Rod Faggotter will spearhead Yamaha's Australasian Safari campaign, starting this weekend.

Rod Faggotter will spearhead the Yamaha charge in the 2010 Australian Safari starting this weekend in Western Australia.

Faggotter will compete on board his Yamaha WR450F in what is Australia’s toughest and most grueling off road event. Hailing from Longreach in western Queensland, Rodney is no stranger to riding in the bush and already this season has won the prestigious Condobolin 750 Endurance event and is one of the favourites to take out the motorcycle section of this years’ Safari.

“With the help of Yamaha Australia, my crew and I have put in plenty of time preparing for this event. It’s a big challenge for anyone to compete in an event like this and I feel confident in the work the guys and I have done will put us right in contention,” Faggotter said.

Being a Yamaha dealer at Centre Tune Motorcycles also means that Faggotter must stand behind the product he sells and he has no hesitation in saying that the Yamaha WR450F is the bike of choice for an event like this and has proven its performance and durability time and again in off road racing.

“The WR450F is just perfect for these conditions,” he explained. “It has all the power you need, yet still light and agile enough to get through the real technical sections. But its biggest asset is its durability. The bike I raced at Condo was basically standard apart from a larger tank and it couldn’t have performed better.

“We again have left the bike relatively standard and just made changes to suit the style of event. Navigation maps, larger tanks and the right setup with tyres and suspension are pretty much about it,” Rodney offers.

The Australian Safari started in 1985 and the 2010 event marks the 25th anniversary of what is becoming a high profile event on Australia’s sporting calendar. Despite some location changes, the event has survived drought, flood and recession yet continues to prosper with over 100 competitors again entered for 2010.

This year will see the field start in Perth before heading off into some of the most remote and rugged bush Western Australia has to offer. Competitors will the follow a pre-designed course combining both road transport sections, off road and special tests.

Seven days later the field will roll into Esperance exhausted where the winner will be crowned in each of the auto, bike and quad classes.

Yamaha will also have Gary Williams, Brad Hillman, Trevor Dunnage and John McTainsh competing in the event, all Yamaha WR450F-mounted.