So what happened? You got over there, you borrowed the gear, right? It wasn't your first choice, but at least you get to compete.

Yeah, no, it wasn't, but it was pretty frustrating not having our own gear.

Since the tractor came home from Europe last year, I'd spent a whole lot of money on the tractor and plough, modifying things and getting it to where I wanted.

But anyway, that wasn't to be.

So the Welsh team, Rodri and James, George and family from Wales reached out to us, offered us the gear and then said, well, we're going to use that gear.

Why don't you come over here to Wales and do a bit of practice with the gear as well? That's what we did.

We were already booked to go to Croatia.

Pretty tough, but were you happy with where you got to?

mark remarkable a campaign despite the odds

yeah good morning here and yeah that has been challenging like the last month there's been a lot going on with the gear not getting to where it was meant to be and then making sure it got home and then checking up gear and um yeah it's been a lot of yeah things were moving pretty fast here for a while just different people with different offers but we uh we had to make a call what we're going to go with and we're really lucky the welsh team that breached out to us and offered us their gear and then With that coming on board, we sort of thought, well, rather than waiting for the gear here in Croatia, we flew to Wales and had five days over there practicing with the gear and working in the Rodri's workshop, Rodri and James George's workshop in Wales, just modifying things and tweaking with things before we got back over here to

The

temperature's been very, yeah, it's been warm.

And the temperature varies from, well, we go outside in the morning at 16 degrees, or during the week it was getting too hot, so we were knocking off during the midday, come back to the room and have a rest, and then heading back out.

Well, one day there the car was telling us it was over 42 degrees, and that's just stifling and no wind.

So we'd get going sharp, we'd be out of the paddock at six and then knock off and then back out at three or four o'clock and then work till eight or nine o'clock trying to get there.

Just tinkering with the gear and trying to understand the soil type.

Mark, remarkable campaign despite the odds.

Yeah, good morning, Aaron.

Yeah, it has been challenging a lot in the last month.

There's been a lot going on with the gear not getting to where it was meant to be and then making sure it got home and then jacking up gear.

There's been a lot of things.

We're moving pretty fast here for a while, just different people with different offers.

But we had to make a call what we're going to go with, and we're really lucky the Welsh team reached out to us and offered us their gear.

The

How much of a difference does it make to you?

Yeah, a lot of difference.

But then the last few years, I've had different things that haven't gone my way, so it hasn't been as good as a lot.

But this year, I've done a lot of mods because the tractor's only just come home this January.

It'd been in Europe for two years, so I got it home this January, spent a lot of time with the engineers doing modifications, and then battled the nationals with it, and I was really, really happy with how it went, and done more modifications than went in the container in May.

So while your tractor is being shipped, do you use another one and do you dig up fields for fun so that you get practice in?

Pretty much, yeah.

We've been talking, we're lucky enough, the Croatian Ploughing Association, I think they're an association, we've been talking to their board representative and he's organised a tractor for myself and a plough and then he's got a plough organised for Malcolm and he's trying to track him down a tractor as well so we can both get a bit of pre-practice in before our own gear turns up in the container.

So what happened? Have you got to the bottom of where it all went wrong?

Yeah, we've been talking to our broker and they've been trying to communicate with MSC, which is a shipping company, but they just broke down the communication.

They didn't tell us there was a hold-up in Sydney, so it sat there for two weeks.

If we'd known this information, maybe we could have got on a ship from Sydney to Croatia and it still would have got there in time for the event.

So Mark, just excuse my complete and utter ignorance, you can't compete with other gear, you need your gear? Yeah.

Well, it's like playing golf with someone else's clubs, really, isn't it? Or going to a rowing event with someone else's boat.

Well, we can compete, but I've just had mine since it came home from the last World Event at the Engineers for close on a month, critiquing things and doing more modifications.

And, yeah, I've spent a lot of money and time on it, and I was really looking forward to it, but that's out the window to the sound of it.

Mark, because, you know, I mean, this must be, I mean, I can sense that, you know, like things happen, but this must be immensely frustrating.

Oh, so much so, Lord.

We had the gear packed up and well on the 20th of May, and it was in plenty of time to allow for an extra month up our sleeve.

But when it sits in a port somewhere and we have no comms for two weeks, we can't rectify the problem.

And then now they're just sort of washing their hands of it and saying, well, it's bad luck.

So it's bloody difficult, isn't it?

I definitely see it very much so.

So the plough I'm using, I've been ploughing with it for 25 years and just modifying and tinkering stuff.

Mark, because, you know, I mean, this must be, I mean, I can sense that, you know, like things happen, but this must be immensely frustrating.

Oh, so much so, Lob.

We had the gear packed up on the 20th of May, and it was in plenty of time to allow for an extra month up our sleeve.

But when it sits in a port somewhere and we have no comms for two weeks, we can't rectify the problem.

And then now they're just sort of washing their hands of it and saying, well, it's bad luck.

So it's bloody difficult, isn't it?

I definitely see it very much so.

So the plough I'm using, I've been playing with it for 25 years and just modifying and tinkering stuff.

So how did that happen? And does it matter, I suppose? I mean, is it a massive cockup?

Oh, yeah, she's...

But yeah, not good.

Um, yeah, the gear was meant to be over there in a couple of weeks in Croatia, so it was gonna hit at times.

So we're, if we had any hiccups, we had a bit of a buffer.

But, uh, it's not.

So apparently, it missed a ship in Sydney or got lo-loaded onto the wrong outfit and then, uh, you know, decided to send it home rather than sending it from Sydney to Croatia.

What's it worth? When you say it's expensive, what's it worth? What's the tractor and plow and all that stuff with the modifications?

So how did that happen, and does it matter, I suppose? I mean, is it a massive cockup?

Oh, yeah, she's ...

But yeah, not good.

Um, yeah, the gear was meant to be over there in a couple of weeks in Croatia, so it was good ahead of time so if we had any hiccups, we had a bit of a buffer.

But, uh, yeah, it's not, so apparently it missed a ship in Sydney or got lo- loaded onto the wrong outfit.

And then, uh, yeah, now they've decided to send it home rather than sending it from Sydney to Croatia.

I mean, what's it worth? What's the tractor and plow and all that stuff with the modifications?

Well, the amount of hours I've put into it, it's, it's hard to even keep track of.

Mark, does competitive ploughing require special gear in terms of the machinery you're using, the tractors, the plough itself? Tell us a little bit about that and where does it come from if it does require special gear?

Yeah, so the plough I'm using is a Cabral and Match plough that was brought in to New Zealand in 1994.

They had the last world's here.

And then it sat around for a while, then I bought it.

I've probably had it just about 30 years probably.

And then it's, yeah, I've just been modifying it.

As things have progressed, if I see something I like, and I've seen a lot of different ideas of the world.

Where else have you been involved in plowing competitions? And yeah, tell us a little about the differences that you come across in those different parts of the world.