After nine full days on the road, I finally found myself back in the DeckHardware warehouse on Monday morning — tired, a little dusty, but glad I’d made the trip.

This journey took me from the South Coast of NSW, through Victoria and across into South Australia, visiting trade customers along the way. While I’ve been involved in DeckHardware for years, spending this much uninterrupted time driving between regions really brings home just how spread out Australia’s marine trade network is.

The car was well and truly packed — new stock (including our newest brand, Sea Sure), boxes of catalogues, and a couple of special deliveries — and the days were full. Even so, I still found myself wishing I’d had more time to stop in with additional customers along the way. As well as a chance to stop on the longer drive days and split them up a little more so I could enjoy some of the small towns I travelled through.

Seeing the Distances for Myself

For many years, my dad Phil made trips like this regularly, driving from region to region to visit customers. Previously, I’d only ever driven as far as Goolwa before flying home, so completing the full return drive from Adelaide really highlighted how much ground these trips cover.

The Driving: Enjoyable… and Exhausting

I genuinely enjoyed a lot of the driving. There’s something satisfying about long stretches of open road and watching the landscape change as you cross state lines.

That said, the single‑lane sections were a different story. Long periods driving solo, sharing the road with a constant stream of trucks, took a lot of concentration and energy.

A Motorsport Surprise at The Bend

One unplanned stop turned into a real highlight. Dad had mentioned that The Bend Motorsport Park had cars on display, so I thought it would be worth a quick look.

As it turned out, there were cars on track while I was there. It was an unexpected but very welcome break from the drive — a reminder that sometimes the best moments on road trips are the ones you don’t schedule.

A Quick Visit to the Formula 1 Exhibition

While passing through Melbourne, I also stopped in at the Formula 1 Exhibition. I would have loved more time there — especially to properly read all the information on the displays — but even with a shorter visit, I really enjoyed what I saw.

It felt like a nice contrast to the marine world I’d been immersed in all week, while still very much tapping into my interest in engineering, design, and performance. After all a number of F1 teams work with Sailing Teams on design.

Unexpected Catch Up

Before heading out on the road, I was talking to a member of the team at Happen who are our Website, Accounting and Stock Program. When I mentioned where I was headed they asked if I could meet for coffee as they were based in Melbourne! Their new payment system is what we are using for invoices and it has been working great since we transitioned across. What an unexpected addition to the trip and well worth it as Happen programs play such a huge role in what we do.

Straight Back into Work

After arriving home on Sunday, there wasn’t much of a pause — Monday morning was straight back into the warehouse.

As tiring as the trip was, it reinforced why these visits matter. Being on the road, seeing our customers in person, and understanding the realities of their locations helps us do a better job supporting them with the products and service they rely on. Nine days, thousands of kilometres, a few unexpected stops — and a much deeper appreciation for the marine trade we support across Australia.