Ute beauty - huge prize win for local farming couple

Brianna, Jocelyn and Tony Curran stand in front of the 2021 Isuzu D Max they have won, surrounded by sponsors and Farmlands staff.

By Dave Murdoch

They found out they had won something big on the top of the Saddle Rd but then lost reception and had to wait to almost Woodville before they found out what.

Jocelyn and Tony Curran were returning home to their farm on Tuturewa Rd from the Manawatu and were stunned to find their big prize was a 2021 Isuzu D Max ute worth $70,000 with all the extras added.

This news took a nerve-racking 10 minutes to arrive but then Covid meant the prize took a further month to be delivered to the Farmlands Dannevirke Store by the time the couple had picked the colour and had all the accessories added.

A Nestle Purina nation-wide annual promotion ran through all rural retailers for July and August and entry was by buying one of its products (in this case Tux dog biscuits) and filling out the form stuck to the bag before sending it off.

Just before the promotion was due to end Jocelyn filled it out and sent it.

They won the national prize.

The double cab ute came with extras including a tow bar, a nudging bar, road user tax credits, carpets, a tray liner and a full fuel tank.

Nestle-Purina rural business manager Grant Longhurst said the prize could not have gone to a better couple, having been 30-year customers of Purina products and Dannevirke Farmlands.

For the couple, living 17km out of Dannevirke and farming a 380ha Texel sheep and Hereford cattle hill property, it was the perfect prize. Tony says the draw bar will get a lot of use towing trailers of fertiliser and fence posts and he plans to put a canopy on so that he can safely carry his guns, being a keen hunter and clay target shooter.

Jocelyn says the beautifully furnished cab is lovely to ride in and she cannot wait to travel to Hawke's Bay to show family this weekend.

Business manager for Dannevirke Farmlands Amy Borlase said they had not had a customer winning a really big prize in a long time, the last being an overseas trip "a while ago".

Dannevirke has had a great turn of luck this month with another local farmer scoring big in a Goldpine promotion (see inside for story.)

Buying a lotto ticket anyone? They usually run in threes.