Hattah has high hopes

ENTRIES have been postponed for the Hattah Desert Race due to the COVID-19 pandemic but the committee is still hoping to be able to run the popular enduro event this year.

With Victoria still in a state of emergency until May 11, event coordinator Jenni Gledhill said entries for the July event would wait on any announcement from the government.

"We're aiming for it, until the announcement is made on May 11 as to what restrictions are being lifted we are in limbo, but we are still aiming for entries on the 16th," she said.

Options have been discussed for how to run the event under modified conditions if need be.

"We've discussed a no crowd option and it's not something we necessarily want but if that's probably what has to be done we can definitely go that way," Gledhill said.

"And put in other options for live streaming and things like that, we'll work with whatever restrictions are in place at the time if we can still run it."

The committee is also considering a mid August event date if July isn't feasible according to government advice.

As it stands pre-entries for the race will continue, with invoicing not occurring until the committee is confident all entries will proceed.

If the event cannot go ahead all entries will be refunded in full.

The committee has also been working closely with Mildura Regional Development and the Mildura Rural City Council, and have secured a substantial number of accommodation houses that have assured (in writing) that there will be no out of pocket expenses if the event cannot go ahead due to the pandemic.

"We'd love to put it on for the region, the town is going to need something to bounce back," Gledhill said.

KTM Enduro Racing Team's Daniel Milner is the reigning Hattah champion, saluting after rain shortened the 2019 version of the event.