Castlemaine may be known as the hot rod centre of Victoria, but after the town’s 2010 Rotary Truck Show, held on November 20-21 at Campbell’s Creek Sports Ground, it will be known as the custom trucks centre of Australia.
The Rotary Club had all bases covered and were well prepared for a great weekend. Consequently, organisers, truck owners and drivers as well as the general public who came to the show were not disappointed.
The trucks rolled in and were of a very high standard – owners and drivers continued to polish and clean as Saturday’s judging got underway.
The utes were the first to be judged during the afternoon, together with the dogs that accompanied the ute owners.
Saturday’s Rig of the Day was won by Ricky Cornwill of Cornwills Transport with his Kenworth T908. The Cornwills, like many, have been coming to the Castlemaine Show for many years, making a weekend of the event by arriving Friday evening. Ricky’s brother Wayne Cornwill says they had been cleaning and polishing the truck until 3am on the Saturday morning. The Cornwills are perfectionists and their 908 looked a million dollars.
The truck numbers continued to grow throughout the day. More trucks attended on the Saturday than for the entire event the previous year.
The atmosphere at Castlemaine is great. Families and groups of friends camped out around the oval in tents, caravans and semi-trailers – there were fires and barbeques. Bands performed on the stage which added to the atmosphere and everyone had a great evening.
Everyone arose to the aroma of bacon and eggs drifting across the oval. After the truckies’ breakfast, the majority of trucks made their way down to Castlemaine to form part of the convoy.
The sleepy old town of Castlemaine woke on Sunday morning to the sounds of air horns as more than 100 trucks paraded down the main street, watched by the local population.
There were smiles all around from proud drivers and those watching who liked what they saw.
Back at the oval, parking was at a premium but once it all settled down, everyone was busy putting the final touches to their pride and joy.
The weather was perfect and the public came to enjoy a great day.
While parents had come for the trucks, the kids could ride the side shows, touch the animals in the kids’ farm, have their faces painted, and for the older ones, the go-carts proved to be popular.
The event is well catered with something for all tastes and palates, while the band Sweet Rock provided the music throughout the day.
Thorpe Custom Trucks, Klos Custom Trucks and American Truckworks of Adelaide had a wide variety of custom trucks to be checked out.
The truck pull was held in the afternoon with Adtrans winning the prize money.
The announcements that everyone had been waiting for took centre stage at 4pm. Ricky Cornwill again came out on top, his Kenworth T908 winning the major prize of Rig of the Show. The judgement was well received with everyone acknowledging the work the Cornwills had put into preparing their Kenworth.
It was a great day and a top weekend. The Rotary Club of Castlemaine continues to provide the transport industry with a great event for owners and drivers to show off their gear, as well as providing an excellent venue for like-minded people to catch up for chat.
The weekend is a huge effort. Russell Timmins from the Rotary Club of Castlemaine was praised for his efforts and encouraging and tireless efforts.
Next year the show dates are November 19 to 20 – put it in your diary now!
CASTLEMAINE TRUCK SHOW RESULTS
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 20
Rig Of The Day Ricky Cornwill, Cornwill Transport Kenworth T908
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 21
Rig Under 2 Years: American Truckworks Australia Peterbilt 389
Rig 2 Years & Under 7 Years Glen Keating, Keating Transport International 9200
Rig 7 Years & Under 14 Years: Hibberson Transport Kenworth K100G
Rig Over 14 Years Anthony Janner Kenworth SAR
Best Rigid R & R Mileto Volvo FM
Best Tow Recovery Ashley Reeve, Associated Towing Kenworth T908
Best Tilt Tray David Dean, Calder Tilt Trays Hino FD
Fleet (3 Or More Rigs) Heavy Haulage Australia
Best Tipper Warren Story, Daisy Garden Supplies Kenworth K108
Best Classic Peter Clapton, Sherwood Truck Restoration Mack B61
Best Custom Joe Latore, Diamond Logistics Kenworth T950
Rig Of The Show Ricky Cornwill, Cornwill Transport Kenworth T908
Best Presented DAF Jason Mulleyer, Rascal Trucking Daf CF85
Best Presented Freightliner Franca Inserra, Killarney Lakes Transport Freightliner CST120
Best Presented Hino David Dean, Calder Tilt Tray Hino FD
Best Presented International Glen Keating, Keating Transport International 9200
Best Presented Isuzu Dan Tyquin, S & S Tyquin Isuzu FVD
Best Presented Iveco Tim Mcclure, R & R Mcclure Excavations Iveco Stralis
Best Presented Kenworth Ricky Cornwill, Cornwill Transport Kenworth T908
Best Presented Mack Heavy Haulage Australia Mack Superliner
Best Presented Mercedes John Teague, Associated Towing Mercedes Actros 600
Best Presented Mitsubishi Temby Transport Mitsubishi 555
Best Presented Peterbilt Jon Kelly, Heavy Haulage Australia Peterbilt 359 Extended
Best Presented Scania Dave Whyte, Whytes Transport Scania P420
Best Presented Sterling Dean Slingo, Slingo Earthmoving Sterling Lt9500HX
Best Presented Volvo Brian Keating, Keatings Transport Volvo FM12
Best Presented Western Star Leon Thorpe, Thorpe Transport Western Star Constellation