OCTOBER NEWSLETTER Welcome to the October Newsletter of the 2017 Great Southern Land ARB Variety 4WD Explorer! You ve been waiting patiently all year for this event to arrive, so with only five weeks to go we thought it was time to provide you with some more information about what to expect, what to pack, the theme nights as well as a few reminders about levies and vehicle preparation. Thank you so much for everything you re doing to raise funds for kids in need! You re doing an amazing job and we can t wait to see you next month! If you do have any questions about any of the information, please make sure you contact the Variety office we re here to help however we can!!! INTRODUCING EVENTS TASMANIA... Variety is delighted to welcome Events Tasmania as an Event Partner for the 2017 Great Southern Land ARB Variety 4WD Explorer. Events Tasmania is committed to increasing the number of people coming to Tasmania and ensuring they travel around the entire state while they are there a perfect partnership with a charity that seeks to take our participants to as many places as possible raising funds for special children along the way!
OUR HIGH FLYERS Introducing our new Variety 4WD Explorer High Flyers Club! The Variety 4WD Explorer High Flyers Club is made up of teams who are the event s highest performing fundraisers, who have shown extraordinary commitment to raising as much as possible to help Aussie kids in need. It is about giving back to our determined fundraisers in a big way and giving you the recognition you deserve. How to Get the High Flyers Treatment It doesn t matter how many people you have on your team. When you commit to going above and beyond in your fundraising, you ll receive some incredible perks outlined below! You ll see it incorporates a whole new range of benefits and perks of being a Variety 4WD Explorer High Flyer! High Flyers Levels and Benefits!
A NOTE FROM OUR MAJOR SPONSOR... Hello fellow Explorers, ARB Corporation is delighted to be back on deck as the major event sponsor for the 2017 Great Southern Land ARB Variety 4WD Explorer event. I am certainly looking forward to joining you all as we cross Bass Strait and head for Tasmania. To assist you with the preparation of your vehicle all ARB stores are happy to offer our special ARB dealers price for accessories and equipment for your event vehicle. With plenty of beach driving expected on this journey, our dealers are more than happy to discuss the equipment you may need and the best way to prepare your vehicle. Be sure to keep an eye out on the event for the thousands of dollars worth of ARB products up for grabs at Auction or competitions as the event progresses. Looking forward to touring with you all very soon, Roger Vickery
Registration & Scrutineering Our good friends in Variety Victoria have offered up their office as our meeting point for Registration and Scrutineering pre event in Melbourne. The Variety Victoria office is located in Port Melbourne, close by to where we will embark on our Great Southern Land adventure. ADDRESS: h71/63 Turner Street, PORT MELBOURNE DATE: Sunday 12 th November, 2017 TIME: 9:00am 1:00pm Further information on our journey of the Spirit of Tasmania will be circulated in the coming weeks. VEHICLE DECALS DAILY DISTANCES Your Variety 4WD Explorer Decal Kits have been ordered and will be sent to you to prior to departing for the start in Melbourne. The kits will consist of: - 2 x Door Panels - Windscreen numbers - ARB Windscreen sash - Events Tasmania Sponsor decal - Tosca Industries Sponsor decal - ARB Sponsor decal - Variety decals DAY LOCATIONS KM s 1 Devonport to Cradle Mountain 306km 2 Cradle Mountain to Stanley 221km 3 Stanley to Zeehan 247km 4 Various options available 5 Zeehan to Strahan 65km 6 Strahan to Hobart 379km 8 Hobart to Bruny Island 322km 9 Bruny Island to Freycinet 90km 10 Freycinet to Bridport 308km 11 Bridport to Launceston 220km SUGGESTED PACKING LIST Keeping in mind all the sightseeing this trip entails as well as the beach runs scheduled in, we ve compiled a list of things we suggest you consider packing to take with you to Tasmania: - Quells if you get seasick, these will be a god send on our overnight journey to Devonport as well as on our two other cruises on the event. - Pack an overnight bag for your Spirit of Tasmania journey! As you will not be able to access your vehicle once parked, you need to take your luggage with you to your rooms. Trust us when we say, the narrow stairways and halls are not designed for big bags and there are limited lifts! - Spare parts for your vehicle common requirements are air filters, fuel filters, radiator hoses, fan belts - Beach equipment towels, sunscreen, dustpan brushes to keep the sand out of your vehicle - Hardy gardening gloves you never know when they might come in handy! - Small tarp it s better than laying in the dirt in case you need to get under your vehicle at all - Hats these are not included in your merchandise pack this year! - Camera to capture all those special event moments! - Goodies for the kids we have a number of school visits at breakfast and lunch. There is a school list provided further in this newsletter!
