The 2024 Variety Victoria Bash will kick off in August with cars 25 years or older piloted by teams raising money for Victorian children living with disabilities, illnesses, or experiencing disadvantage.
A local team of Water Warriors is taking a 1988 Nissan GQ Patrol on the journey from Swan Hill to Airlie Beach.
Lead driver Doug Fehring is no stranger to red dirt roads and outback conditions and is looking forward to putting the Patrol through its paces.
“The car has been used in previous Bashes, as Meerkat Mischief, the last one it went to Cairns and then they took it up to the Cape and I thought, gee, that’s a fairly reliable vehicle.
“My brother suggested we do a Variety Bash some years ago, but it all got too hard.
“The Nissan Patrol was in Swan Hill, so I thought I’d go and have a look and we ended up buying it.”
The pre-1999 vehicles must have full registration and must pass a pre-event inspection.
Doug hopes the trip will be a great chance to raise funds for the kids and also give them an opportunity to highlight the current water issues on the way.
“I’ve seen that government intervention in the water has been a political manoeuvre, not an environmental one at all.
“It’s caused all sorts of havoc for local communities, like Cohuna, where I’m from.
“It’s caused a fair bit of trouble, really; they’re decimating the farming community, that’s what’s going on, and it’s just not right.
“We’ve gone to rallies, we’ve tried to bring politicians in to show what’s going on, but they don’t listen. They’re busy on their own agenda.”
Navigator Geoff Kendell said giving back is a passion.
“I’ve always been keen to support kids all the way along.
“It’s probably been a passion of mine over the years, I like to give back what was given to me as a young guy by the senior people that were around me.
“I thought the bash was a great opportunity to be able to do that.
“Doug got us all into it and he’s done a great job. We’ve got a commonality between a lot of us that we’ve all worked on the Murray-Darling Basin Plan and what effect that’s had on our community, and when I say that, to business, the farming community, but also to our families, and the social aspects.”
Co-driver Mal Johnson has seen many changes to the local landscape.
“We want to get this message out that the Murray-Darling Basin shows a big catastrophe.
“The decline of our small rural towns and farming, all the things that Australia relies on is just getting absolutely hammered.
“They’re taking away the lifeblood.
“The environment is also losing out; you’ve got to look at all the environment.
“I know firsthand, I’ve seen it happen all around the show. You can’t pull water out of areas and expect nature to strap a water bottle on and off to the next generations.
“How can you make decisions about country areas if you don’t go to the country?”
Lindsay Schultz is the final member of the team, and he said this adventure will resemble the Basin Bound trip to the Darling.
“We had a lot of fun when we travelled to the Darling.
“Although, we did stay at a pub with no beer, we hope to avoid that sort of faux pas this time round.
“Something must be done about the situation. You look at the water coming down the Torrumbarry system, and it’s only a fraction of what it was 15 years ago.
“The cost of running the irrigation system is going to be shared by the people who are going to be left, and the price is going to continue to go up.”
Businesses have an opportunity to get their logo on Car 33 – Murray Darling Madness through sponsorship, and individuals can also donate at https://fundraise.variety.org.au/fundraisers/car33murraydarlingmadness/bash.
This article appeared in The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, 16 May 2024.
