“Sacrifice everything just to get to the line”

Michael Burgess likes a good old challenge and when he sets his mind on something, he gives all he has. A keen enduro rider and desert racer back home in Australia, he fell in love with off-road rallies after testing himself out with a road-book. His path to the Dakar hasn’t been an easy one though. Firstly because he broke his neck while racing and it took him time to recover thanks to the fantastic support of his wife and three children. The recent pandemic that hit the world also made his preparation far more complicated. Due to come to Europe and compete in Morocco to prepare for the Dakar, his plans were naturally cancelled. He still sent an application to compete in the world’s biggest rally and received good news six weeks later. The caravan park owner from Victoria will just be hoping to finish the rally and make his 8-year old bike fanatic son proud. Despite being extremely competitive he knows he doesn’t have what it takes to aim at a Top 20 and just hopes to work his way through every situation.

“I’m a bit of a late bloomer in the world of off-road rallies. I used to ride enduro and did desert racing and five years ago my friend Matthew Fish (former Dakar rider) told me to try some “road-book stuff”. I loved it. The adventure evolved from there. From a kid riding bikes in the bush with my mates to the Dakar. My family background in terms of sports is more around football. Of course I followed the Dakar and guys like Andy Caldecott but I never took to it until I competed. Off-road rallies bring in new elements: how to use your brain, concentrate not only on the throttle, work out the right path and of course the camaraderie. It’s very demanding for your mind and I love pushing myself to the extremes. The goal is first to finish and sacrifice everything just to get to the line. I know I can work my way through every situation despite my lack of road-book experience. I’m more worried about staying in one piece”.