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The 2023 Comiskey Mining Services Don River Dash, the fifth time the 300km event has been held out of Bowen, was won by Roydn and Lachlan Bailey in their Ultimate Class 3.5lt Toyota V8 Twin Turbo Element Prodigy Buggy.
Their time over the two days was 34.17s faster than class rivals and last year’s winners Aaron and Liz Haby in their 5.6lt Toyota V8 Racer Engineering Carbon rig. Over 2mins further away was Symon Knight who had Joe Brown and Luke Hendry sharing the navigation of his 7.0lt Chev Rush Truck.
Ninety-seven cars and 234 bikes tackled the North Queensland event that has the potential to rival the Finke Desert Race in status and popularity. Each day competitors raced 25kms along the mainly sandy riverbed and back three times totally 150kms. This year was a lot drier than previous events with little water to negotiate.
Two-time Don River winners Talbot Cox and Craig King (Racer Engineering Carbon/Toyota V8) took the opening day honours after a mechanical gremlin hit the Clayton Chapman/Adam McGuire/Michell Huxstep Razorback/Toyota Twin Turbo and left them 19th.
Burdekin Offroaders Club President Michael Marson and Michael Collins (Racer Engineering Carbon/Ford Windsor V8) was second, ahead of Bailey, Haby, Brad Belcher and Rusell Newman (Jimco Aussie Special/Chev LS2).
Chapman was the fastest on the second day which elevated him to fifth overall behind Michael and Chris Dolan (Brenthel Gen 3/8.0lt Chev) who finished the legs eight and fourth. On Day 2 second was Kent Bailey, Adam Franklin and Heath Lawson (Element Prodigy, Chev LS2) in front of Bailey, Haby and Knight. Cox was 32nd, and in the overall were 12th. Marson DNF’d with an oil pump failure.
In the bikes it was Liam Walsh the winner by well over 9mins where he won both days. It was a back-to-back victory after he won last year and placed second the year before. The runner-up spot went to Sam Handley with Nathan Trigg third in front of Jesse McMillan-Moore and Jackson McGrath.
The oldest rider this year was 71, the youngest 16, and 10 females, one of which was Katie Robinson who said ‘yes’ when proposed to by fellow rider Justin Burgess.
Photos: DRD/Show ‘n’ Go Photography
