A global pandemic will not stand in the way of the Burrumbuttock Hay Runners with chief Brendan Farrell announcing the big rigs will head to Winton, Queensland at the start of 2021.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
In fact Mr Farrell from NSW's Riverina is hoping more than 300 prime movers and 500 trailers will make the trek carting bales of hope to the outback for the traditional Australia Day run.
"It's a big ask but it's one weekend a year ... one," he said when asking truck drivers to volunteer.
"If your heart's in the right place, you'll come on the run."
Mr Farrell, who is in the throes of a very busy harvest, said the constraints of the coronavirus crisis, border closures, trucks and hay had him agonising over whether to go ahead with a hay run.
"(But) at the end of the day, there are still a lot of areas in NSW and Queensland that are in major drought ... we don't seem to realise that," he said.
Mr Farrell said Winton and surrounding areas "have been doing it tough for a fair while".
"We do one run a year ... but they're big; that's how I roll," he said in a Facebook video.
Bumpa later posted stark images of bare landscapes to make the point the rain, which has seen many regions enjoy their best season in decades, hadn't made it to Winton.
READ MORE:
Trucks drivers are being asked to register their interest via Facebook or the hay runnners' website.
If the numbers go his way he'd like to take 100 trucks of hay to Boulia to thank a special fella called "Jack" who has previously fund-raised for the runners.
Mr Farrell conceded they'd raised "bugger all money" in 2020 thanks to COVID-19.
But he's hoping where there's a wheel there's a way.
