Longreach mechanic Rodney Faggotter is sitting pretty after day one of the gruelling 5000 kilometre Dakar Rally across South America.
Mr Faggotter, who works at Centretune Motorcycles in Longreach when he is not endurance racing, is currently 29th out of 135 riders after the competition's first stage.
This year's Dakar Rally traverses Peru through 10 stages, with sand routes making up 70 per cent of the course.
The first stage of the race has already forced two riders in the motorbike division to pull out.
In an update posted to social media, Mr Faggotter said he was pleased with his start to the rally.
"Very happy to have a smooth clean smart run though in a class field," he wrote on Facebook.
Mr Faggotter, who is racing for Yamaha's Yamalube Rally Team, first entered the Dakar Rally in 2012, when a blown engine cut short his run at only the fifth stage.
The next year he was back, finishing an impressive 14th place.
Justin Searles from Longreach's Centretune Motorcycles said he and his workmates were all backing Rodney.
"We're all wishing him the best of luck," Mr Searles said.
The second stage of the rally covers more than 500 kilometres between Pisco and San Juan de Marcona.
The Dakar Rally also has competition categories for quad bikes, four-wheel drives and trucks.