Outback Queensland's Dakar Rally hope Rodney Faggotter has been forced to bow out of the prestigious race after his bike suffered mechanical issues while tearing through the sand dunes of Peru.
Mr Faggotter, who works at Centretune Motorcycles in Longreach when he is not endurance racing, had made a promising start over the rally's first two legs.
With a position in the rally's top 20 well within sight, Mr Faggotter's race came to a halt in an isolated stretch between San Juan de Marcona and Arequipa.
At 798 kilometres, the third stage of the rally is the second longest stretch of the event.
"As most already know I had a mechanical issue yesterday which brought my efforts to a stop in the dunes," Mr Faggotter wrote on social media.
"Always the way too that I manage this in an area [that's] impossible to be towed from."
Mr Faggotter was officially sitting in 29th place out of 135 riders after the first two stages of the Dakar Rally, and was hoping to work his way up the leader board.
"Finally got into a good rhythm too and had worked from 30th start position to 18th in the road by the refuel," he wrote.
"Yesterday would have shot me up towards the top 20 overall which was my minimum goal."
Before his breakdown on stage three, Mr Faggotter wrote of battling a cold through the first days' riding.
"I feel a bit low on energy a little because of a cold, but have no excuses as I rode well and basically flat out for four hours on the limit."
He also described the tough level of competition, coming up against full-time riders who were able to dedicate themselves to preparing for the event without juggling other commitments.
This year's Dakar Rally traverses Peru through 10 stages, with sand routes making up 70 per cent of the course.
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.
