A movie has been made in his honor and for more than 20 years Tom Kruse was synonymous with the iconic Birdsville track, providing a forntnightly lifeline for the outback community of Birdsville, which is renowned as Australia’s most remote town.
And now the man many have hailed as an outback legend will be further honoured at the 2024 Birdville Big Red Bash (July 2-4, 2024) with a restored 1942 Chev Blitz truck identical to the one Tom drove on the Birdsville Track taking up residence at the Simpson Desert music festival – paying tribute to the pioneering mailman of the Birdsville track.
“Car restoration specialist Luke Hamdorf found the Chev Blitz truck that had been languishing in a shed in regional Murrayville Victoria for close to 30 years and convinced the owners to sell to us – giving the old truck a second life in Birdsville in honour of Tom Kruse. We’d worked with Luke at the Mundi Mundi Bash when he bought his replica Mad Max interceptor vehicle out to the event and it was a huge hit so we were excited to be able to offer our Big Red Bash patrons a similar experience with a vehicle that is intrinsically linked with Birdsville and the Birdsville Track,” said Greg Donovan, Birdsville Big Red Bash founder/owner and Managing Director of the Outback Music Festival Group.
Tom Kruse battled heat, floods, flies and breakdowns to deliver letters, parcels, food and farm supplies to Birdsville – driving a Chev Blitz truck just like the one that will be showcased at the Big Red Bash for many of the years he traversed the Birdsville track during the 1930’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s.
“While the Blitz truck that Luke has preserved is a beautiful vehicle with a rich history, I wouldn’t like to be taking to the Birdsville track in it on a fornightly basis like Tom did. There’s no mod cons – it would have been a slow, hot, bone jarring journey. Our patrons spend months preparing for their annual pilgramage out to the Birdsville Big Red Bash and are lucky enough to do it on predomunately tarred roads with mobile communication, air conditioning, great suspension and a host of modern driving technologies we take for granted. Tom drove the track when it was wild and untamed – and we’re thrilled to be able to honour such an interpid icon of the Outback,” added Greg Donovan.
“I worked on the Blitz truck from September last year until a few weeks ago. We’ve rebuilt the engine – machining it and reassembling and re-installing it as well as rewiring. None of us wanted to make such a beautiful old truck look new – that would have ruined some of its charm. Instead we’ve retained the aged patina, spening many hours with a Scotch bright pad rubbing it back and to remove rust. We focussed more on preserving the vehicle, repairing the body where it was needed but not repainting. The old timber tray was worse for wear so I’ve worked with Peter Mallet from Wooden ‘n Work to strip it back to bare rails. We kept the old deck timbers and headboard and sourced some weathered hardwood from a local salvage yard to recreate that original style – we then linseed oiled it to help it last another decade or two,” said Luke Hamdorf, of Hamdorf Promotional Vehicles in Adelaide.
Mechanically we’ve had to source old parts – the engine wasn’t happy when we bought it. It had a bunch of stuck valves and had spun a big end bearing. A new radiator was fitted along with fresh oil and gaskets. On the interior we cleaned and re-uphostered the two front seats adding floor mats, new gauges and a refurbished steering well.”
The Chev Blitz is not only historically significant as the type of truck that Tom Kruse used, but this particular truck played a role in World War II as a mobile mechanic vehicle. It was based in Darwin, and is believed to have also gone overseas.
“The truck has just finished it’s trip out to Birdsville to commemorate Tom. Even though it is now roadworthy it made the trip on the back of a truck – I don’t think I have Tom’s stamina to tackle the Birdsville track in the Blitz, regardless of how much better the roads are today. It’s only got a top speed of 30 MPH so it would be a long slow tripe,” added Luke Hamdorf.
The Blitz truck has arrived in Birdsville only a week out from headline act Tina Arena hitting the Big Red Bash stage for her first ever Outback performance along with Jon Stevens and an epic lineup of artists including Ian Moss, Colin Hay, Tim Finn, Diesel, Baby Animals, Vanessa Amorosi, Mark Seymour, Richard Clapton, Casey Barnes, Shane Howard, Pierce Brothers, Bjorn Again, Mi-Sex, Chocolate Starfish – Bat Out of Hell, The Rolling Stones Revue starring Phil Jamison, Tex Perkins and Tim Rogers, Furnace & the Fundamentals, Ash Grunwald, Fanny Lumdsen, Sarah McLeod, Hayley Mary, Steve Balbi and Amy Ryan – who at just 14 yo is the youngest performer ever added to the Big Red Bash line up.
Festival goers at the Birdsville Big Red Bash will have the opportunity to get up close to the Blitz truck, as well as enjoying a special screening of the film The Back of Beyond documentary on the Birdsville mailman Tom Kruse and first premiered in 1954.
The film screening at the Birdsville Big Red Bash will include an introduction by renowned pastoralist David Brook—owner of the organic Adria Downs Station on which the Big Red Bash is staged. David features in the closing scenes of The Back of Beyond as a blonde-haired preschooler kneeling in the sand making animal tracks with Aboriginal tutor Ruby as Tom Kruse rolls into the old Birdsville Post Office.
“We’re excited that a historic Blitz truck will now be based in Birdsville. I still remember the excitement of Tom’s arrival in town. It’s easy to take for granted the connectivity we have these days. There’s still the distance but delivery trucks have a pretty easy run here now, and we also have twice weekly flights bringing the mail. It is a lot easier than in Tom’s day,” said David Brook.
The film made the unassuming Tom an international movie star, winning a swag of awards around the world.
Movie goers remain transfixed with following Tom battling over sandhills, through floodwaters and across muddy claypans undertaking the 1,000 kilometers from Marree to Birdsville and back on a fortnightly basis.
When Queen Elizabeth – on her first tour of the Commonwealth – saw the film aboard the royal yacht on her way home she personally endorsed him to become a Member of the British Empire for his efforts in delivering the royal mail.
Historian and author Kristin Weidenbach, who rode alongside her father Neil Weidenbach with 85-yer-old Tom Kruse behind the wheel of a Badger Neil had helped restore on a re-enactment trip from Birdsville to Marree in 1999 will also help welcome the Blitz truck to the Big Red Bash.
Kristin will give a special reading of her children’s book Tom the Outback Mailman from the back of the flatbed tray of the Blitz truck for young festival goers. The children’s book along with her book Mailman of the Birdsville Track that shares Tom Kruse’s story will be available for sale at the Big Red Bash.
“I’m excited to share in honouring Tom at the Big Red Bash. He would have been thrilled with what’s planned. It’s lovely to see his memory being shared with younger generations, many of whom will have travelled the Birdsville Track to the event. I’m hoping hearing his story will resonate with them and give them another thing to think about as they make their way home,” said author Kristin Weidenbach.
The Birdsville Big Red Bash is an all-ages, dog-friendly camping event that offers up a uniquely Australian adventure for families, grey nomads, camping and caravanning enthusiasts and intrepid travelers.
The event features a wide-ranging program of outback activities – from the Nutbush City Limits World Record dance off attempt to morning yoga, dunny door painting, comedy and outdoor film screenings, scenic helicopter flights, camel rides and charity initiatives like The Bashville Drags Race – raising funds for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
The Big Blue Day for JDRF will also run again at the Big Red Bash attempting to beat the world record for the largest human image of a country that was set at the 2023 Big Red Bash with 5,467 participants dressed head to toe in blue.
The Birdsville Big Red Bash is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland and features on the It’s Live! in Queensland events calendar. The Birdsville Big Red Bash generates more than $20 million in economic benefit for Outback Queensland.
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