Driving Impact: Kennards Hire Joins 2025 SA Variety Bash

L: R: Anthony Cuttle, Nick Page, Jack Lindegreen, Scott Francis,

Kennards Hire is returning for the 2025 SA Variety Bash from 9–16 August, marking an incredible 15 years of support and 13 years as a proud Gold Sponsor of this iconic Australian charity. 

This year, a new South Australian team is taking the wheel in the legendary ‘Car Ken’, raising over $9,000 for Variety, the Children’s Charity. Themed “Ocean Swells & Vintage Twirls,” the 2025 Bash will take entrants on an eight-day adventure from West Beach to Coober Pedy and back to Tanunda in a celebration of camaraderie, creativity, and community impact. Delivering grants and boosting tourism in remote South Australian towns, the crews bring colour and entertainment, dressed in wild costumes, sharing big laughs, and uniting with a powerful fundraising spirit.

Having been a proud Gold Sponsor of the Variety Bash for 13 consecutive years, the iconic family-owned equipment hire company’s entry in the Bash began with the legendary ‘Kennards Footy Club’ crew, led by Gareth Vines, former GM SA & NT. 

Now, a new generation of Kennards Hire team members – Anthony Cuttle (Branch Manager, Glandore), Jack Lindegreen (Project Manager – KMP), Scott Francis (Assistant Branch Manager, Darlington), and Nick Page (Service Person Driver, Morphett Vale) – have entered their team ‘The Bootleggers’ with ‘Car Ken’ to continue this legacy of giving back.

SA & NT, General Manager, Tyrone Morley said, “We’re incredibly proud to continue our long-standing partnership with Variety, as the Bash celebrates its 50th anniversary. It’s an event that brings together everything we value, community, generosity, and having a great time for a great cause.”

“The Bash aligns so well with our own values, especially 'One Family'. We’ve always had each other’s backs and treat one another like family, just as the Bash community does out on the road. 

“This year, our new South Australian team in Car Ken will carry that spirit forward, bringing energy, teamwork, and purpose to every stop along the way. We’re honoured to be part of something that makes such a real difference for kids across the state.”

In a drive to lift up communities and support local business, The Bootleggers have also teamed up with Prohibition Liquor Co., a unique city gin distillery which is also donating a tasting room voucher to help raise funds for the Bash journey. 

The Variety Bash was created in 1985 by adventurer Dick Smith when he took a group of friends for a drive he called ‘The Bourke to Burketown Bash’ and the Bash today has not changed from this original concept. Since 1989, the SA Variety Bash has raised more than $53 million to support children who need it most in South Australia.

South Australia has been named the Official Destination Partner for the National Variety Bash, coinciding with Variety’s 50th anniversary in Australia. This milestone year will bring together over 650 cars and 1,600 Bashers, all raising funds to support South Australian kids. In the past year alone, Variety positively impacted 88,196 children across the state, granting over $6.2 million through 244 life-changing grants that helped improve mobility, communication, independence, and self-esteem.

Donations to Car Ken’s fundraising efforts can be made via the official page: savarietybash.com.au/carkenthebootleggers.

For photos, updates, and behind-the-scenes action, follow @carkenthebootleggers on Facebook.

For more information or to donate to Variety SA, please visit varietysa.org.au.