2019 Finke Desert Race preview

Australia's greatest off-road event, the Finke Desert Race, will be held for the 44th time in the Northern Territory this Queen's Birthday long weekend (June 8-10), where over 400 motorcyclists will attempt to make the 460km return journey from Alice Springs to the outback community of Finke.

After winning the event for the sixth time in 2018, reigning Dakar Rally champion Toby Price will sit out 2019 as he continues to recover from a wrist injury – but he will still be racing in the truck division.

Seven of last year’s motorcycle top 10 will return to the Finke in 2010, including second and third placegetters David Walsh (KTM 500 EXC) and Jack Simpson (Honda RF450R). Walsh hails from Alice Springs.

2019 FINKE DESERT RACE ENTRY LIST

The prologue will be held on June 8, and then on June 9 competitors complete the opening 260km leg to Finke before returning on the following day.

The Finke Desert Race started in 1976 as a ‘there and back’ challenge for a group of local motorcycle riders to race from Alice Springs to the Finke River and return. After the success of this initial ride, the Finke Desert Race was born and it has been held annually on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend ever since.

The race is run along sections of what was the Old Ghan Railway service track adjacent to the railway line along a winding corrugated track, which snakes through typical outback terrain of red dirt, sand, spinifex, mulga and desert oaks. Even though the railway was realigned and rebuilt in the early ’80s, with the old tracks being pulled up, the race continues along its original course.

For all the information you require about the event, including camping options, click here.