A teaspoon of sugar proved to be the right amount of sweetness for Papamoa man James Lux after taking out the national excavator operator title.
From the cab of a 12-tonne excavator, Mr Lux popped a champagne cork, slam-dunked a basketball through a hoop, lifted a teapot to pour a cup of tea and even stirred a teaspoon of sugar in a teacup in the weekend competition which saw the best excavator operators compete against one another in practical and theory skills.
Mr Lux, who is an earthworks supervisor for Fulton Hogan HEB construction alliance for the Tauranga Eastern Link, battled 11 regional winners in a variety of challenges at the Central District Field Days in Feilding on Friday and Saturday. The finalists had to complete the safety and regulation part of the contest as well as manoeuvre a 12-tonne excavator through an obstacle course and stay clear of known hazards while completing a variety of tasks.
Mr Lux said his tidy work and technical ability saw him dominate the first day of competition and finish with 96 per cent - about 20 per cent higher than other finalists - so it put him in good stead for the second day of competition, which tested his fine motor-skills by completing precise tasks with the bucket of a digger.
"It was hard but it was a lot of fun. There's some healthy competition between competitors," he said.