Steve Davis survived his first SA Variety Bash and lived to tell the tale. More importantly, he brings two bash stalwarts into the studio to share what really drives people to spend weekends fundraising all year, then eight days together in old cars traversing some of South Australia’s most remote terrain. Current chair Darren Greatrex recently delivered a record-breaking $2.7 million fundraising result, while veteran Sir Peter “Curly” Curtis OAM brings 35 years of bash wisdom to the conversation.

The SA Drink of the Week features Little Blessings Brewing’s Tropical Trinity Gin, a deep orange concoction that Steve discovered during a spontaneous tasting in the middle of nowhere between William Creek and Coober Pedy. The gin’s tropical fusion of pineapple, passion fruit and orange creates what Steve describes as walking backwards into a tropical plantation with a toucan tapping on your shoulder.

The Musical Pilgrimage presents “A Lot of Nothing,” an original composition by Steve Davis and the Virtualosos, written in the backseat during the bash as the vast South Australian landscape inspired reflections on finding yourself in the emptiness of the outback.

Episode photo of Monkey Business Car 13 by Keryn Stevens Photography.

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Running Sheet: A Deep Dive Into The SA Variety Bash

00:00:00  Intro

Introduction

00:02:45  SA Drink Of The Week

Th SA Drink Of The Week is the Tropical Trinity Gin by Little Blessings Brewing, based in Laura.

Between William Creek and Coober Pedy, Steve encountered Little Blessings Brewing’s Tropical Trinity Gin during an impromptu roadside tasting that perfectly captured the bash’s serendipitous spirit. The Laura-based distillery operates from an old chapel, creating this distinctive deep orange gin that shakes cloudy with fruit sediment.

Steve’s initial reaction, captured on camera in the desert, speaks for itself: “It’s like I have walked backwards into a tropical plantation of citrus and there’s a toucan tapping on my shoulder.” The gin combines sweet pineapple, tangy passion fruit and zesty orange while maintaining gin’s traditional robust structure. Steve likens it to a film set for Gilligan’s Island, where tropical botanicals create convincing scenery over gin’s reliable framework.

The colour resembles his parents’ 1970s kitchen cupboards painted “burnt orange” – a deep hue that wants to be red but stops several steps short. Steve recommends trying this gin neat, particularly for those who typically avoid straight gin, describing it as a feast for both palate and eyes with its beautiful label work and sunset-reminiscent colour.

The timing proves providential, as Curly’s pet parrot chirps throughout the interview, creating an unintentional tropical soundtrack that complements the gin’s character perfectly.

00:08:00  Peter “Curly” Curtis OAM and Darren Greatrex

Here we have two blokes who’ve discovered something most of us spend our lives searching for: a perfect fusion of adventure, community, and purpose. Darren Greatrex, the current Bash Chair, and Peter “Curly” Curtis OAM, the larrikin legend who helped shape what the SA Vareity Bash has become. Between them, they’ve got over 35+ years of Bash stories, from Curly’s first adventure in 1988 to Darren’s record-breaking $2.7 million result in 2025. But this isn’t about the money, the miles, or even the mechanics. This is about what drives people to spend a week wrestling with 25-year-old cars in the middle of nowhere, all in the name of helping kids they’ve never met.

We previously covered the Variety Bash in 2024, when Steve sat in with The Bakers car before they left Adelaide in episode 398.

Peter “Curly” Curtis OAM opens with a story that would terrify most first-timers: his inaugural 1988 bash experience leaving Burke at 8:30 am and arriving in Tibooburra at 4:00 am the following morning after getting bogged, lost, and possibly detained in a pub or two. “We slept on the ground outside the pub,” Curly recalls matter-of-factly. “We were up at seven o’clock not to be left behind.”

The conversation reveals how fundraising has evolved from basic entry fees to sophisticated year-round campaigns. Darren Greatrex explains the diversity of approaches: “You see anything from a sausage sizzle at Bunnings, you see people selling donuts, you see people putting on concerts.” The legendary Hogs, visiting Victorian fundraisers who shake collection tins outside supermarkets, can raise $3,000 to $10,000 per weekend through sheer persistence and community generosity.

A particularly moving moment comes when Darren describes arriving at Bendleby Ranges to publicly donate towards the local, Orroroo Community Playground project and then surprising the locals with the additional $50,000 they needed to complete it. “What variety did is they quickly got together and had a meeting only about three days prior to us arriving,” he explains. The decision to fund the shortfall spontaneously demonstrates how the bash operates beyond its structured grant process.

The human dynamics emerge through discussions of team formation and survival strategies. Curly observes that “very few people that raise the minimum, which is $10,000 per vehicle” and credits a culture where people “have that feeling of need” to give more.

In discussion about coping with camping in remote areas and going without showers, Darren notes the transformation from 95% male participation in early years to today’s 45% female participation, has revealed that women adapt “much, much better than the men.”

Steve’s rookie perspective provides fresh insights into the bash’s social dynamics. His observation about the ease of talking to anyone on the bash, boils down to the principles at work during costume parties where playing a character removes the “peril of being, making a fool of yourself” and that resonated with both veterans. “You are a persona,” Steve notes. “Remove that and the bash would be harder for new people to be included so quickly.” Curly confirms: “The bash would not be the bash without the themes and the cars and the costumes.”

The logistics discussion reveals staggering complexity behind the apparent chaos. Planning for 2026 began four months before the 2025 event, with infrastructure, catering, and fuel coordination for 400 people entering small communities. Mobile workshops carry spare parts and fuel, while three medical teams including Royal Flying Doctor Service personnel ensure safety across thousands of kilometres.

Personal stories punctuate the technical details. Darren’s memory of flying a blind child to Kangaroo Island with a braille computer demonstrates variety’s direct impact: “Just watching that impact on that kid was a turning point for me.” Meanwhile, Curly’s Tarcoola food horror story (“which one’s which?”) provides historical perspective on how much the event has improved.

The interview concludes with Steve’s proposal for mandated silence during one stop to appreciate the vast landscape. Both veterans embrace the concept, with Darren recalling standing at Sunset Ridge in misty fog: “We just looked at each other and just went, my God, look, this is just something you’d never, ever see.”

01:03:45  Musical Pilgrimage

In the Musical Pilgrimate, we play a track by Steve Davis & The Virtualosos, A Lot Of Nothing, to round off our deep drive into the SA Variety Bash.

“A Lot of Nothing” emerged from Steve’s backseat contemplation during the vast drives between destinations. The landscape between William Creek and Coober Pedy, where roads barely exist on station country, inspired lyrics about finding yourself in emptiness and the redemptive power of isolation.

Steve Davis and the Virtualosos crafted a composition that captures both the physical reality of endless horizons and the psychological journey of people who “choose” to live in remote areas of South Australia. The song’s central image – “There’s a lot of nothing as far as you can see,