One of the biggest events in Australia is taking place this weekend in Victoria, hosted by the North West Victorian Motorcycle Club – the Hattah Desert Race.
Ryan Shadbolt is another rider that is returning to tackle the Hattah Desert Race, fresh off becoming a new Victorian Senior MX Champion (in the MX1 A Grade class).
He’ll be looking to improve on last year where he unfortunately encountered some bike issues.
“Last year I rode in the 300 2-stroke class and started the race in second position in the class and 18th outright but halfway through the race I had some bike issues and couldn’t finish,” Ryan said.
“It was pretty frustrating as I put a massive amount of time and effort into preparing for Hattah last year.”
“I prepared by racing some longer events leading up to the race and also training in the gym to build my strength.”
This year Ryan will be competing in the 450 4-stroke class and his preparation for this years edition of Hattah hasn’t been all that smooth.
“Preparation this year has been different to normal as I have been given a bike only a week before Hattah, just for the race. So I’ve just been trying to get as much riding in this week as I can to get a feel for this bike and how it works, testing different suspension settings etc.”
As one of the largest events to take place in this country, there is a great atmosphere around the weekend. Whether that be in the pits, on the start line or on the Friday night as scrutineering is taking place and there is always a decent crowd on hand to watch proceedings.
“Hattah is one of my favourite events of the year. There is so much hype around it and the crowds it draws are incredible.”
“It’s such a fast race and I love that but also it’s a great event to bring all my family to being so close to home.”
Keep an eye on the MV Website and Facebook Page for a full week of Hattah build and don’t forget that the North West Vic MCC Facebook Page is also your best place to get information about the upcoming event!