For as long as he can remember, Calvin Trewin has considered loyalty to be one of the most important things in life. It’s a trait he considers to be the mark of a man, and he’s always tried to be the bloke everyone can rely on. 

Calvin’s three sons, James, Rob and Tim, all reckon their Dad has measured up to his own standards.  

They’ve grown up together as a tight knit family and shared all kinds of wonderful experiences, including epic adventures exploring the Goulbourn Valley and beyond on extended camping, fishing and kayaking trips. Calvin has always been there for the boys, and now that they’ve grown up into young men they still look to their Dad for sound advice.

However, Rob, Calvin’s middle son, says these days it’s more of a two way street when it comes to opinions. 

“Dad’s good with helping us out; he’s good for bouncing ideas off, and learning from his experience,” says Rob. “But now we’re teaching him a thing or two, not that he’ll probably admit it!” 

Spend a little time with the Trewin’s and it’s easy to see they all share a strong connection: in a classic Aussie bloke way they are constantly giving each other a solid ribbing, and there’s a fair bit of healthy one-upmanship going on too. Under the surface, however, they all care for each other deeply and have each other’s back. 

Calvin says that having a strong relationship with his sons is hugely important to him. 

“I think every Dad has an obligation to be a bit of a moral compass, but if we end up being mates too then that’s a good result,” he says.  

When the kids were younger their hometown was Shepparton, Victoria, but these days Calvin has made home base a 10 acre property in Invergordon, a little north of town. Along with the horses, there’s a few cows, sheds full of hay, riding gear and tractors. 

Taking pride of place on the gravel driveway is a trusty 2008 D-MAX. The old reliable ute used to be Calvin’s, until he recently passed it down to son Rob, for a reasonable price. It’s seen 10 years and over 220,000 clicks of solid action, but incredibly it still looks and drives like it’s just done it’s first 50.

Calvin says that Rob had been keen on the D-MAX for ages, but he made him wait until he was ready to relinquish his pride and joy. 

“I love that D-MAX, and I only upgraded to a new D-MAX for work reasons to be honest,” says Calvin.

“I didn’t want to let it go, but at least I know Rob is going to get great use out of something so reliable. Hopefully he’ll look after it as well as I did too.”

Rob says it was worth the wait.

“Yeah he held out handing over the keys, but it’s almost impossible to find used D-MAXs out there because everyone holds onto them, so I was happy to wait,” he said. “I just enjoy driving it, it’s reliable and it tows the horse float easy.

As a civil engineer, Calvin’s work requires an analytical, practical mindset, and a keen eye for detail. He doesn’t like to cut corners, and quality is his number one priority. 

Calvin says his new 2018 D-MAX reflects his business values, and says it performs as well on the jobsite as it does out on the country roads.

“Reliability is everything to me. I never want to let anyone down, so I expect my ute to be the same,” says Calvin and he’s in no rush to let his new D-MAX go.

Calvin laughs, “I’ll be making the kids wait awhile before they get their hands on this one!”