After 90 years, many people would be happy to park up on their couch with a cup of tea and cake.
But not Ned Neumann, who sits astride a horse at the head of a mob of cattle, volunteers and paying participants at Queensland's Eidsvold cattle drive.
He's due to turn 90 later this year but he says his job has never changed: return the cattle in a better condition than when he was given them.
Mr Neumann says he has stuck it out in the bush because when he is out there, his destiny is his alone.
"And the blokes out here, they're fellas that you can talk to, that can speak my language."
The Eidsvold cattle drive retraces a 70-kilometre portion of the traditional stock routes taken by drovers who would bring cattle from across Queensland for sale.
It's the third time the biennial event has been held. In 2020, the planned drive was derailed by COVID restrictions.
Droving 101
Usually a bit of a larrikin and adored by those around him, Ned says he isn't too popular when he tries to get everyone moving before sunrise.
"You can't wait for them."
The event draws people from a range of backgrounds.
"It's all … inexperienced people, people from the town or hobby farmers, and they do some funny things at times, you've just got to have a laugh," Ned says.
"You come through some dirty country, some thick timber and I told 'em, 'When you come through here, you've get to let the cattle string out, else we'll split them, they'll get out in the wattle and we'll never get them back'.
"We had one bloke and I looked over and saw him riding along in the middle of the mob in the middle of the road.
"If this was real droving, he would've been given the DCM — don't come Monday."
Inspired by history
Eidsvold cattle drive chairman Bruce Tye says as well as being an enjoyable time in the bush, the event acknowledges the region's history.
"It's actually 90 years ago that Martin Snelling set the record for Australia for store cattle sales of 7,482," Mr Tye said.
"So that's the inspiration behind it."
The event is also an opportunity to support charities.
"We raise money for Burnett Lodge [Bundaberg hospital accommodation] as well as Lifeflight and the Royal Flying Doctor's Service," Mr Tye says.
"Before we come into town, we also pull up in front of the hospital because it's also an aged-care facility … and we have some of our old timers there.
Mr Tye says the event's final day, at the Eidsvold showgrounds, involves a number of displays including a traditional droving demonstration by Ned Neumann.
"The whole premise of it is that the food stalls are all offered to the local communities to raise money here," he says.
"Then hopefully anyone coming through won't just come and spend five minutes, they'll come into town and stay a couple of days."
Community trumps all
Eidsvold Cattle Drive treasurer Viv Hutchinson says the event is a great example of a regional community banding together to overcome adversity and deliver an event that showcases the region and its history to the world.
"So we all got together and we decided to do this cattle drive."
Viv says besides the obvious opportunities to get out and enjoy the bush, the event also allows people from town and the country to mix, share stories and form friendships.
"I'm an hour out of town, I didn't know many town people," she says.
"I knew the grocer, I knew the butcher, but I didn't know anyone that lived in the town.
"But that's lovely, the town people and the country people mixed together."
Viv says the opportunity to get to know the participants and their view of producers makes the drive an educational experience for both sides.
"As property owners and beef producers, we are proud of what we do, we love what we do," she says.
"Sometimes there's not such good news getting out there for us, but people getting out here and seeing what we do is so beneficial, to know we do it tough at times but we have good times as well."
