Cyclone Laurence

The talk of old Broome town is 'Cyclone Laurence', a category 5 cyclone currently sweeping its way through the Kimberley in Western Australia.

One Wicked Camper is due to be picked up from the Broome depot tomorrow, and the customers are flying in tomorrow to collect it - but with Broome airport closed after the last plane flies out tonight, will they even arrive in town?

The stern advice from the Tenderspot Butcher's (who work next door to the Broome Wicked depot) is - "If it gets to a red alert, stock up on alcohol - because the liquor stores will shut down".

Apparently Broome will be on a red alert at noon tomorrow.

Free Parking Info

We're often asked "Where can I park for free?". Usually it depends on the season; the town; the circumstances. I once met a couple in Perth who bought a Wicked van, drove it around for 270 days and only paid for parking once - unbelievable! Byron Bay and Cairns are notorious for their anti-free-camping laws, whilst Broome rangers lighten up during the wet season.

We had some lovely customers drop us an email today about free camping areas in Torquay, Victoria. Here are their tips:

"Local council fines people who sleep in cars / vans / campers along the foreshore. Whilst it is fantastic to drift off to sleep and wake up with the view that's there, it puts a nasty taste in your mouth when you're penalised for it!

There are a few places within Torquay where it is safe to stop for the night: behind the Uniting Church in Beales St., west of the highway down near the creek turn right past the catholic church, then left - not the service rd - and follow it down and around) and probably any of the little streets just 1 block back off the Esplanade. There are no toilet/shower facilities, but neither does the ranger get you (excuses might include power nap / been up and had a walk (as long as you're fully dressed and quick)/whatever else you can think of quickly)!

The by-laws officers (2 over summer, 1 rest of the year) patrol between Torquay and Lorne, so there is no set day he's in the same town at the same time... predictably unpredictable.

Hope you pass this on to your users".

Thanks so much for your feedback!

Rainbow Serpent Festival

Congrats to Shan Hilton for winning our double pass to the Solar Music Festival!

Wicked Campers have more summer festival tickets up for grabs. This time they're for the Rainbow Serpent Festival which is held in Beaufort, Victoria. Its an internationally recognised, 3-day festival - a multifaceted weekend of dance, colour, expression and celebration.

To enter the competition, answer a simple question and submit your details here.

Win tickets to the Solar Music Festival!

Its summertime!!! Yessss. And that means all the summer music festivals will be making their way around Australia. Wicked Campers are embracing the Summer Festival season and are giving away double passes to the Solar Music Festival, a music festival held in Melbourne in early January.

You can win tickets by answering a simple question here.

You can book your accommodation and transportation all in one here.

On an aside - received a truly Wicked experience email from a customer who returned their van last month:

"Two young tattooed and pierced girls went for an adventure in the desert. We obtained gainful employment for a morning and helped a farmer break in a horse and were paid in beer. We saw a desert, we saw some big f*ck off rocks, we slept under more stars than someone from the UK has ever seen before.

We saw road-trains overtake us, we fell in a billabong and suffered through 45 degree heat. Hotter than my friend had ever felt before. We had drinks bought for us by amorous tour guides and I got to show my friend what Australia is really all about".

A Wicked mention at the Arias!

The 2009 Aria's (Australian Record Industry Awards) were on last night and Wicked Campers even got a mention!

'The Doctor' from national radio station Triple J stepped up to announce the winner of the '2009 Blues and Roots album of the year'. Prior to announcing the winner The Doc stated that "...most of the artists in this category start their careers strumming a guitar in the back of a Wicked van".

What a sensational way to sum up the Wicked culture!

I'm not sure if this bloke is a former Wicked customer, but congratulations to CW Stoneking for winning the Blues and Roots ARIA with his album "Jungle Blues".

This is just a start for Wicked entering the Australian Music world. An unreal foot-tapping country music song written by Rob Imeson titled the "Wicked Van Blues" will soon be released - click here to play the song on Myspace.