CAPTAIN'S NAME: Scrutineering Sheet Variety 4WD Explorer CONDITION OF ENTRY 4WD VEHICLES REGISTRATION: 4WD NUMBER Variety - the Children's Charity (Variety) or it's authorised representative(s) has/have the express right to accept or refuse any entry at their discretion. It is the responsibility of the registered owner(s) or hirer(s) of 4WD vehicles to ensure that they are in a roadworthy condition prior to, and for the duration of, the Variety 4WD Explorer. You may request mechanical assistance for emergency repairs to your vehicle during the event. These repairs are considered temporary repairs only. Variety does not take any responsibility for the emergency repair(s). It is the responsibility of the entrant to have emergency repairs checked by a qualified mechanic at either the first town from where the emergency repair took place or at the first reasonable opportunity. MAKE: YEAR: MODEL: INSURER: Approved For Extreme Tracks: YES NO Label Affixed 4WD EXPLORER EVENT DECALS Left & Right Door Panels ARB Windscreen Banner Car Number - Front & Rear Windscreens 2 x Variety Decals Tosca Engineering Events Tasmania MANDATORY EXTERNAL FITTINGS Recovery Points Front & Rear, Hitch or Chassis Mount High Mounted Brake Light High Mounted Dust Light Flashing Amber Light - rear of vehicle 40-Channel UHF Radio Snatch Strap MANDATORY EQUIPMENT 2 x Spare Tyres - appropriately secured Tyre Repair Kit 2 x 3 tonne bow shackles Fire Extinguisher MAXTRAX (or equivalent product) Compressor to re-inflate tyres 20 Litres of Drinking Water Tool Kit Jacking Plate or Solid Timber block around 250mm*250mm for jacking in soft sand or mud Tyre deflator / tyre pressure guage First Aid Kit ACTION REQUIRED Cargo Barrier or appropriate methods to secure luggage & loose items Jack capable of lifting fully loaded vehicle - NOT HIGHLIFT By visual inspection, the following items have been noted to require attention prior to the event. It is a requirement and responsibility of the entrant to show proof that this work has been carried out prior to the event start. ENTRANT SIGNATURE: SCRUTINEER SIGNATURE: DATE: DATE:
MEET OUR EVENT STAFF NAME: Craig Marriott ROLE: Event Director A.K.A: Bear VEHICLE: OV 1 Co-Driver: Sergei & Bec NAME: Steve Wakerley ROLE: Variety CEO A.K.A: Wakkers VEHICLE: OV 11 Co-Driver: His lovely wife Sam! NAME: ROLE: A.K.A: VEHICLE: Co-Driver: Erin Groeneveld Event Manager E1 OV OFFICE Lloydy NAME: ROLE: Rebecca Meredith Marketing & Communications Officer Bec A.K.A: VEHICLE: OV 1 Co-Driver: Bear & Sergei NAME: Sam Modra ROLE: Operations Coordinator A.K.A: Sergei VEHICLE: OV 1 Co-Driver: Bear & Bec
THEME NIGHTS NIGHT 2 STANLEY DEVILS NIGHT! In honour of the furry Tasmanian Devils that roam around the north western part of Tasmania we decided it was only fitting to have a devilish night in Stanley with a Devils Night NIGHT 6 HOBART UGLY JUMPER NIGHT! Everyone has one, buried deep in their wardrobe somewhere, a jumper you swore you would never be seen dead in! It s time to whip them out for our Ugly Jumpers Night and lets see just who proudly wears the worst one! For those of you who don t own anything ugly Variety will have limited ugly jumpers available for sale in the Variety shop at $10 each! NIGHT 9 FREYCINET ONESIE NIGHT We thought as it might be quite cool in Tassie still when we re spending time in the Great Southern Land, so it seemed very appropriate to have a theme night that allowed us all to stay warm. What better way than with a onesie night! DRESS CODES One of our most frequently asked questions is about the dress codes, specifically for the cocktail party at the start of the event and the final night function in Launceston. Both events are smart casual so no need to bring the high heels or start looking for a new frock. Really aside from the theme nights, the entire event is smart casual. As part of your merchandise pack this year you will receive a Variety jersey something with a bit of warmth for the potentially cold weather!
