Young farmers Damon Topham, Ashlee Topham, Oaklee Treasure, and Leah Taylor, competing as the ‘Bindi Belters’, claimed victory in the Young Farmers Challenge at the 2024 Perth Royal Show. The competition, designed to showcase agricultural skills, is open to teams of four, with a requirement of at least one representative from each gender.
Participants demonstrated a wide range of abilities, including animal handling, fencing, tractor driving, fire safety, first aid, heavy lifting, and transport challenges.
Damon Topham, a late addition to the team, was recruited just days before the event, but luckily his ability to hitch, load, and reverse a trailer (among other skills) were fine tuned and ready to go!
“It was a fun competition, and good to help get the name of Bindi Bindi out there,” Damon said.
Reflecting on the experience, he said the most challenging part of the competition was participating in a pop quiz in front of a 200-strong crowd on stage. “I was surprised by how many people were curious about farming, but it was great to help these city guys out,” he said.
The Young Farmers Challenge is not only a competition but a chance for young Australians to network with peers and industry leaders across the nation. It highlights the importance of agriculture, providing a platform to celebrate and support the next generation of farmers.
For the Bindi Belters, the journey is far from over, as they now prepare to represent Western Australia at the National Young Farmer Challenge in Adelaide in 2025, where the competitive element heats up. Damon said, “It gets more competitive nationally because the Young Farmers Challenge is huge over east, whereas they’re just ramping it up in WA now.”
With their sights set on the national stage, the Bindi Belters are ready to take on the challenge and make WA proud.
