Orchardist Wins Mower In Anniversary Competition

News Release
For Immediate Release
Photographs available
July 13, 2006

Opotiki Orchardist Wins New Mower In Trimax's 25th Anniversary Competition

Chris Stone's old Trimax mower has been part of the family for the past 24 years and three months. But this week it got taken away and replaced with a brand new model.

Mr Stone won Trimax's 25th Anniversary Toughest Mower Competition by entering in the oldest operational Trimax mower.

"I was very excited to hear we'd won the competition. We've had a marvellous run out of the old machine and now we've got this brand spanking, shiny new one."

Mr Stone found out about the competition when he rang Trimax to inquire about purchasing a new mower.

"When asked how old my mower was I replied 'very old' and was then urged to enter the competition. I'm absolutely thrilled to win."

Like most of the competition entries, Mr Stone's mower has some funny stories behind it.

"When the mower was about seven years old, my (late) wife and I went away overseas for six months. We had people living in a bus on our property and one of their jobs was to keep the orchard mowed. I told him it would only need doing every five weeks or so and explained how long the grass should get before it needed chopping.

"When we came home we were stunned to find out property looking nothing like an orchard and farm, but more like a golf course. He'd enjoyed the mowing so much, he'd put up 400 hours on our tractor and mower and had actually completely worn the tractor seat out - thankfully not the mower though."

Mr Stone says it took several more years to put another 400 hours on the mower.

Apart from running over the "usual hunks of wire and the odd electric fence standard", Mr Stone says his faithful old Trimax has been well looked after and has repaid them for it.

"It's only been in the last year that I've considered replacing the mower and that's only because the body has started to deteriorate because of the extreme conditions we live in. The orchard/farm is on the east coast just past Opotiki and we get salt drift across the whole property, which is not too good for the machinery.

"There was no doubt in my mind that I'd buy another Trimax mower. We had a faultless run with our old one so why wouldn't I go back to a company that has produced such a great machine."

Mr Stone says the mower has been a "universal tool" on the farm - used to cut grass, top weeds and mulch up tamarillo prunings.

"I'd say that, along with the Massey Fergusson 210 tractor we've always used to pull it, the mower was our wisest machinery choice. Of all of the machinery we purchased in 1982 when we took over the property, it has given us the best service."

Trimax sales manager Allan Dudley says it was a pleasure to deliver the new Ezeemow mower to Mr Stone.

"We are really pleased the mower has gone to someone who's owned it for such a long time. This competition has really proven to us that Trimax's aim of producing mowers that are 'built to last' has continued to be a key philosophy for the company during its 25 year history."

ENDS

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