LAUNCESTON FINAL NIGHT You are more than welcome to invite any friends and family along to our final night in Launceston where they can help us celebrate the finish of our 2017 ARB Great Southern Land Variety 4WD Explorer. DATE: Thursday 23 rd November, 2017 LOCATION: Country Club Tasmania, Country Club Road, LAUNCESTON TIME: COST: 6:30pm for 7:00pm $130 per person INCLUDED: 3 course meal + 4hr beer and wine package RSVP: Friday 27 th October, 2017 to erin.groeneveld@varietyqld.org.au or 07 3907 9310 If you would like to organise accommodation for your extra guests, please contact Erin in the Variety office as soon as possible. There will be an additional cost for any extra accommodation required for your guests which will be confirmed with you on enquiry. OTHER IMPORTANT EVENT INFORMATION ACCOMMODATION INFORMATION We know you are eager to find out where you will be staying each night of our adventure through Tasmania. Accommodation letters are being compiled for each team and will be circulated via email in the coming weeks. EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION Should any of your family be looking to contact you urgently and should you be out of range, the following are the numbers of our staff, officials and office who will work on getting the message through to us as soon as possible: Variety Queensland Office: (07) 3907 9300 NAME ROLE MOBILE SAT PHONE VEHICLE Craig Marriott Event Director 0419 781 046 0147 141 727 OV 1 Erin Groeneveld Event Manager 0439 734 626 OV OFFICE Steve Wakerley Variety CEO 0438 252 183 OV 11 Sam Modra Operations Coordinator 0458 834 512 OV 1 SCHOOL VISITS We have a number of schools catering for us on this years event, below is the list of our lunch time and breakfast caterers where you will have the chance to see the kids: DAY SCHOOL KIDS DAY SCHOOL KIDS 1 Mole Creek Primary 49 9 Bruny Island Primary School 40 School 6 Strahan Primary School 63 11 Bridport Primary School 173
2017 GREAT SOUTHERN LAND ARB VARIETY 4WD EXPLORER COST INCLUSIONS CAR LEVY - TO BE PAID ONCE PER CAR $1010.00 inc GST to be paid by 31/10/17 - Spirit of Tasmania Return trip including 2 or 4 berth cabin - Barge fee at the iconic Fat Man Barge at Corinna - Return Ferry fee to Bruny Island - National Parks Pass for Tasmania National Parks - Arthur Pieman Conservation Area Pass MEAL LEVY - TO BE PAID PER PERSON $1550.00 inc GST to be paid by 31/10/17 - Cocktail party welcome on the Spirit of Tasmania - Breakfast, lunch and dinner every day of the trip (11 days in total) - Breakfast in Launceston on the day of Departure - Marakoopa Caves Tour - Tour of Dove Lake at Cradle Mountain - Admission to the Zeehan Heritage Centre - Dinner cruise with World Heritage Cruises in Strahan - Admission to The Wall art gallery - Bus transfers and Admission to the Port Arthur Historic Site - Dinner at the Cascade Brewery - A breakfast cruise of Wineglass Bay - Bus transfers to and from dinner in Bridport - Admission to the Low Head Pilot Station Maritime Museum - Gala Dinner in Launceston, including a 3 course meal and 4 hour beer and wine package - Merchandise kit including 4WD jersey, hat and cooler bag ACCOMMODATION LEVY - TO BE PAID PER PERSON $1020.00 inc GST to be paid by 31/10/2017 Accommodation has been booked in every town for the entire group and will be allocated by Variety. As there are some towns where the accommodation is tight, there will be some instances where you may end up sharing a two bedroom cabin/villa with another team. If you have a preference on teams to share, please inform Variety. Please note that Variety will endeavour to ensure fairness in accommodation type and distance from dinner when allocating the accommodation across the event. For those wishing to reduce their accommodation costs, limited camping options are available in certain towns. Please see the detailed itinerary for further information on these towns.
2017 GREAT SOUTHERN LAND ARB VARIETY 4WD EXPLORER LEVY PAYMENT FORM PAYEE DETAILS First Name: Surname: 4WD Entry #: Postal Address: Suburb/Town: State: Postcode: Contact Number: Email: 2017 VARIETY 4WD EXPLORER LEVY PAYMENT SELECTION: By completing this form, I acknowledge I have read and understand the list of levy inclusions for the 2017 Variety 4WD Explorer and wish to make payments for the below: VEHICLE LEVY (paid once per vehicle): Please pay the full Vehicle Levy of $1010 inc GST for 4WD # Please set up regular payment instalments on my credit card, as indicated at the end of this form MEAL & ACCOMMODATION LEVY (paid once per person): Please indicate the names of the people being covered for the meal and accommodation levies outlines below: Name: Name: Name: Name: MEAL LEVY PAYMENTS: Please pay the full Meal Levy of $1550 inc GST for x people, as listed above. Please set up regular payment instalments on my credit card as indicated at the end of this form for x people as listed above. ACCOMMODATION LEVY PAYMENTS: Please pay the full Accommodation Levy of $1020 inc GST for x people, as listed above. I have a reduced accommodation levy as I am camping in locations. My levy is $ per person as supplied by Erin. Please set up regular payment instalments on my credit card as indicated at the end of this form for x people as listed above at the full accommodation levy/reduced accommodation levy as indicated above. LEVY TOTALS: 1 x Vehicle Levy @ $1010 inc GST = $1010 + x Meal Levy @ $1550 inc GST each = $ + x Accommodation Levy @ $ each = $ = TOTAL: REGULAR PAYMENT OPTION: Please deduct $ off my credit card below on the first of every month for months beginning on 1 st of, 2017 CREDIT CARD DETAILS Credit Card Type: Expiry Date: Credit Card Number: Card Holder Name: Signature: Date:
