunner as well as several hundred triangular flags cut from builders orange plastic sheeting, a staple gun, crow bar and shovel set out via Kulgera to Finke to mark the course.
We unloaded the Suzuki and drove up the track to where the proposed course first became a challenge to follow, the railway was still in operation and the fettlers still inhabited the camps that had not fallen into ruin.
Over forty years of operating a rail service had given the Commonwealth a vast area of desert in which to deposit sleepers, lengths of rail and other surplus equipment. There was no recognised road and what did exist was prone to unexplained deviations and turnoffs.
The one stable feature was the overland telegraph line, so we festooned poles and sleepers with stapled orange flags all the way to the Finke River and the course was born.
This was a deadly serious endurance event in which the possibility of severe injury was high, the course as a pre-raced track was non existent and as was conveyed to the entrants at the first pre race meeting they were totally responsible for everything to do with their own welfare, a recommendation was made that they carry every basic need including water, to be decent fellows and check on any riders they found sprawled along the way. The pre-race inspection performed had one aim only, to determine whether the machine looked capable of taking its rider safely there and back.
Volunteers loved the event and many people took part in organizational tasks. Some stand out Peter and Kath Healy who travelled to the finish line the day before the race and set up camp in the town's rubbish dump and helped to direct arriving riders to the camp site.
These good people continued to do this service each year and for a considerable length of time, Dave Baldock and his trusty vintage Land rover supported stranded riders, the Amateur Radio group handled communications.