By Callum Ludwig
There must be something in the water in the Upper Yarra as another local has won the Hattah Desert Race title, the second winner from the region in as many years.
Raised in Hoddles Creek, Mason Semmens took out the overall win in this year’s edition on Sunday 2 July, with Three Bridges resident Daniel Sanders winning in 2022.
Semmens said winning has been a longtime dream of his since he first competed in 2011.
“My goal was always to win an outright one day in the senior Hattah Desert Race and this year we got it done, it’s a feeling that it’s indescribable, to be honest with you,” he said.
“The track was really good, luckily we got a lot of rain up there throughout the weeks leading up, when you’re out in the desert you can’t really ask for much more than what we had.”
The Hattah Desert Race is an eight-lap race that goes for about four hours at a total of about 296 kilometres. It is often called the ‘four hours of hell’ and is widely regarded as the most challenging off-road race in Australia.
Semmens said going to races like the Hattah became a family event, having started with his dad who always rode bikes and raced a little.
“My older brother got a bike and all that, and then when I came along, same goes, I got a bike and got his hand me downs and then my younger brother too, we all rode and raced together,” he said.
“My dad has been going to the Hattah since 2001, the year I was born, so all roads just led to the support from the family to keep me racing. Dad was there to see me win this race on the weekend, and it was a dream for him too, he was stoked.”
At only 22, Semmens has a long racing career ahead of him and has moved to the United States to continue to train and compete.
Semmens said he only landed in Australia on the Wednesday prior to the race.
“I had a race the weekend before and there was no way I could get home any earlier than Wednesday morning, so my preparation was a little different to what I would have liked,” he said.
“I just had to grit my teeth, do what I had to do, put my head down and get on with the job come Sunday and I’m pretty proud of what I could so, though I’m still a bit worn out now.”
Semmens finished with an overall time of four hours, 28 minutes and 13 seconds, about three minutes ahead of the next best time.
Semmens said he will compete in the Australian Off-Road Championship in a couple of weeks, before heading back to the States to finish off the season there with hopefully another podium finish.
“I still have a few goals I want to tick off for the years out, but to tick off this desert race goal was the best one yet,” he said.
Semmens said it was pretty cool to keep the Hattah winner in the Valley for the second year in a row.
“There’s a lot of riding to do around here in the Valley and there’s been a lot of good riders to come out of here, such as Lyndon Snodgress, who I live with in America, and then you got Daniel Sanders, who won this race last year,” he said.
“My advice to younger riders is just keep it fun, that’s the reason why we all started this but also, if you want to reach your goals, you’ve got to train hard and set your mind to what you want to do.”
