Deni Ute Muster Announces Inaugural Tradie Challenge

This year's Deni Ute Muster was already going to be a special kind of shindig, but that's even more the case following the event's keenly awaited unveiling of the first-ever Tradie Challenge, sponsored by Milwaukee Tools.

The premise is a straightforward one — tradies from around Australia will compete in teams of four to take part in "the ultimate show of skill, design, innovation and good, old-fashioned Aussie know-how" to build their own outdoor dunny to be judged on design (uniqueness, visual appeal), workmanship, teamwork, team-member appearance, budgeting and crowd involvement.

Following the entry period (details are available on Deni Ute Muster's website), a panel of judges will select four finalist teams who will have the chance to compete in the Tradie Challenge itself on Friday, 2 October, at the Ute Muster grounds on Conargo Road, Deniliquin. Each team of finalists will only have six hours from go to whoa to bring their dunny to life, with all tools being provided courtesy of Milwaukee and all supplies, finishing items and other materials coming from Muster HQ, though teams are allowed to bring a singular outside item to help make their dunny really stand out from the rest of the crapshacks.

The teams will be competing for a grand prize of $4000 in cash, while runners-up will all receive Milwaukee prize packs, so there's not exactly a shortage of incentives to rack your brains on how to build a better toilet. And, impressively, although the competition is dubbed the Tradies Challenge, even keen DIY enthusiasts are eligible to get in with a chance.

"We are thrilled to introduce a new aspect to the event, and we invite all tradies and DIY lovers to test their ability by entering the challenge," Deni Ute Muster general manager Kate Pitt said in a statement.

"The Milwaukee Tradie Challenge will be a new and exciting event that patrons can participate in and also watch as part of the Around The Ground entertainment schedule."

This year's Deni Ute Muster runs from 2-3 October, and features performances from Cold Chisel, Birds Of Tokyo, Lee Kernaghan and many more. See the Festivals tab or the event's website for more information.