OBR 2026 - done and red-dusted…

I might have mentioned once or twice.. or more if you know me in person… how bloody excited and honoured I felt to be invited into the Outback Rodeo Media Team to shoot at the Coolgardie Outback Rodeo and Festival this year.

Well heck, what an eye opener! Being part of the overall team I was able to see, experience and help out with the behind the scenes operation, and what an operation! To be fair, I only actually saw a glimpse, because a huge amount of the work is done before anyone even gets to site. The fact that this is masterminded and run by one guy and his partner in everything in life, is jaw-dropping, humbling, mind-bending.

There’s a huge infrastructure behind the scenes pulling this event together. People from everywhere showing up with what seemed like almost every piece of plant equipment under the sun. The seating for the VIP area carefully chiseled into the slope with what I thought was a cute little digger/bulldozer machine. Straight, level lines to secure the seating for people seated handily close to the chutes - eyeballing the action up close.

A grader grading the roads into and out of the site, smoothing the way for the 4 x 4’s, the 4wd’s, the 2wd’s and even the EV’s driven by and carrying the WA record breaking 10, 342 visitors to this mind blowing event.

Toolbox meetings every morning working through an ever growing list of tasks and things to get done - put the signs out, set the gazebos up and secure them, make sure the volunteers are well protected from the sun, wind and any rain that might decide to come join the party, and zip ties everywhere. I finally learned how to do them right first time round - I’ll never get them round the wrong way again lol.

This is a family in every way, shape, and form, and I’m proud I was able to see even the peep behind the scenes that I got to see.

Then there’s the team I became a part of. Seasoned professionals in what they do and shoot. I was blown away by their inclusion from the get-go, and by their support - far before we even headed to Coolgardie. I’ve learned so much so fast, with plenty more to learn from them as I continue to grow in this genre. From a woman who usually heads out into the bush aiming for places where there’s pretty much nobody, to working with a team, soaking up as much as I can from them as quickly as I can, well, that right there says it all really. Sometimes coming in from the cold is a good thing… and sometimes, like now, it’s bloody amazing.

My heartfelt thanks to you all, I can’t wait to do it all with you again! 🤞you know who you are!