Beattie’s Simpson Desert Adventure

Former MotoGP great, Daryl Beattie, chaperones three big-name four-wheel racers on a Simpson Desert adventure ride.

This Sunday (August 23) at 3pm, channel ONE will premiere a program called Daryl Beattie Adventures – The Simpson Desert. It’s the story of the adventure ride that the former MotoGP rider did back in June with V8 legends Craig Lowndes and Larry Perkins, and Larry’s son Jack, before continuing on to Alice Springs to be part of the 40^th anniversary of the Finke Desert Race. We caught up with Beattie this week to get an insight into his tour operation, the trip and what we can expect from Sunday’s TV show.

TM: How did DB Adventures get started?
DB: I have an insatiable love of the outback, which has come from growing up with stories – told by my father – about Charleville, Betoota, Birdsville and the surrounding stations. Having read articles about Len Beadall and his early days of surveying central Australia, I am inexplicably drawn to it. I’ve made an annual trip with mates to Cape York for the past 20 years, so I wanted to share with others this beautiful country of ours on the back of a bike. DB Adventures was born two years ago and I haven’t looked back. There is nothing better than sharing the great outback with a group of mates – camping under the stars, telling yarns around a campfire and getting back to basics is such a fantastic experience.

What has been the biggest highlight so far on tour?
Definitely the ride from Uluru to Broome. We rode across The Old Gunbarrel Highway, then travelled The Canning Stock Route and finished in Broome – more than 5000km on Honda’s CRF450X.

“There is nothing better than sharing the great outback with a group of mates – camping under the stars, telling yarns around a campfire and getting back to basics is such a fantastic experience.”

How different is desert riding to track racing?
Riding in the desert, for me, is completely relaxing as you’re not racing or needing to win. There is definitely a lot of pressure and organising to do before a tour to ensure everything goes as smoothly as possible. DB Adventures provides everything – from the bikes, to swags, to hot showers and the food. I really enjoy sand riding, and The Simpson Desert and The Canning Stock Route provide plenty of that. Then, riding in Cape York provides another experience all together.

How did the Simpson Desert trip with Craig Lowndes and Larry and Jack Perkins come about?
Well, Larry and I got talking about Unimogs and he was telling me about his travels around Central Australia and that he was heading back to Western Australia. Jack, Larry’s son, loves bikes and we got together and discussed the possibility pf doing the Simpson Desert together in one of my tours and watching the 40th Anniversary Finke Desert race at the same time. And Craig Lowndes is a Honda Ambassador, who told me 12 months earlier he’d like to do a trip. So it worked out that the Simpson Desert trip fit into both Jack and Craig’s V8 Supercars, so it was game on!

What can viewers expect from this Sunday’s episode on ONE?
We ride from Birdsville across the Simpson Desert to Alice Springs, up the beautiful Binns Track before heading back south to watch the Northern Territory’s biggest event, the Finke Desert Race, which happened to be celebrating its 40^th anniversary. Larry Perkins and his son Jack, along with V8 Supercar driver Craig Lowndes, joined the tour for plenty of laughs and a few stacks. Viewers will get to see all that.