The Country 06/03/25: Steve Hollander talks to Jamie Mackay

The Founder of the Rural Games Trust will preview all the action you can expect this weekend at the Rural Games in Palmerston North, and all the glitz and glamour happening on Friday evening at the Rural Sports Awards.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's all going to be happening in Palmerston North from
tomorrow and up and over the weekend. Yes, it is
the Ford Ranger New Zealand Rural Games, plus the Rural
Sports Awards as well. In fact we might start with those, Steve,
the Rural Sports Awards. You have got a galaxy of
stars there, I think Wayne Smith, Tim Salvey just to

(00:20):
name a couple.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
Yeah, it's brilliant. We're really looking forward to tomorrow. I
can't believe it's on your daiway, Jamie, but we're finally
got Sir Wayne Smith here to present the Sobrian mhaw
Memorial Trophy, and of course Tim Soudy just retired, he's
coming to be interviewed and presenting the BDS New Zealand
Rural Sportsman of the Year. And we've got Erica Dawson

(00:44):
here from Sailing New Zealand, the medalists from the Paris Olympics,
along with Dylan Schmidt the Trampolinis, who are both going
to be also at the awards dinner.

Speaker 1 (00:54):
A couple of well known sharers are there as well,
Sir David Fagan, who we've already chatted to recent times
here on the Country and World championsharer Roland Smith. He
missed out at the Golden Shares, but I wouldn't discount
him for those World champs next year, Steve.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
Oh yeah, look, the Sunday final of the speed sharing
is going to be very exciting. Course the newly crowned
Ty Anderson is going to be with us. But yeah,
Roland is coming back for a one last cracket at
having a go for the whole year in competition. I'm
sure he's going to be competitive, Steve.

Speaker 1 (01:29):
I was talking to Ferg earlier in the week, of course,
and I icon has been there since day one, since
we kicked off the Rural Games way back in Queenstown.
And I remember meeting you for the first time and
you said, right, you're over there in the corner of
the Queenstown Recreation Grounds. You've got to commentate the tree
climbing and I thought, well, what a bore that'll be. Gee.

(01:50):
I grew to love that sport. It's much more than
tree climbing. It's arborists who are magnificent athletes.

Speaker 2 (01:58):
Oh look, the Guardian Tree Speed tree climbing is just
an amazing event and this year it's going to be
made even more special with Steph Drive out there, who
is just different having a wonderful year, the president, World
champion both men's and women's joining together in a pairs
event which is going to be regional from around New
Zealand in that event on Sunday morning.

Speaker 1 (02:17):
So talk us through tomorrow onwards because Clash of the
Colleges is happening in the Square in Palmerston North tomorrow
that sort of kicks it off.

Speaker 2 (02:26):
Yeah, the youth programs are the main event for Friday
with the fashion of the colleges and the Agri Futures
which is your pathway of the secondary school kids into
agri jobs. That's going to be great. There's about seventy
odd schools from coming from throughout the Lower North Island.
And of course we've got the Steel Timbersport Rookies and
women's events on tomorrow, so there'll be the highlights for Friday.

Speaker 1 (02:48):
And then into Saturday and Sunday. We're into all those
rural sports you've mentioned, the speed sharing, you've mentioned the
tree climbing ferg of course he loves the Highland Heavies.
That's the Highland Games. That's always a crowd favorite and
my particular favorite and I wish I was there to
commentate it again this year.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
The dog Trials, Yeah, Doctor PTS Dog Trials are on Saturday,
the middle of the day. It's a really good time
to have that event on. It's absolutely going to be
chopper in the ground. Future Post Speed Sensing starts the
day off on Saturday morning, which is also going to
be a very very popular event, and of course Scare
Up New Zealand Booth Throwing Championships are on on Saturday too,

(03:28):
which you've commentated before, Jamie. And then Sunday morning, of
course the very very popular Batters Coal shoveling event, the
New Zealand Speed Coal Shoveling, and we get a whole
bunch of MPs that are turning up to challenge each
other on Sunday morning. That's going to be very exciting.
Todd McClay will be there, Mark Patterson. I'm not sure

(03:48):
if they competing against each other, but they may even
form together into a formidable pairs accommodation.

Speaker 1 (03:55):
And we've already heard from Todd McClay on today's show.
I'm going to put it on your Steve Islander. You're
the found and the trustee of the Rural Games and
the Rural Sports Awards tests celebrating ten years this year
since we kicked it off in Queenstown. What's your favorite event?
Come on and don't sit on the fence.

Speaker 2 (04:11):
Oh the Steve Hollander eggs, Roy and Cat.

Speaker 1 (04:14):
Hey, Steve, I reckon what you should do there is
you should stand down and let everyone throw eggs at you.
I think that would be very popular.

Speaker 2 (04:22):
I'd be very happy to that, Jamie, if you join me.
I generally spend most of the time on the sideline
biffing eggs over into the into the field, just to
keep everybody on their toes.

Speaker 1 (04:31):
Yeah, good on you, mate, Hey, congratulations. Without you, this
wouldn't happen. It's all happening in the Parmis North Square
from tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday. It's the Ford New Zealand
Rural Sports Awards and of course the Rural Games. Gotta go, Steve.

Speaker 2 (04:45):
Good luck, big, big, big thank you to you, Jamie
and all of the tammand ends that have promoted the
game so well for us over the years. Very exciting
few days ahead of it,