Completing the iconic Tatts Finke Desert Race once is no easy task – more than 230 competitive kilometres of brutal Australian conditions from Alice Springs to Finke makes finishing the event an achievement in itself.
So to attempt it twice over the weekend on both four wheels and two adds the extra spice, but Toby Price didn’t shy away from the challenge.
In 2016, Price attempted the ‘Iron Man’ Finke Double in 2016 but came up short, so in 2018, he lined up for a second shot.
Having made one attempt it could be easy to become blasé about it… but to race in both the car and motorbike categories is a huge challenge.
To cover more than 900 kilometres over two days up against some of the most physically demanding conditions – all while running at the pointy end of both fields – it’s amazing to even contemplate.
At the end of day one, the 2016 Dakar Champion found himself in Finke leading the bikes before flying his way back to Alice Springs by chopper to do it all over again, this time in a car and remarkably, Price ended the day in second behind only Shannon Rentsch.
☝🏼✋🏼 Stoked to get our sixth win at Finke! Amazing to get the record for @KTM_Racing. Unfortunately didn’t make it to the end in the truck but a massive thanks to the team at Toby Price Motorsport for all their hard work and a big thanks to everyone for their support! pic.twitter.com/NteCsuAk38
— Toby Price (@tobyprice87) June 11, 2018
Throughout day two, fans watched on with much anticipation, as Price completed the first half of his double and claiming his sixth two-wheel ‘King of the Desert Title’ in the process.
Unfortunately the popular off roader was not able to complete the double, his Trophy Truck suffering a power steering pump failure on the way back to Alice Springs.
WHAT A LEGEND! Toby Price makes history by becoming the ‘King of the Desert’ for a 6th time. Price says he’s undecided as to whether or not he’ll compete again next year in the Finke Desert Race. @FOXSportsNews pic.twitter.com/2jyBgLt0KR
— Alissa Smith (@AlissaSmithFOX) June 11, 2018
Despite not completing the double, it was still an amazing effort. Will Price return for another crack at the ‘Iron Man’ title?
