2010 HATTAH DESERT RACE Ivan Long wins at Hattah Desert Race AUSTRALIA’S off-road racing elite were in Mildura for one of the biggest desert races in the nation - the Hattah Desert Race on the weekend of the 3rd & 4th July, one of the most popular events in the national calendar. South Australia’s #1 plate holder in the Off Road Championship, Ivan Long aboard his Bridgeland Honda 250cc managed an incredible 12th Outright against 450cc machines. He won his class against the quickest off road riders in Australia many of whom are blisteringly quick professional riders. The race is fought out over eight laps of a 35km loop track for four gruelling hours through scrub and sand with tight, gnarly, technical sections winding through trees, wide open blasts through open paddocks and into sand dunes. Organisers for this year’s event were forced to introduce a cap on entries following the massive growth of the event over the past few years. The limit for the Iron man class was reached four weeks before the close of entries. Other classes catered for the juniors, clubman and pony express. The weekend officially started Friday night where competitors and race teams displayed their bikes, providing a chance for the public to inspect and meet the very best riders in the nation. Racing started Saturday morning with Prologue which was completed in extreme fog however Long qualified in the first of a 40 grid start in a field of over 200 competitors.
Longy said “I headed out for the prologue lap in one of the last groups because I was waiting for the fog to lift. At about 2 minutes in I gave up trying to see through my goggles as the fog was so thick, I could hardly see past the front fender”. Not daunted by this, his fast time enabled him to start in the first full grid of 40 riders on Sunday
The Iron man Hattah Desert Race has recently developed into a battle between local hot shot and five-time winner Warren Smart and two-time winner Ben Grabham, who took out the event last year. Toby Price, first time winner of the 2010 Finke Desert Race in Alice Springs qualified fastest and went on to lead the race to the end, but not without an epic battle with Smart.
Add former Australian Champion AJ Roberts, former winner Brad Williscroft and Northern Territory desert racing specialists Caleb Auricht and Ryan Branford and it set the scene for one of the most competitive fields in the event’s history. Longy said about the weekend “I can’t believe how good the whole Hattah experience has been, the Show ’n Shine Friday night was unreal with riders and locals mixing it up well into the night. The people from Mildura were pumped to feel a part of it and brings a lot of money into the community.” The track was in perfect condition after recent rain and by the time racing commenced in a staggered start on Sunday, the early fog had lifted. He went on to say “I had a faultless race and my suspension was awesome which allowed me to catch Caleb Auricht on his 450cc but he was way too quick for me on the straights. I have to thank Paul from Bridgeland for setting up the suspension because it was this that the race was all about. There were some deep rutted sections and typical desert sand and the bike just handled to perfection. I just can’t wait for next year”
Ivan originally from Coonalpyn, manages to fit in his racing interstate and locally with working in the agricultural industry at Roseworthy but loves being associated with a sport that is growing at a rapid rate. He credits his success at Hattah with the many hours practicing in sand dunes around his home track at Coonalpyn, and support from his sponsor Bridgeland Motorcyces.
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