Customer pick-ups?

Wicked Campers is no ordinary organisation – as a fun, laidback company there are no set rules on how to talk/engage with customers; as long as the customer leaves the exchange happily.

Here’s an example of one Brisbane ROADTRIP PLANNER’s chats with a customer. So if you’re bored and want to exchange a bit of banter, give her a call on 1800 24 68 69. Warning – she may try sell you a campervan too!

(disclaimer: names have been changed to hide identities)

Conversations between ROADTRIP PLANNER and WICKED CUSTOMER

ROADTRIP PLANNER wrote:

This is my email address if you have anymore queries – save yourself a massive phone bill. And it also allows me a reply of more than 300 characters! So we can like chat…and share life stories…plot world domination and shit. Miss you already haha. ROADTRIP PLANNER


From: WICKED CUSTOMER

Cheers, you’re a star :) Im off to bed though. I sent the info onto the boys and hope to get this sorted out asap, as I dont want to think about it anymore...my head is beginning to hurt.

Anyway ROADTRIP PLANNER, really appreciate your help. It’s fun to talk to ya :) hahahaha. I hope all the Oz girls are as fun as you :)

Take care and enjoy your Friday (almost the weekend!!!!)

ROADTRIP PLANNER wrote:

No need for stress, just make an executive decision on this one…just BOOK IT…There’s only one van, just grab it.

And no, not all Oz girls are fun. The government, actually Ruddy himself, employs me to infiltrate the tourism industry and be bubbly, charming and downright hilarious so as to create the illusion of a fun nation. In fact, you guys probably shouldn’t even bother with Aussie girls at all while you’re over here.

Just kidding, you’ll have a blast! Book the damn van!
Goodnight!!

Kind Regards, ROADTRIP PLANNER.


The WICKED CUSTOMER will be dropping his van off in Brisbane. Will sparks fly when he visits the ROADTRIP PLANNER? Will he return his van naked? Stay posted for all the Wicked details!

Broome Wicked Camper depot - FAQ's

We receive an assortment of questions from Wicked Campers customers at the Broome depot. To save time, we've posted up a FAQ sheet. Here's a sample of questions and answers...

Q. Where can I park for free?
A. Anywhere, just watch out for rangers and police officers. And axe murderers.

Q. How long does the gas bottle last?
A. Til the flame runs out.

Q. How much fuel does the camper use?
A. The slower you go, the better fuel economy you’ll have. We suggest driving at 80km/hr (in 5th gear, or if you’re in an automatic make sure you’re driving in overdrive).

Q. What happens if I see a kangaroo on the road?
A. Run the f*cker down! Don’t swerve for kangaroos.

Q. Where is the cheapest fuel?
A. What is cheap fuel?

Q. What happens if I breakdown and I don’t have phone reception?
A. You’ll work it out.

Q. How do I sleep in the van if its too hot?
A. Drink til you pass out. Alternatively pickup a Broome local and sleep in their air-conditioned room. Or you can find a tree and some shade (hint – the sun sets in the west).

Q. What if I don’t like my van design?
A. Harden the f*ck up.

Q. Are you the cheapest in town?
A. Yes. And the dirtiest.

(and yes, this FAQ is a piss-take...we're happy to help with any customer queries!).

Aboriginal art-inspired Wicked Campers (thanks to Music Outback Foundation)

The Music Outback Foundation uses music and arts based programs to help improve education outcomes on remote Indigenous communities. Their annual event Mobfest Tanami is a three day festival held at Ti Tree School in the Northern Territory, 200km north of Alice Springs.

At Mobfest, schools come together to share their achievements in music and songwriting, enjoying all sorts of workshops during the day, and performing on the main stage at night. This year Wicked Campers was happy to help out with the cause by loaning five campers for students to paint up with some very unique artwork! Even the Ti Tree Elders got involved and painted one of the vans with beautiful ceremonial designs. These vans are now back on the road travelling around the country so keep your eye out for them!

