A CITY-BASED accountant will soon swap his calculator for a steering wheel and launch a four-wheel drive assault on an unsuspecting outback.
A CITY-BASED accountant will soon swap his calculator for a steering wheel and launch a four-wheel drive assault on an unsuspecting outback.
Parkinson Accountants director Dave Fong plans to enter the automobile division of the Australasian Safari Adventure Tour next month, a gruelling off-road four-wheel drive race traversing 3,600 kilometres of Western Australian countryside over seven days.
The event begins August 1 at Northbridge's Russell Square, and culminates in the heart of the Goldfields, Kalgoorlie, on August 8.
This year is the third time Mr Fong and his team of eight have entered the safari, and they're looking to crack the top 10 after a 12th place finish last year and an 11th in 2007.
But Mr Fong says victory isn't the only goal.
"It does get competitive. For us though, it's also about the adventure, and just finishing," he says.
"I suppose it depends on where you set your bar at as to what you want to achieve.
"For us it's always been about finishing."
Mr Fong says the safari is an ideal way to get away from the monotony of everyday office work.
"I work in an office all week, and then I get out and about in this event across the deserts of WA," he says.
"It's completely devoid of my work; it's completely different. It just gets me away from everything, and it's a bit of fun."
In order to enter the race, Mr Fong has sought out sponsorship dollars, and leverages these funds throughout the year.
"We are sponsored, so a lot of our entry fees, fuel and some of the consumables on the car like tyres and stuff are actually supplied by sponsors," he says.
"What tends to happen, though, is it's run like a small business; the car is used for advertising, used in displays and things like that throughout the year."
Eventscorp executive director David van Ooran, says the Australian Safari is a significant event in Tourism WA's calendar that showcases the state's unique attractions.
"It's been a bit of a winner for us, it fits neatly into adventure tourism because it's very challenging, out there in the big wide world, that's an important thing for us," Mr van Ooren told Business Class recently.
"Things like Australasian Safari are a perfect fit for us and the brand.
"It showcases the outback adventure experience beautifully through the television broadcast it generates, which is then distributed almost globally into all our key tourism markets.
"Either Perth or WA is mentioned on screen or by a commentator, or the scene on the television is uniquely Western Australian - you can't miss it."
