Indian Pacific Wheel Race 2023

The front runners are almost 3,400km in to the race with still 2,000km to go, yet it’s still unusual to see the front of the race tighten up so much. There’s less than 80km between the three leading riders which means it’s all to race for.

If this edition of the IndiPac will go down in history for anything, it’s the attrition. The bikes of this year’s IndiPac have suffered many a beating and the bike shops en route have seen much IndiPac footfall.

Marky Dee is Mark Doble who is attempting the event on a Rotovelo, a recumbent velomobile and raising money for Legacy, a veteran support charity. Here’s a shot of his bike and you can follow along with his blog from the road and his Instagram. He is approaching the Nullarbor, a vast treeless and arid expanse which is notorious amongst IndiPac veterans for its lack of anything! He will be the final rider on the course to tick off this major milestone.

Geoff Harris has been plagued over the past 24 hours by a mechanical which is rideable with enough will, good fortune and mcgivering. His rim has cracked, and having loosened the spoke in question and the two neighbouring ones, he’s hoping he’ll make the 300km ride from Melrose to Adelaide where a new rim awaits him.

Here's a shot of Garry pre-mechanical by Jason Buckland.

Rob Lesie rode off-route yesterday in search of a tool to tighten his crank, but was dismayed to learn that the crank was in fact cracked, not loose. He was able to source a replacement from Bicycle Fix in the Adelaide hills who replaced his cracked Ultegra crank with a Tiagra crank, an upgrade considering the Tiagra one actually works.

Harrison Mol appears to have a challenge only possible in the IndiPac. This was shared by a loved one on the IndiPac DotWatchers Facebook group:

Update on behalf of Harrison Mol - he had a tough night last night. A kangaroo was hit by a truck on the opposite side of the road and then hit him, he and his bike flipped over the handlebars and then the kangaroo continued to panic and jump on his rear wheel. He was very shaken but made it into Kingston late last night. He is batterred and bruised but ok, his shifting is broken, but he can still shift via his TT bars. Today he'll be taking it easy in recovery mode and very much looking forward to some friendly faces at Portland.

Header image from Raymond Freirich (Two Wheeled Vagabond) a few days ago.

The Indian Pacific Wheel Race is a legend in its own right. A huge race spanning the length of Australia, it attracts riders from around the world.

Crossing long and flat areas of the outback, trundling along the coast, this race sees riders sharing the road with the legendary Australian Road Trains and truckers who are also finding their way from coast to coast.

Judging from the elevation profile, you may think this isn't too hilly. However, as you look a little closer, the highest peak at 1600m dwarves the surrounding rolling hills that riders face in the first half. The so called Australian Alps present a tough ender to the 5,500km race.

There are plenty of challenges in the race, including long spans where there is little to sustain a rider in their quest to the end. This isolation saw the rise of the Trail Angel, often anonymous helpers who open their doors to the riders of the indipac. You can explore the concept a little more here.

The size of this race doesn't lend itself to its presence. A rather mystical race with a small online footprint, little organisation is involved and riders must be true afficianados before they can head out on the road. With most riders opting for pseudonyms and little information passed to competitors beforehand, this race encompasses the self-supported nature of bikepacking races.