For more information about Music Outback Foundation visit www.musicoutback.com.

Stories from the road

Here are some 'roadtrip highlights' from Wicked Campers customers who returned their vans in October.

We were staying at Eagle Pt caravan park (right on the lake in VIC). I made dinner, and took the Wikid table that came with the camper, out on the peer, with dinner and champagne. The mrs sat down and I popped the question, then the cork on the champagne! Best week of our lives. We got some amazing photos of the van in front of the great ocean rd, etc. We're looking to hire another one for our honey moon!!!

Just me and the missus went from perth to coral bay. Was just a wicked trip, loved the van. haha it was almost like we were part of a community every time we passed a wicked van, we were tooting and yelling an waving. Just an awesome trip, not nearly as difficult as i thought it would have been. Wished i was still on the road!

We just had a really chilled week of driving hey.. There was one incident of being caught shagging on the beach.. And don't bother visiting the Big Oyster ever..

My besty n i loved our road trip!!! We went to byron, tweed heads, bilambil, suffock park and the gold coast stopping where ever looked good to have a surf n sun bake we were only gone for 8 days n were spewing we had to come home! on the drive around the place we saw other Wicked vans n had to party with the other campers as they were in a partying mood just like us!!! we loved it!!!Thanks heaps ur all Wicked!!! much love peace out!!! xXx

We had a great trip, the van went like a bomb, and we would happily use Wicked again and refer others to your company

We got to bathurst for the V8's but the police would not let the camper up to the top of mountain.They said the rego had only two weeks left and all cars with one month left on rego were not allowed up the top.(People buy old cars and smash them up and leave them there apparently!.) I showed them it was a hire car and still said no.! This is 4pm. We went back into bathurst to avis car rental and they let us use there fax. We then rang wicked who faxed the new rego threw 10 minutes before closing time 5pm at Avis. We would have had to leave the camper at the bottom in car park and hire another car to get our gear to the camp spot on top off mountain .Thanks again Wicked and Avis car rental you really came thew at the right time.

Our last night in the van was in Cairns. Cairns is a very campervan un-friendly city. Every other town we stopped in (from Sydney to Cairns), we were able to park near the beach and no one bothered us. Cairns has signs of "no camping" EVERYWHERE. So, we eventually found a quiet steet in a neighborhood just outside town. Dead asleep we were awoken by the sound and lights of a train barreling towards us. Could it be? Did we really park ON a railroad track? It sure seemed like it with the extreme loudness of the whistle and the lights blarring into the back window. But, fortunately, we were not on the track, but only about 50 yards from it. What a way to wake up!!

Goaaaaalll!

Wicked want to place as many vans as we possibly can on the road in South Africa during the World Cup in 2010.

We're still trying to think up a good one-liner to promote the cause on our banner advertisements.

Quote of the moment is: "The road to the 2010 football world cup starts in a Wicked Camper".

Other suggestions have been:

• Win, lose or draw - at the end of 90 minutes at least you can say you were in a Wicked Camper
• The hands of God drive a Wicked Camper
• A Wicked Camper - its Beckham's second best accessory
• Pele drives a Wicked Camper
• A Wicked Camper - its like Old Trafford on 4 wheels.

Wouldn't it be fantastic if Becks could be the face of Wicked? Maybe it could look something like this?

Van Safety

Congratulations! You've booked - or you're looking to book a Wicked van for an upcoming roadtrip and want to make sure you're in safe hands.

I spent an afternoon discovering what safety checks each Wicked van was given before it was hired out. Extensive safety checks are done on all Wicked vans - these checks include: tyres, brake pads and seat belts, oil and water, battery and brake fluid, lights and hand brake, doors and windows/locks and key, fuel filter, gearbox and diff, management system and a roadtest.

Safety of our Wicked customers on the roads is our number one priority. View the video to get a visual!