2017 EXPLORER ITINERARY Spirit of Tasmania After finalising the paperwork and checking the vehicles, all Explorers will reconvene at the departure terminal for the Spirit of Tasmania where we will board for our overnight journey across Bass Strait where we will enjoy a welcome cocktail party on Deck 10! The Melbourne Terminal location is: Station Pier, Waterfront Place, Port Melbourne Day 1 Devonport to Cradle Mountain We will arrive in Devonport at the crack of dawn and make our first stop just around the corner from the Terminal at a local school for breakfast. We will begin our adventure today with a lovely coastal drive, before heading to Mole Creek for lunch, from where we will be split into two groups for a tour of the Marakoopa Caves. From here, we will make our way to our overnight stop at Cradle Mountain. Day 2 Cradle Mountain to Stanley We will begin the day with an early morning tour out to Dove Lake to see Cradle Mountain, before exploring some of Tasmania s forestry on our way to our lunch stop in Burnie at the Makers Workshop which showcases produce and craft from the region. It s a nice afternoon run into our overnight stop at the gorgeous coastal hamlet of Stanley. Day 3 Stanley to Zeehan We have our first beach drive of our Tasmanian adventure this morning as we make our way from Stanley to our lunch stop at Corinna. It will be a staggered start and take away lunch pack from the Tarkine Hotel before we ride the Fatman Barge across the Pieman River. Our overnight stop is Zeehan, where we will be camped for two nights!
2017 EXPLORER ITINERARY Day 4 - Zeehan Today is a lay-day of sorts, with plenty of time for you to get out and explore some the best of the West Coast of Tasmania. There are a couple of tracks that you can tackle one an Extreme track and one a Hard track. Both are weather dependent and will let you see some stunning sights. Or, if you d rather just kick back, you can do that too by taking a drive out to Trial Harbour. Day 5 Zeehan to Strahan First up this morning is another morning beach run into the tourist driven Strahan. Once checked into the hotel, we will board the World Heritage Cruises boat and enjoy a 4 hour Dinner Cruise, which will take us to Sarah Island, some of Australia s oldest convict ruins, to Hells Gates the narrow entrance to Strahan s Macquarie Harbour and up the Gordon River. Day 6 Strahan to Hobart Farewelling the stunning Strahan we will begin our journey to the state s capital. After stopping at rustic Derwent Bridge Hotel for lunch, we will make another stop only 5 mins up the road at The Wall Art Gallery a stunning 100m long sculpture carved from Huon Pine telling the tale of the Central Highlands of Tasmania. Once you ve taken in the wonder of the Wall it s time to head to Hobart for 2 nights. Day 7 Port Arthur After a sleep in this morning, we will board a few buses and head to the Port Arthur Historical Site for a day exploring and soaking in some history! The visit to Port Arthur includes a picnic lunch pack, an optional 45min walking tour and 25 min cruise. Around mid afternoon, you will be picked up by the buses again and taken to our dinner location at Cascade Brewery - where you will get to experience a tour or show plus dinner!
2017 EXPLORER ITINERARY Day 8 Hobart to Bruny Island After a semi-relaxing day at Port Arthur, we depart Hobart and enjoy some great 4WDing tracks this morning, making our way over to lunch at the Southport Hotel Australia s southernmost pub! From here it s a lovely coastal drive across to the Bruny Island Ferry terminal, where we will board and head across to the stunning Bruny Island for the night! Day 9 Bruny Island to Freycinet With breakfast by the school and a take-away lunch pack, the morning is yours to explore the beautiful Bruny Island. After lunch in the early afternoon we will make our way back to mainland Tassie for our afternoon drive to Freycinet another gorgeous location for you to explore! Day 10 Freycinet to Bridport It s an early morning this morning as we board our boat for a Breakfast cruise out to the glorious Wineglass Bay, listed as one of the Top 10 beaches of the WORLD!!! Our lunch today is at the iconic Pub in the Paddock, where you will get to meet Priscilla the pig! After this, we make our way to Bridport, and our accommodation amongst the Sand Dunes! Day 11 Bridport to Launceston It s our last day and we ve made sure to squeeze as much as we can in on this final leg! We have our final beach run first up, followed by lunch at the Low Head Pilot Station in Georgetown. From here we make our way through Beaconsfield (where you can spend a little time visiting the mine) and onto our overnight stop in Launceston. It s our final night, so a gala dinner is in order to celebrate our achievements and toast our success in reaching the finish line!