The Don River Dash has a way of breaking hearts as much as it crowns champions. For privateer Ivan “Longy” Long, that heartbreak had come before – mechanical gremlins denying him a shot at the top step. But the 2025 Custom Lithium Don River Dash, finally fell his way. Competing in the Veterans 35–U45 class, Long didn’t just win his category – he dominated the entire field. His Sunday charge, much of it caught by helicopter cameras and streamed live to fans around the country, was the kind of ride that defines a career. When the dust settled on the 2025 Don River Dash, Long was crowned King of the River, a title that had eluded him until now.
Long’s victory was more than a personal milestone. It was proof that grit, persistence, and pure passion can still carry you to the very top. “It was a great weekend and so much of a family environment,” he said afterwards. “There is nothing more exciting than being a racer, holding a 500cc bike wide open for two hours – jumping small creeks at 150+ km/h and waving to the chopper trying to keep up. Such a blast.”
Longy’s victory was one for the record books but we wanted to know what it looked like from the sidelines so we caught up with ADB’;s Chief Tester and Desert Legend Ben Grabham to get his take on the 2025 Don.
ADB: So how was the Don in 2025? We heard there was a fair it of rain?
Ben Grabham: It was good. I think I did a quick count – whether it was cars or bikes, I think that’s roughly like 30 engines gone, whether it was engine failure or body broken and stuff like that, which is pretty high numbers in the cars. And then I think there was 220 bikes, so a decent number of them too. It’s pretty brutal – like the river sand itself. There’s nowhere where the riders or the engines get much rest. Pretty much the week leading in – like that one day when I was coaching – I could’ve sold another three packages or three motorbikes if I had them there, from people wrecking it in the river sand and getting caught out with stuff like that. So, she’s definitely tough.
But I don’t know, it’s the same every year. This year there was some heavy rain early in the year, so there’s still a fair bit of underground water and water flowing through there. The area is reasonably dry itself but, out of the four years I’ve been going there, this year was one of the wetter ones on the track.
ADB: Does rain make the track better or worse?
Ben Grabham: Oh, like I said this year, I personally think it makes it better. The very first one I did was a bit like that. It just mixes the track up – gives it another element. Even though it’s super physical, without the water it can get reasonably basic because it’s just plaster up the river through the rocks and whoops, turn around and come back. Whereas the water throws a whole other challenge into the track – always changes lines, chains – keeps them busy.
ADB: So Ivan Long won, was ait a shoe-in?
Ben Grabham: Liam’s still injured so there was less competition. Ivan Long won. He did what he needed to do – survived it. Up until two laps to go, one of the local boys who owns a Yamha dealership up here, was well out in front, like three or four minutes ahead and quite comfortably to be honest. Then he had a bolt fall out, lost oil and DNF’d. Same old story – gotta finish to finish fast. Ivan rode smart and did what he needed to do.
ADB: Okay, and in your opinion this year, is there a bike that works better up there? I mean, your GASGAS guys – you had two in the top 10, didn’t you?
Ben Grabham: Yeah, we had some guys up there from Carnarvon who’d never seen it before, so it was pretty good to show what our package can do with some random guys on them. We had a good run – no engine failures or anything like that. But a lot of bikes up there broke before and during the race. So, me personally, I don’t believe there’s one particular bike. Our things are super strong and we love working with them, but it also comes down to how it’s prepped and the rider’s background.
Ivan won, but at the same time, if Brett hadn’t had the bolt fall out, he was going to be the quickest.
ADB: Yeah, okay. Was there anything that happened this year where you were like “holy shit, that was gnarly,”?
Ben Grabham: Not really. Like, poor guy Tom Kruger – he was up there last year, maybe fifth or something. I think he went through two or three bikes just to try and get to the start line, and then when he did finally make it, I think he only got a lap or two in before another gearbox and clutch went. He bought a bike in, this funny guy, busted his arse trying to make the finish line. But it seems like some years it’s just not gonna happen for some people.
ADB: And no one seriously hurt? No nasty accidents, choppers in and out?
Ben Grabham: I can’t confirm that one, but I do know after the first night there were quite a few guys who went to hospital.
ADB: Oh geez, okay. Was it faster this year, more high-speed with the wet, or slower?
Ben Grabham: Same, same. But I think the bumps around the water crossings firm up a little bit more, so they get potentially more tricky and hard work around there. Otherwise, the guys always seem to do similar speed.
ADB: And no dust, I’m guessing?
Ben Grabham: That’s the thing – it’s actually been quite dry up there apart from the early rain. So you had the water still flowing through the river, but everywhere else was super dry. It was still reasonably dusty. It’s river stone, so it’s not blinding dust, but it’s still dusty.
ADB: And when you hit those river sections, some of those puddles looked pretty deep. Do you have to worry about water going up into the airbox and killing bikes?
