Pickering keeps grip on Finke class crown

Pickering triumphed in the recent bone-rattling Finke Desert Race, marking a record 11th consecutive class victory, and putting him in position for a Production 4WD trophy.

Pickering took his Mitsubishi Pajero to first in class among a field of 99 vehicles, many of which were purpose-built offroad racers.He and co-driver Dylan Watson finished the tough 452km desert circuit from Alice Springs to Finke and back in a time of 6hr21m47s in what Pickering says was one of the toughest races in the event’s 38 years – with about half the entrants failing to make the finish line.

Pickering says preparation of the barely modified 3.8-litre V6 petrol Pajero was the key to his record success. "Our Pajero was extremely strong all race and felt fantastic, even with some of the roughest conditions we have encountered on the Finke despite the welcome rain earlier in the week,” he says.

"When we arrived in Finke on Sunday afternoon there was virtually nothing to be done to the car. We inspected everything and did a spanner check but apart from precautionary checks there was nothing to attend to before the race back to Alice Springs on Monday morning," he said.

"The fact is the secret to success at the Finke is preparation as well as applying a strategy and a race pace that is fast enough to beat the opposition while ensuring you get the car to the finish in one piece,"

"We just set our race pace and stuck with it. We ran our own race and didn't push too hard. With the tough conditions we knew that our race pave was right and we would pick up places as the faster buggies and trophy trucks broke axles and suffered driveline problems and crashes," he added.