A NINE-DAY HOLIDAY ABOARD THE EXPLORE BY GEMLIFE MOTORHOME FOR TWO OLD FOOTBALL BUDDIES TO VICTORIA’S KIEWA VALLEY PROVED A BIG HIT FOR GEMLIFE BRIBIE ISLAND HOMEOWNER JOSEPH DAWSON AND HIS BEST MATE STEPHEN WAYNE.
“It was great! We played Aussie Rules footy together 45 years ago up in Cairns – I was coaching and Steve was a team member – and we have been mates ever since. Three months ago, we decided to hire the Explore motorhome and head off on a boys week away to my brother’s 72nd birthday bash down in Victoria,” said Joseph.
With wife Kaye happy to have a week to herself at home looking after their American staffy, Rosebud, and ragdoll cat, Misty, the boys headed off in the `big girl’ as they called the motorhome, saying it was comfortable and very easy to drive.
They made a few stops including a stopover at Moree to visit the artesian pools.
“It was also great to see some of the old buildings in the towns along the Newell Highway and we just missed the Elvis Presley Festival in Parkes although there were still a few Elvis lookalikes around,” said Joseph, who added they also drove through some beautiful green country and amazing scenery.
You may ask, what do two former Aussie Rules fanatics talk about on a long roadtrip which included six hours of driving a day for three days straight?
“Football, of course! We talked about how good we were on the footy field, which made ourselves feel really good. We’re both 68 now, and the older you get, the better you think you were!” laughed Joseph.
The one thing they couldn’t agree on was the best Aussie Rules football team, a conversation that not only saw the miles whittle away on the road but also continued once the mates had reached Joseph’s brother’s place in the snow country of the Kiewa Valley.
“Steve is a Collingwood supporter and I go for the Melbourne Demons. The majority at the birthday party went for Collingwood too, so I was a little outnumbered,” said Joseph.
Joseph and Steve camped on the property and were delighted with everything aboard the Explore by GemLife motorhome.
“We had no problem using everything thanks to a great induction by GemLife’s Andrew Dover who took the time to show us how it all worked. And we also had a great video which was very informative, and we could always refer back to it if we needed help with anything,” said Joseph who is already looking ahead to their next trip.
“While we had a great `trip for the boys’, I’ll be going with Kaye next time and we are planning a three to four-day break away in the `big girl’.”