Whangārei local Steven George has reclaimed the title of Northland’s top excavator operator after proving his mettle against 11 other contenders at the Civil Contractors New Zealand CablePrice Northland Regional Excavator Operator Competition on Saturday.

The contest was held at the Barge Showgrounds as part of the Whangārei A & P Show, where hundreds flocked to see operators tackle an array of spectacular challenges designed to showcase precision excavator operating and test competitors’ nerves of steel. 

George said he was pleased to have retained the title despite the heat and strong competition.

“Thankfully, I managed to pull it off. I did better than I thought I was going to because it was a really strong field; lots of great competition,” he said.

Challenges that returned this year included the 'Hercules barbell lift’, requiring competitors to use their machines to hoist a log loaded with tyres at each end, and the ‘slam dunk’, testing operators to drop a basketball through a hoop using their excavator buckets.

Competition organiser Ryan Hayward said the atmosphere was electric.

“Having Steve back to defend both his regional and national titles really raised the stakes. Everyone wanted to be the one to take down the reigning champ, which made for an incredibly tight competition, but there was still a great sense of camaraderie amongst all the contenders.”

George was helped to victory by the support of some special spectators.

“Even better than hearing my name called as the winner was having my kids there to watch and cheer me on. They’re three, four, and nine and they say they want to follow in my footsteps and become a digger driver too. But I think all kids want to do what their dad is doing,” he said.

Beyond the eye-catching displays of skill, competitors were assessed on essential industry knowledge, including a health and safety test and an excavator pre-start check.

Kiel Brown from Steve Bowling Contracting finished as runner-up after a strong performance, while Riki Lum from Clements Contractors secured third place on the podium.

Running alongside the main competition, Doug the Digger's mini-dig allowed excited children to explore excavator-operating skills, while a ‘have-a-go’ experience gave curious adults hands-on insights into the precision operating required by professionals.

George will represent Northland against 11 other regional winners at the CCNZ CablePrice National Excavator Operator Competition during the Central Districts Field Days in Feilding from 19-21 March 2026, competing for the title of New Zealand's ultimate excavator operator.

Sponsors for the Northland competition this year included CablePrice, Humes, First Gas, Hirepool, Connexis, Attach2, Promains, Doug the Digger, Franklin Smith, Firth, Mc4, Northland Underground Drilling and Enviroworks.

Steven George (right) receiving his prize after his competition win this year.