Dune bikers defend their patch

27dec05
THE sand spray and unmistakable scream of high-performance motorcycles can mean only one thing - the dune bikers have made their annual summer pilgrimage to Beachport, one of few remaining South Australian sites for their sport.

They race through the dunes with little regard for the vegetation which would otherwise knit the sands together, the special paddle tyres on the bikes tearing at the sand below.

To environmentalists and the Coastwatch movement, it is a disgrace, but the riders defend their right to the only small patch of readily accessible dunes where they can legally enjoy their sport.

"This is the only place you can ride in dunes unless you go all the way over to the West Coast," rider Luke Grivell, 21, of Adelaide, said.

"Some people do the wrong thing and ruin it for the rest of us, but most guys stick to the rules because otherwise we'd have nowhere to ride."


The dirt bikes reach speeds of up to 60km/h through the dunes. At this time of the year, as many as 40 to 50 bikes use the 100km track through the Beachport dune system.

Nearby, a private property gives them the chance to let loose.

"There's not many places like this around SA that you can do that," Josh Labella, 20, said.

Going off designated tracks and entering sand dune systems throughout the state's national and conservation parks has been off limits for vehicles for more than 30 years.

Mr Labella said he had once been fined $160 for riding on a sand track.

Phil Hollow, acting regional conservator for the South-East, said illegal motorbike and four-wheel-drive use was always a problem and usually worse in the summer.

"Just a couple of weekends of illegal use can really carve up the dunes and cause major damage," he said. "We want people to enjoy their visit, without destroying what they came to see.

"Sand dunes are a dynamic system. Bikes can easily cause erosion, spread weeds, kill plants and ruin the homes of native animals."

Mr Hollow said there were hundreds of kilometres of legal tracks throughout the Beachport and Little Dip conservation parks, Canunda National Park and the Coorong. But go off-track and fines start at $150.

An 80km stretch of the Coorong beach was re-opened this week after being closed to traffic for two months to ensure the hooded plover could breed safely in the dunes.