Milner, Snodgrass dominate Hattah

Heavy rain cut short this year's Penrite Hattah Desert Race but the challenging conditions were overcome in fine style by the KTM Enduro Racing Team, whose riders Daniel Milner (KTM 500 EXC-F) and Lyndon Snodgrass (KTM 450 EXC-F) filled the first two steps of the podium.

Held over a varied and testing 37-kilometre circuit to the southeast of Mildura (Vic), Milner (pictured above) had qualified fastest in the Prologue event on the Saturday (July 6) and in the Top 10 Shootout that followed, with Daniel Sanders (Husqvarna Enduro Racing FE 501) second and Snodgrass third.

The rain came down on Sunday morning, soaking a course that was quickly churned up by the massive field; close to 400 riders had registered for the 2019 race, with just over 300 finishing. In the end, the race was declared at its mid-point, after four laps of the circuit, due to the increasingly treacherous conditions.

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In the end it was Milner home in front, finishing the event in 2hrs 14mins 22.051sec to claim the outright win – his second at Hattah – and the Over 450cc Four-stroke class title. The triumph was even more impressive given Milner had broken his collarbone just six weeks earlier, and was also suffering from tendonitis.

Teammate Snodgrass (pictured below) wasn't far behind, expertly guiding his KTM 450 EXC-F to the line in a time of 2hrs 17mins 43.210sec, also comfortably claiming the 251-450cc Four-stroke class win by over eight minutes.

Joshua Green (Yamaha Active 8 Yamalube Racing Team) rounded out the podium in third, setting a time of 2hrs 26mins 2.086sec aboard his Yamaha WR450F.

Milner was elated with the win.

"It's such a good feeling to win Hattah after breaking my collarbone six weeks ago and undergoing surgery," he said.

"I then had tendon problems in the opposite arm once I was back on the bike. I'd only had four days on the bike and one day of testing, so to bring it home is an unbelievable feeling – the KTM 500 EXC-F is such a weapon to ride!

"It really was a matter of making sure we could get through the race and it became a case of survival, so I was being as consistent as possible. The decision to cut the race short was the right one in those conditions and I'm really happy to get another outright win here, that's for sure."

2019 Hattah Desert Race results (outright):
1. Daniel Milner (KTM), 2hrs 14mins 22.051sec
2. Lyndon Snodgrass (KTM), 2hrs 17mins 43.210sec
3. Josh Green (Yamaha), 2hrs 26mins 2.086sec
4. Lachlan Terry (KTM), 2hrs 26mins 3.909sec
5. Mason Semmens (KTM), 2hrs 26mins 17.291sec

Click here for full results.