Operator king at national excavator competition

Date: 03.05.2023

Otago’s Troy Calteaux showed his operating skills to defend his national title against a formidable field of 12 regional finalists

Troy Calteaux nailing the excavator painting challenge at this year’s national finals

In doing so, the Milton local and Andrew Haulage 2011 Ltd employee became the first-ever three-time national champion, following national titles in 2018 and 2021, at the recently held 2023 Civil Contractors NZ CablePrice National Excavator Operator Competition.

"I put everything into it this year. I focused on each task, and it just went mint. That was the best performance I’ve had at the nationals," says Troy.

Troy Calteaux from Dunedin won his third national title at the CCNZ CablePrice National Excavator Operator Competition

The competition saw regional champion excavator operators manoeuvring their 13-tonne Hitachi excavators through a series of challenges, including crowd-pleasing tests of skill such as uncorking a champagne bottle, pouring the perfect cup of Earl Grey tea, or slam-dunking a basketball using the buckets of their machines.

Hawke’s Bay competitor Dan Mepham walking his excavator across logs in this year’s national finals

The runner-up this year was Northland champion Steven George, of Steven George Contracting Ltd, who put in an impressive showing at his first shot at the nationals.

The 2021 runner-up, veteran Waikato competitor Mike Bowe, of Bowe Brothers Excavating Ltd, placed third. The CCNZ CablePrice National Excavator Operator Competition has been running since 1994.

The 2023 winners were

• Champion: Troy Calteaux, Andrew Haulage 2011 Ltd, Otago
• Runner-up: Steven George, Steven George Contracting Ltd, Northland
• Third place: Mike Bowe, Bowe Brothers Excavating Ltd, Waikato
• Z Energy One-day Job Challenge: Steven George, Steven George Contracting Ltd, Northland
• Humes MVP Award: Marni Kemp, Central Demolition, Bay of Plenty
• Geoff Duff Memorial Trophy: Jarrod Hoskins, Fulton Hogan, Auckland  

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