Easy Rider

Porsche Centre Brighton Workshop Manager Adam Harris traded his four wheels for two on his 40th birthday and went ‘bush’ with motorcycle ace and TV broadcaster Daryl Beattie on an adventure that finished with Australia’s famous Finke Desert Race.

Apart from Daryl’s fame as an international racer, he conducts exciting adventure tours in Australia and overseas. After the lure of a trip on two wheels into the Simpson Desert caught Adam’s attention, he was finally able to go in May this year. Following a flight from Melbourne to Brisbane and then Birdsville, Adam hopped on his ride for the trip (a Honda CRF450L motorbike) and headed into the desert. His first challenge was a huge sand dune, ‘Big Red’, which he conquered before heading for his first camp of the trip and a well-deserved shower and dinner. All amenities and food was provided by Daryl Beattie Adventures. The ride followed the QAA Line which goes from Birdsville over Big Red through Eyre Creek and just across the NT boarder; the Erabena Track which is on the NT-SA border east of Poeppel Corner where Queensland, NT and SA meet; the WAA Line, which runs parallel to the French Line between Knolls Track and Rig Road; and the French Line, which is the most direct track across the desert and is dotted with large dunes. From there it was onwards to Dalhousie Springs, a natural warm water spring with a water temperature of around 40 degrees – a perfect place for a dip in the rich mineral waters – then overnight at Mt Dare in South Australia.

The final day was a 400-kilometre ride along Binns Track, taking in the old Andado Station on the way to Ooraminna Station near Alice Springs. There, the tour stopped to take in the Finke Desert Race, a gruelling annual race over the desert for cars, buggies and motorbikes. Adam’s adventure was 1300 kilometres of desert riding all up, a fitting way to celebrate a milestone birthday. •