THE LAST ONE – AUSTRALASIAN SAFARI 2014

After seven years in Western Australia, it’s with a heavy heart that we wish to advise the 2014 Australasian Safari will be the last one held in Western Australia.

Here is the Official Statement from the Event Director:

My company Australian Safari Pty Ltd has a contract with Tourism Western Australia. The contract contains the option for TWA to extend the current agreement for a further three years (2015 to 2017). TWA has declined to take up this option in the current climate.

Continue reading

3-TIME DAKAR WINNER GOES OUTBACK

Three-time winner of Dakar, Frenchman Cyril Despres, will make his Australian debut at this year’s Australasian Safari – has announced today. Despres is currently the most accomplished long distance off-road motorbike rider in the world and has finished on the Dakar podium an incredible seven times in the last eight years.

First victory for Cyril Despres in 2005

Despres said he was looking forward to the challenge of the Australasian Safari: “Australia is a continent that has always fascinated me. I grew up near Paris but I always dreamed of being in wide open spaces and as I understand it you have a few wide open spaces in Australia! Also I have done over 60 rallies in my career and the Safari is the only major event that I haven’t yet done. From what I understand you have some very good riders in Australia who are both fast and good navigators so I think there will be plenty of competition. And of course I have never done the race before and while it seems similar to other events I have done, experience is always a useful commodity.”

Despres will go to Australia directly from the Rally dos Sertoes in Brazil with just his manager and a mechanic and not his full Dakar back up crew. Once in Australia and during the event he will be supported by a team from KTM Australia.

Western Australian motorsport fans can meet Despres and see his KTM450 Rally bike along with a hundred other moto, auto and quad bike competitors at Hillary’s Boat Harbour on September 22 before they hit the WA outback and head up the coast to Geraldton and then inland through the remote northern goldfields, via Mt Magnet, Sandstone, Laverton and Leonora before reaching Kalgoorlie on 30 September. 

ENDURE AND WIN

First-time offroad competitor V8 Supercar driver Craig Lowndes has proved himself an all-round motorsport champion with a first-place win in the 2010 Australasian Safari which finished on the beach in Esperance, Western Australia.

Lowndes and co-driver Kees Weel finished one hour and 15 minutes ahead of the rest on the final day of competition following a week of strong driving, after steadily increasing their lead gained in Leg Three. This was co-driver Kees Weel’s second Safari win, having won his last event in 1995. “I’m delighted to win my first attempt at Safari. We stayed out of trouble and the beach sand was something I was more familiar with from my practice runs.”

Second-fastest in the autos were Darren Green and Wayne Smith with a 1999 Nissan Patrol. Third finished long-time Dakar and Safari competitors Bruce Garland and co-driver Harry Suzuki in their Isuzu DMAX, whom the last day’s sandy conditions suited well. “It was a fun day and for once we didn’t get any punctures!” Garland said.“The dunes and the beach were a lot nicer than the trees we had the past few days, it was a beautiful spot to finish and the diesel loved the sand.”

 Bathurst’s Ben Grabham (KTM) made his third win after 2007, 2008 when he took out first place the moto division. Grabham was in the lead in all but one leg this week, finishing convincingly yesterday an overall 17 minutes ahead of the next fastest Todd Smith. “After all the hard work, it’s a big relief it’s over not just for me but also for the mechanics and the whole team.” Todd Smith completed a gritty performance placing second despite nursing a shoulder injury sustained on the first day of competition and having his brother Jacob out of the event with a broken ankle. Bike manufacturer KTM was also a winner, with third fastest finisher Matt Fish completing the trio of moto placings.

 Paul Smith was the victor of the quad bikes, having a great run all week. He lead the quad riders from Leg 2 and kept his lead for the remainder of the event. In the true spirit of Safari, Smith towed in his fellow quad competitor Colin Lawson for the last four or five kilometres of the stage. “It was my most memorable day on Safari. I’ve finally won one and we then had to get through the dunes and get Colin out – it was a huge day!”

The Australasian Safari provides an ideal training ground for riders and drivers competing in the world-famous Dakar Rally event. International riders Annie Seel from Sweden and Ze Helio from Brazil both agree that the conditions experienced in the Australasian Safari are comparable with the gruelling terrain and lengths of the Dakar legs. Seel (placed 15th) is competing in Safari for her second year and Helio (placed 18th) for the first time.

Considered one of the world’s great endurance events, the Australasian Safari has travelled from Southern Cross in the wheatbelt through to the historic Western Australian goldfields, desert, rugged bush and coastal sand dunes. Proof of the difficulty of Safari is the number of competitors who manage to reach it to the finish. The event commenced with 112 vehicles on the Prologue Day and only 64 vehicles finished last day, a 40 percent attrition rate.

25 years of outback adventure

When more than 100 competitors in this year’s Australasian Safari take off into the West Australian outback tomorrow, they will be marking the 25th year of this Aussie endurance adventure.

The Australasian Safari began in August 1985 as the Wynns Safari. The first event included several international Paris to Dakar competitors and more than 200 starters. The race was so tough, more than 75 percent of the field retired after the first competitive leg!

The event has changed locations, distances, sponsors and challenges over the years, but was has not changed is the tough and talented competitors, many returning year after year to take on the Aussie outback. Many legends of motor racing have competed in the Australasian Safari since 1985. The first race featured the likes of legendary driver Larry Perkins driving a VW Beetle, and John Hederics – the most successful competitor to date with six moto first placings and three firsts in the auto division. Other competitors of note from the past 25 years include Australian motorsport racing legend the late Peter Brock, rallying champion Ross Dunkerton, AFL star Tony “Plugga” Lockett, past Paris to Dakar winners from around the globe, and even Japanese film stars.


A new generation of motorsport champion will pick up the reins this year when V8 Supercar champion Craig Lowndes experiences has his first offroad event, driving with past Safari winner Kees Weel. Australian Dakar competitor Bruce Garland has been competing in Safari since 1987 and is back again this year to chase first prize. Des Harrington, who competed in the first Safari in 1985, is back again in 2010 and will have a new co-driver this year – his son Richard.

The moto category has had its fair share of characters over the years, and one mainstay has been Glenn Hoffman, who competed in his first Safari in 1986, aged 18. After managing teams for the past couple of years, Glenn is getting back in the hot seat, but this time in the auto category.

Safari has attracted people from as far afield as Japan, Russia, Germany, France, Great Britain, Turkey, Italy, USA, Argentina, Taiwan and the Czech Republic over the years, and in 2010 we will see our first Brazilian competitor – the country’s number one offroad moto champion, Ze Helio – experience the harsh Australian outback for the first time. He will be joined by Swedish Rally Princess Annie Seel who had her first Australian encounter at the 2009 Safari and is returning for more pre-Dakar training.

The event has survived floods, bushfires, and the days long before GPS navigation when the Royal Flying Doctor Service was the only reliable form of remote communication. Today, the event travels with two planes, a helicopter, satellite dishes, 50+ satellite phones, seven generators, semi trailers, trucks, motor homes and about 560 people made up of competitors, support crew, officials, family and friends, medical teams, TV production crew, and international media. Event Director Justin Hunt said although the technology had changed, the philosophy of Safari remained the same: “We attract many repeat competitors because the event is really a family of motorsport and outback enthusiasts who love to personally challenge themselves against the harsh terrain of the Australian outback“.

Considered one of the world’s great endurance events, the Australasian Safari will this year see the auto, moto and quad competitors travel through remote Western Australian goldfields, desert, rugged bush and coastal dunes before hitting the southern coast at Esperance.