Owner/Driver #339

isbane truck show
TRUCK
FESTIVAL
IN THE
PARKLANDS
Of all the places to hold a truck
show! How could you ever
hope to beat the surroundings
of Brisbane’s amazing South
Bank Parklands?
South Bank is Brisbane’s premier dining, lifestyle and
cultural destination. The tourist brochures all rave about
the world-class eateries, 17 acres of lush parklands and
the stunning river and city views. Check, absolutely no
arguments there.
And they talk about the “epic line-up of eclectic events all
year round”.
Eclectic, fair enough. It is hard to disagree that a truck show set
amongst the restaurants, cafes, bars and bougainvillea is eclectic.
It is extra special when they close the streets for you to hold
a festival in your honour. That is what the South Bank Truck
Festival is.
The locals are rolling out the red carpet in preparation for your
arrival. And it is up to all of us to show the Brisbane community
how much we appreciate their hospitality.
So, our truck display will honour our connection with the
community and tell stories of the different roles we play. We will
explain to them how proud we are of our industry’s innovation,
skilful engineering and world-class local manufacturing. It has
seen us develop some of the most amazing high-productivity
vehicles on the planet.
They will appreciate that you are hard workers; proud but
humble; always ready to lend a hand. The backgrounds of our
people are as diverse as the different roles we all play. That makes
for some of the most satisfying lifelong career paths anyone
could hope for.
You can’t look at a line-up of trucks like this and not be a little
proud of the fruits of your labour. Immensely proud, actually.
So, we will be putting on some entertainment and we hope
you will mix amongst the locals and let them experience the
generous heart and soul that underpins every one of you.
We will invite the locals and visitors from far and wide to come
and share the experience with us. And we will leave an indelible
mark on them that will further elevate their perception of us,
and our role in the community.
Meanwhile, the locals will be catering for you too. They are
opening their doors and their arms to welcome you to their
wonderful establishments. The options are seemingly endless.
They’ll be rolling out the proverbial red carpet for you and
your guests to create a festival atmosphere, including free live
entertainment; many will be offering special deals for truck
show visitors.
Come and join us at the South Bank Truck Festival. It’s a major
heavy vehicle display and entertainment & networking hub.
Little Stanley Street and Stanley Street Plaza will be closed to
traffic for a major display of trucks and trailers.
The week will see 30–40,000 people enjoying this exciting
initiative, a place for our industry to gather with customers,
mates – both old and new – and the broader community.
Come and share in the spirit of this fabulous week of events –
a great reason to host your guests in the area.
Strongman truck push aims for Guinness World Record
Troy Conley-Magnusson is very strong. Very, very
strong. A quick search of his name online and you
will see video and images of Troy pulling aeroplanes,
semi-trailers and even a fleet of 16 cars.
There is something incredibly likeable about the
guy, and you don’t have to scratch the surface far to
see what it is. It is what motivates him.
Over the past couple of years Troy has had a lot of
attention due to his many amazing exploits.
He has had more than a fair go at a number of
phenomenal records. A Guinness World Record is
inevitably going to feature his name very soon, and
it could very well be as a result of his next challenge,
during the South Bank Truck Festival.
But the question is why? Always start with why.
“What’s important for me is the fundraising,” Troy
told us. “That’s absolutely number one. If we can drive
that past $30,000, that would be incredible.
“The record is then a nice bonus.”
That is pretty awesome, isn’t it?
Troy says that while the challenges are great fun(?),
they are for a very sombre reason.
“It’s all about helping kids that have been seriously
injured or diagnosed with critical illnesses like
cancer and leukaemia,” he said.
“Unfortunately, that is what happened with young
Ava. At just two-years-old, she was diagnosed with a
rare form of leukaemia and subsequently lost over 98
per cent of her bone marrow.
“Thankfully, now five years on, she’s ok and in
remission, largely thanks to the support Little Wings,
Ronald McDonald House and Sydney Children’s
Hospital offer.”
Last November, Troy was attempting to break
the Guinness World Record for Most Cars pulled by
an Individual with 16 Hyundais, weighing over 25
tonnes. Unfortunately, he came up short of the record
by five metres due to a misplaced foot on one of the
car’s brakes!
To keep momentum going and keep driving
the fundraising, Troy was looking for another
challenge.
“I’ll be looking to set a new Guinness World Record
for the heaviest truck pushed by an individual for
100ft (30m). Currently this is 11 tonnes.”
Well, thanks to Daimler Truck and Bus Australia, we
have the vehicle: a 12 tonne Freightliner Cascadia.
To be eligible for a Guinness World Record the area
used has to be surveyed by a qualified surveyor and
certified to be within 1 per cent of 100 per cent flat.
We have found that surface on Little Stanley Street in
South Bank.
“After the failed world record attempt last year I
received a message from Ava’s mum,” Troy added.
“For all the things I’ve done in my life, nothing has
moved me in the way that did.
“So, now I’m a man possessed, and a man on a
mission, to ensure we reach our $30,000 target.”
It doesn’t do it justice not to include the whole
note. However, here is a small excerpt from Ava’s
mum Kathy:
“Ava and I were chatting about you and she
realised you lived at Ronald McDonald house as well
for a long time when you were little, then the penny
dropped.
“You could see her eyes begin to sparkle. She asked
‘so I could do that?’
“I think it would be amazing if you could go and
tell all the kids who stay at Ronald McDonald house
your story.
“You understand gratitude like we do; it is this
level of gratitude we have for you today for unlocking
our little girl’s potential.”
He is truly an inspiring bloke – passionate,
relentless in pursuing excellence, and most of all –
genuinely caring.
“Going the extra mile like I am at the moment to
help the community, to allow kids like Ava to be able
to follow their dreams, and support families like hers
when they need it the most; that’s all I need,” Troy
says.
Make sure you are there to support Troy on Friday
morning, May 14.
You can make a pledge or a donation to help Troy
reach that target on the South Bank Truck Festival
website. Go to www.truckfestival.com.au
72 APRIL 2021 ownerdriver.com.au