Grabham wins Finke with one hand
The desert specialist has won his fourth event in five years, claiming the spoils with a narrow 38-second victory over rookie team-mate Jarrod BewleyNew South Welshman Ben Grabham has defied the pain of a broken hand to win his fourth Tattersall’s Finke Desert Race in five years, claiming it “was one of the hardest races I have ever won”.
Grabham crashed heavily en route from Alice Springs to Finke on day one, but chose to keep the extent of his injury in-house.
But he still pushed hard on the way home, and his winning time was three hours, 58 minutes and 59 seconds (3:58.59), well ahead of Toby Price’s winning time from last year (4:03.25).
Finke debutant and Grabham’s team-mate Jarrod Bewley was a sensational second overall, only 38 seconds behind the winner. Then it was a huge gap back to third-placed Ryan Branford (Husaberg, 4:06.59), with the local hero continuing his regular podium visits after winning in 2006.
“I was worried about my bike and blocked the pain out on the way to Finke, but I woke up halfway through the night and my wrist had locked up and my fingers wouldn’t move,” said Grabham. “Luckily it all freed up about half an hour before today’s start.
“It’s one of the hardest races I have ever won, but KTM had put in too much effort for me to give up. Not finishing last year was disappointing, but if I can I will keep coming back for another 10 years.”
Defending champion Toby Price (KTM) retired on day one with mechanical problems, in what was shaping up as a mouth-watering battle with his team-mate Grabham.
Click on the following link for full results in the 2011 Tattersall’s Finke Desert Race.
Tags
Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
