2017 Hattah Desert Race

KTM may not have won Finke this year, but they sure made up for it a few weeks later with a 1-2-3 result at the Hattah Desert Race, held in perfect conditions.

KTM Off Road Racing Team rider Daniel Milner has led home an emphatic orange wash at Hattah, finishing ahead of Daniel Sanders and Lyndon Snodgrass in the 2017 running of the famous event, 70 kilometres south of Mildura. World Enduro Championship competitor Daniel Sanders made the special trip home to re-join the team he won last year’s AORC title. Sanders had the goal of reaching the top step of the podium in the event in which he last year finished second to then-teammate, Tye Simmonds.
Running the 17-litre tank instead of the 12-litre run by his teammates, Sanders gave away a small handling advantage off the start, but took the lead at the beginning of the second lap as most riders pitted for fuel, and led until the sixth lap when Milner made his move.

With Milner striving to open a gap, Sanders tagged a lapped who fell across his path and crashed at high speed, limping home in second outright with a suspected concussion.

Snodgrass had earlier Prologued seventh but leapt out of the gates as today’s race began determined to redress the disadvantage of a poor start position. The Victorian blazed through to second place on the opening lap.
He slipped to third during his first pit stop, but managed to stay there for the remainder of the race to record his best Hattah finish in eighth attendances.

Daniel Milner – “The track was really tough here this year; it deteriorated really quick. The last time I did it back in 2012 there were nowhere near as many bikes, so it ended up getting real deep bumps that kicked you about. But it all ended up working out perfectly. “
Daniel Sanders – “It’s good to be back, it’s such a massive event. It was a pretty rushed job for me, and the prep wasn’t sufficient, but I just wanted to be here and have a crack at it.”
Lyndon Snodgrass – “I’m stoked on this! The KTM 500 EXC-F is just a weapon, and definitely the bike for this race. This is my eighth Hattah, and definitely my best result. It was one of the roughest ones I’ve done – it was all deep ruts and square-edged holes.”

Hot on the heals of KTM Australia’s fastest racers was the young 16-year-old Victorian, Callum Norton. Competing in his first year of seniors, and the claiming a win in MXD class at the MX Nationals in Nowra– just a week earlier. Norton claimed fourth place but only by a whisker, running down Finke hero Ivan Long in the final minutes of the race. And to top it off, he did it while stopping every lap for fuel and to repair a flat tyre.

Top 10 Results

1. Daniel MILNER (KTM) 4:12:08.368
2. Daniel SANDERS (KTM) 4:17:07.255
3. Lyndon SNODGRASS (KTM) 4:21:39.840
4. Callum NORTON (KTM) 4:24:03.773
5. Ivan LONG (HUSQVARNA) 4:24:17.458
6. Lachlan TERRY (KTM) 4:29:18.605
7. Nathan TRIGG (KTM) 4:32:36.748
8. Broc GRABHAM (HUSQVARNA) 4:35:07.097
9. Josh MURTAGH (KTM) 4:35:21.615
10. Lachlan STANFORD (HUSQVARNA) 4:35:42.437