Ben Grabham: Some bikes do. Most people just run a normal airbox cover or something like that. I do know of a handful of guys on two-strokes who had to wring their filters out and get the water out of them. But most of the people scooting along at a decent speed seem to get through not too bad.
ADB: And can you just turn up and ride as a punter? Like, not race seriously but still get there and back, or is it one of those events where you have to be on it otherwise it’s dangerous if you’re not?
Ben Grabham: No, you can do whatever. We had a fair old mix. Obviously Declan was giving the front three a hurry up, but then we had some ex-racers who used to do decent racing who were just there with their families, having a holiday and cruising along. Chris Holman was literally up there with his family on holiday, just wanted to tick it off the bucket list and go for a trail ride. They just cruise along and love it. No real danger for those guys.
ADB: And what’s the vibe in town like the night before? Is it busy, a bit of a party vibe, or is everyone nervous?
Ben Grabham: I like it – it’s old school. You go up and the whole town’s behind it. Racing up there, the blue ocean is right next to you. You’re basically starting at the showground and riding a motocross bike down the road. I know it’s closed off, but that just doesn’t happen anywhere else. Riding a motocross bike down a public road to the river where the race starts, with the whole town behind the council supporting it – it just has a good vibe, like what we used to have years ago.
ADB: And spectators line the track all the way down?
Ben Grabham: They do what they can. It’s a bit tricky because of the riverbank and private property now, but anywhere spectators can get, they do, and it’s always jam-packed.
ADB: And are you allowed to camp the night before?
Ben Grabham: There’s really nowhere to camp, other than if you go a couple of k’s out of town.
ADB: For Longy, did he need to be a Price-type talent to go top three, is it that competitive?
Ben Grabham: To be honest, this whole year has been quite different with desert results. It’s been mixed. To be honest, it’s a bit of a race just to stay healthy – make the start line first, then the finish line. Some of the faster guys haven’t done that this year, but you can’t take anything away from the guys that do. So yeah, it’s going through a bit of a cycle at the moment. But to do that race at any speed, you have to be on it.
ADB: Do guys train for the Don like they do for Finke, six to nine months in advance?
Ben Grabham: Not really. You’ve got some young guys who want to put the work in, and they’re racing all year doing hard stuff. But no one’s up there the same as Finke. You can’t really train for Don because the race track doesn’t form until the cars race on the Saturday morning. It’s not there until then.
ADB: And how many riders did you have on your VIP Experience race program?
Ben Grabham: Ten of them.
ADB: And how many finished?
Ben Grabham: Technically one didn’t start because he had a footy injury, so we had nine finishers.
ADB: And your highest place finisher?
Ben Grabham: Fourth.
ADB: And your lowest place finisher?
Ben Grabham: One of our group crossed the line in 120th, she was in the women’s class.
ADB: Okay, wow – were there many women?
Ben Grabham: Yeah, quite a few. I’ve been coaching a lot of women lately. From Yellow Mountain to Kalgoorlie, there are heaps more now.
ADB: That’s good to hear. And no mechanicals on your bikes?
Ben Grabham: No major mechanicals. A few timed out, but not bad. The cool thing for us was we had a Pony Express class we entered. I’d never thought about it before, but we had twins – Trent and Byron Williams – who did the Pony and actually won their class.
ADB: Pony Express, you can run as a pair or quad?
Ben Grabham: Yeah, you can. They just had one bike between them.
ADB: That’s a clever way of doing it – split the cost and the riding time. How long is the race in hours?
Ben Grabham: For most people, fitness-wise, it’s probably more fun that way. The average lap is about 40 minutes, and you do three laps.
Fan Focus: Sebastian’s 13th Birthday at the Dash
All the way from Perth, young racer Sebastian celebrated his 13th birthday at the 2025 Custom Lithium Don River Dash – with his family making the trip to Bowen, North Queenslandas the ultimate present.
Sebastian, who races a KTM 85 SX, and his younger brother Alexander (KTM 65 SX), both ride out of the WA Junior Motocross Club (WAJMCC) in Chidlow.
Their favourite riders at this year’s Don? Tyler Radford and Ivan Long.
But the real highlight for the boys was getting up close with the stars – meeting riders and drivers at the community event, collecting signatures, and chatting to the competitors they look up to.
For Sebastian, it was a birthday he’ll never forget – and the Don River Dash is now a firm favourite on the family’s annual racing calendar.
2025 DRD Results
OUTRIGHT 2025
- Ivan Long – 2025 King of the River (Bikes)
- Levi Stephens
- Campbell Hall
- Declan Gibbings
- Eli Englebrecht
- Kyle Tuppurainen
- Jackson McGrath
- James Heenan
- Reece Crutch
- Nathan Elliott
