Toby Price has legendary status among the Australian dirt bike community. Why? He’s the only Australian to win the Dakar.
What’s most extraordinary is that he did this with a broken wrist. An absolute tough nutter!
Toby Price
Toby is an enduro motorcycle racing veteran who started out riding at a very early age. In fact, he was behind the handlebars from 2 years old and winning races by the age of 4.
He spent much of his teenage years riding instead of reading and writing. Clearly a skill that has paid off for his future.
In addition to riding, he’s also heavily into off-road buggy racing and was a former champion. He lives today on the waterway canals of the Gold Coast and still competes at a national and international level. Do you know Justin and the crew at Patriot Campers? They’re close mates with Toby and often head up to Finke to catch up.
Toby has won many titles in Australian offroad motorcycle racing. This includes multiple wins at the Hattah Desert Race, the Finke Desert Race and the AORC. Then we have the big one….
Dakar Wins
Toby Price was already well known among the dirt bike and adventure riding community throughout Australia. He then rose to household status following his win in the Dakar Rally in 2016, followed by an epic win in 2019 with a broken wrist. Tough as nails!
For his efforts, he was awarded the inaugural Ronald J Waler Award for Excellence. This is a rare award given by the Australian Motor Sports Hall of Fame.
Toby Price Bike
In the Dakar Rally, Australian Toby Price rides a heavily modified KTM 450 Rally. The bike received a host of upgrades to both increase its performance and reduce the weight. Just check out that beast of an adventure fairing.
It’s an incredible machine designed for the harshest of conditions. If you think the Australian bush is a bit harsh…then you haven’t ridden for thousands of miles of the rally. Despite all of these modifications and aftermarket parts, the bike isn’t just reliable but often keeps Toby towards the front of the pack.
Competitive Super Truck Racing
While truck racing in Australia isn’t that popular and certainly doesn’t draw the crowds that the motocross scene does, that hasn’t stopped Toby from having a crack. When Toby isn’t twisting the throttle, he’s got his right foot flat to the floor.
Toby Price hasn’t done as well with competitive truck racing. He has raced in several cities and prefers to race for the enjoyment rather than winning spots on the podium. That said – he’s still bloody quick and rarely comes in at last position.
KTM Loyalty
Given KTM’s premium quality and race-ready performance, Toby has always had an affinity with this brand. KTM has sponsored Toby Price since 2009 yet he’s been riding their enduro motorcycles for years prior. This probably has something to do with their incredible performance when riding on sand.
Oddly enough, he previously rode for KTM Off-Road Racing Team then switched to the Red Bull Factory KTM Rally Team. Same bikes. Different tribes. Go figure. It would actually be odd seeing him rode for Honda or Yamaha. It just wouldn’t be….aligned.
Early Retirement?
We don’t see Toby retiring anytime soon. While motocross competitors are generally done by age 30, enduro riders often go on until their mid 40’s before hanging up the gloves.
Essentially, we wouldn’t expect him to retire as he certainly isn’t in this for the money. What we’d love to see is an enduro training school setup in Australia for young riders. These are rare and most riders have to head to Europe.
We can only think of one person worthy of starting such a training school for the next generation of riders.