THE physical challenge of riding a motorbike in the Finke Desert Race in Alice Springs is a tough test for Jackie Peacock, but her personal connection is driving her to do everything she can to be prepared for the grueling ride.

The popular two-day race draws 650 riders (and also 165 car and off-road buggy drivers) from all over Australia and requires considerable preparation in physical endurance, equipment, logistics and mental toughness.

“It’s probably one of the hardest desert races in the world,” Jackie said.

“It’s definitely one of the hardest in Australia and it's just an iconic race that I've wanted to do for quite some time.”

With 11 weeks to go before the Queen’s Birthday weekend event, Jackie’s personal battles with mental health had motivated her to raise funds and awareness for Beyond Blue.

“I thought if I'm going to put in quite a lot of effort to get up there and actually finish it – (if) I'm going to do all that I may as well use that as a platform to spread awareness to mental health,” she said.

“Although I have an awesome life and am generally very happy, my mental health has caused some stress for me throughout my life.

Subscribe for full story.