“I was born in the Kingscote hospital in 1957. It was great growing up here. I grew up right opposite the school bus bay on Addison street and I wouldn’t go to school until I heard the first bell ring. After school, I’d walk in the door, pick up a sandwich, glass of water and out the door. My mum used to call out, ‘Get outside and don’t come back until tea is ready.’ So, it was straight into the bedroom, get the bathers on, pick up the spear gun and down to the jetty or pool. I went to Kingscote Area School until I was 17, then off to Adelaide for work for seven years and then back when the family got the Ford motor vehicle dealership. My brothers also took on their own businesses, David in the fuel depot and Mark in the tyre business. I ran the car business for 25 years.
I sold my first car on the second day. Old bloke came in and said, ‘How much for a new Falcon ute, Haydon?’ After I worked it out—it was about $5,500 brand-new back then—he said, ‘Alright, you better get me one.’ I thought that was pretty easy. When the old bloke came back to pick up his ute about three to four weeks later, he said, ‘I thought I’d just make your first car sale easy. I was always gonna buy one.’ I still remember who he was; old Roy Tipping, he died ten to fifteen years ago. He was the harbour master; he was just a really nice old bloke.
I’ve had many four-wheel-drives, all different; cheap ones, expensive ones. I am on my last one now, this one is gonna last me another ten years. When we took off with the first 4wd, it was swag by the fire, that was it. BBQ, sausage and bread, you just lived easy. I was always looking for the next adventure. Then graduated from swags to tents, then from tents to camper trailers, and from camper trailers to caravans. It’s my whole life at the moment. We now have a small off-road caravan and can’t wait to spend more time on the road. I’d love to go back up to Darwin again. The further north the better, central Queensland, up there. Love staying at cattle stations. We end up camping down by billabongs and rivers.
We’ve crossed the Simpson Desert, Gunbarrel Highway, Kimberley’s, Cape York and more.
I definitely have the travel bug.”