From The Sahara To The Sunraysia

40 years of extreme adventure riding

- Peter Whitaker

If there’s an historian of cross-country rally riding in Australia, it’s Peter Whitaker. He’s written extensively about desert rally racing in The Land Downunder. This issue he has a look at the evolution of Australia’s newest rally, The Sunraysia Safari.

The original ‘rally raid’ was an adventure like no other before. An eclectic cohort of champagne-fuelled Froggies framped across the Sahara Desert in a race against time to celebrate the new year on the French Riviera. Certainly the motorcyclists taunted the crews in the dilapidated Peugeots who, in turn, scoffed at those in the rudimentary VW-powered buggies. But the real challenge was the terrain, not each other. And by all accounts there was a great sense of camaraderie as the participants overcame the trials they faced.

Wynners

The inaugural Wynn’s Sydney To Darwin Safari had similar attributes; the challenge of surviving a 7000km odyssey across Australia’s most remote regions.

The first event proved such a trial that, had it not been for a change of heart by the organisers, three out of every four participants would have been eliminated on the very first day. As it eventuated, less than a quarter of the riders made it to Darwin.

No matter, the adventure continued each year for the best part of two decades, although on each and every occasion less than a handful of riders were actually competing against one another. The majority were there simply for the adventure – to overcome the difficulties thrown at them in Australia’s unforgiving outback. And, for some, there came the satisfaction of receiving a Safarifinishers’ medallion.

Tough times