Dust Hustle 6 Event Wrap Part 1

Author: Ellaspede Date Posted:15 May 2018

"In 10 years time, will you remember the time you polished your bike or the time you had a blast getting it dirty?"

The sixth instalment of Ellaspede’s Dust Hustle™ was held at Queensland Moto Park (QMP) on a sunny Saturday 21 April 2018. The second excursion off the flat track proved even more exciting and challenging than the first scramble style event (DH4) as our biggest field of riders yet turned out for this scramble shamble.

Wind the clock back to the Friday afternoon before the event and after a hot and sunny setup day, a rain front rolled through in the late afternoon and evening. Setup was finished in rain jackets and the early arrivals keen to kick off the event with friday night camping were greeted with a wet welcome as they rolled in.

Friday night rider sign on and bike scrutineering was a reasonably tame affair with most punters preferring to setup and stay dry the night before the event. It would be a nervous sleep for some as we waited to see what the Saturday morning weather would bring!

It's becoming somewhat of a Dust Hustle tradition to wake up to a sunny Saturday after a rainy Friday before the event, and DH6 continued the routine with riders waking to a perfect morning!

With clear skies and the rest of the riders rolling in early the sign on and bike scrutineering were full steam ahead processing the 200 riders in record time to keep us on track for wheels spinning from 9:00am.

Rider briefing was run through and the mix of anticipation, excitement and nervousness was thick in the air. For the 'Small Bike Burners' class the nervousness definitely peaked as it was announced that they would be opening the big 'Hillside Hillbilly' natural terrain MX track first up. Given this track was definitely the most saturated from the Friday rain, this was possibly both our best and worst decision of the event as the small bikes battled to stay upright and moving forward slippery conditions. Definitely more amusing for the spectators than the rider no doubt!

What a job they did! The Small Bike Burners class set a standard for Dust Hustle 6. Not for fast laps, but for hitting the big track first in by far the trickiest conditions we've had at Dust Hustle! With little wheels, low power and lots of mud they embraced the inappropriate and showed us what this event is all about. So hat's off to you Small Bike Burner pilots, legendary effort to kick off the event.

2 new tracks were developed specifically for Dust Hustle at QMP, 'The Decision Faker' Inappropriate Enduro and 'The Holeshot Hero' Grass Track Drags. Choosing between 'hills' and 'thrills' on the Decision Faker enduro track kept riders on their toes, providing two different challenges based on which way the rider turned at the track split.

The 'hills' section took riders up along a hillside enduro section and into the Australian bush! With a grassy downhill followed by a few switchbacks it wasn't long before they were rejoining the rest of the track. Easy to see where the 'thrills' section got it's name from with 2 mini table top jumps facing the riders as they rounded the corner. There was a bypass lane for getting back in front of your mate, but most punters opted to aim for some mini air time on the tables.

Rotating around to the second of the new tracks, and the third track for the Dust Hustle event was the 'Holeshot Hero' Grass Track Drags. Between bar shouts and bragging rights there was a lot at stake on this track as riders squared off against an array of other inappropriate machines for this one.

Dust Hustle always attracts a few special guests to let their hair down and crowd favourites Jemma Wilson, Michael Kirkness and a swag of Harley Stunt Riders were welcomed in on the action. There was also an extra special guest, paraplegic rider James Powell rolled out his modified Honda CRF1000 Africa Twin for the event and was a inspiration to watch as he wrangled the big Honda around the tracks. Legends!