Victorians in the Colac-Otway region will benefit from more trades training close to home as South West TAFE plans to expand options offered through the Colac Trade Training Centre Minister for Skills and TAFE Gayle Tierney today officially launched South West TAFE at the facility South West TAFE started delivery of automotive and carpentry courses to about 120 students through the Centre in February It is investigating options for more courses based at the facility to support local construction and manufacturing industries such as forklift and scissor lift operations Colac Secondary College hosts a state-of-the-art Trade Training Centre that specialises in trades training students can undertake accredited training provided by South West TAFE Trades training through TAFE is essential to address Victoria's housing and infrastructure needs Almost 70,000 new workers are predicted to join the construction sector in the next three years the Allan and Albanese Labor Governments have increased Free TAFE training places in construction qualifications and short-courses 5,200 additional Free TAFE places are available in construction training in Victoria The delivery of more priority Free TAFE places comes as Peter Dutton and the Liberal Party are set to cut Free TAFE if elected which will impact thousands of students across Australia and affect our ability to build more houses to meet the growing demand we know that Free TAFE works with more than 200,000 students already accessing Free TAFE since it began in 2019 including more than 50,000 students studying in regional Victoria The Mobile Agriculture Skills Lab also made its first public visit today at South West TAFE The van will deliver hands-on training to students across the state using cutting-edge agriculture technology and software This $1.99 million mobile training facility is one of the projects funded through the Allan Labor Government's $50 million Agriculture College Modernisation Program For more information about how Free TAFE can help you train or upskill, visit vic.gov.au/free-tafe As stated by Minister for Skills and TAFE Gayle Tierney we're giving more Victorians the chance to gain rewarding careers and helping to ensure we build the homes and infrastructure our state needs." "The Colac Trade Training Centre is a fantastic example of TAFEs and secondary schools working together to give students more training options and more opportunities to succeed." As stated by Minister for Agriculture Ros Spence "The Mobile Agriculture Skills L ab will provide hands-on training and access to the latest technology ensuring students across Victoria can have the opportunity to pursue a future career in agriculture." As stated by South West TAFE CEO Mark Fidge "The transition of TAFE delivery in the Colac region to South West TAFE will benefit students and industry in the region and demonstrates the advantages of a strong and collaborative TAFE Network in Victoria." "We look forward to exploring opportunities to expand existing offerings establish more permanent and fit-for-purpose facilities and broaden student support services." CFA was called to the truck fire on the corner of Calvert Street and Queen Street at 7.14am today Firefighters found the rubbish in the recycling truck on fire and heavy haulage machinery was called to the scene to help lift the truck to empty its contents onto the ground CFA District 6 Assistant Chief Fire Officer Craig Brittain said the volunteer firefighters who responded to this incident have done an amazing job “On inspection there was quite a number of items such as aerosol cans that shouldn’t be in a recycling bin that have possibly caused the fire so we will investigate that further,” Craig said “Community members need to please be careful what they put into rubbish bins.” An excavator was also called in to pull apart the rubbish to assist firefighting with extinguishing the fire A Watch and Act message was issued asking people in the area to stay indoors due to the dangerous smoke from the burning plastic and other materials in the truck That warning has since been downgraded to an Advice message The incident was brought under control at 8.48am and declared safe at 9.05am Victoria Police and VICSES are also on scene View all stories View more contacts Tweets by CFA_Updates We are currently experiencing issues with our embedded Twitter feed We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the Traditional Custodians of the land Copyright 2025 CFA (Country Fire Authority) This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page The hugely talented son of Fernando Bale will make his Wentworth Park debut in heat nine of the Egg from box eight where he has been installed a $3 favourite "His form really demanded a go at the race," Sharp said "The plan was to bring both him and Morton up but I wasn't entirely happy with Morton after his second in the Perth Cup FIELDS AND FORM WENTWORTH PARK SATURDAY NIGHT "Colac Kid hasn't trialled at Wentworth Park but I don't mind him drawn out in eight and if he could qualify for the semi-finals and get a look at the track I'd be happy "He's a very fast dog and I think it's now we will start seeing the best of him." the ultra-strong Colac Kid heads into the Easter Egg series on the strength of slashing recent wins at Sandown Park in 29.29 and The Meadows in 29.58 and 29.59 Adding to the merit of Colac Kid's recent performances is the fact his past eight assignments have been from either boxes four "The ability has always been there but he's really starting to put it together now," Sharp added "We've started strapping his track leg and since then his form has gone to another level "The experience in Sydney will be good for him I'm looking forward to getting him to Brisbane during the winter carnival as well. the Group 1 Flying Amy will be a good race for him." In the most open Easter Egg heat of the program Colac Kid holds favouritism marginally over Ali Tango (box three) and Sinalao Girl (box four) And while Morton is an omission from a trip to Sydney Sharp has labelled the Group 2 Warrnambool Cup as the star sprinter's next big race assignment "It'll be either Warrnambool or The Sandgroper if we do happen to secure a slot," Sharp said follow the instructions for your browser below Play Time to start or restart your basketball journey as well as viewing all Basketball Victoria programs Getting involved in the sport off the court can happen in a variety of ways Find what’s best for you here. Competitions Basketball Victoria run a number of leagues as well as tournaments and school competitions each and every year Browse our various competitions here to learn more High Performance Wanting to learn more about our High Performance Pathway or keen to see some familiar names that have gone through it Resources Hub Our Resources HUB provides subject specific resources for associations About Basketball Victoria has a long-standing history of success across 90 years of operation Learn more about us or contact us for further assistance and I thought why not bring the Let's Talk message to the Basketball community!” Let's Talk singlets worn by both teams in support of the round “Mental Health is something that affects everyone in some way directly and/or indirectly and for a lot of us Basketball is one of those safe spaces where we get to do something we enjoy with our team mates playing and travelling together you get to know each other very well so I think it is a good place to start locally with our senior basketball teams in bringing the message and changing behaviors around the need to talk about mental health.” a best on court was presented for each game Congratulations to Indiana Cameron from Colac and Liam Herbert from Warrnambool. Both Colac and Warrnambool are looking to building on this Mental Health round in the CBL each season as well as bringing it into their domestic compeition. View Full Gallery If you or someone you know is struggling, please seek help by contacting a mental health professional or a support line. Lifeline: 13 11 14 Beyond Blue: 1300 224 636 MensLine Australia: 1300 789 978 Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467 AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) the White Muster and the Colac Truck Show featured here with the Beaufort Truck Show still to come before the end of the month With this plethora of truck shows you may think that attendances both by truckies and the public would drop off but the opposite is the case All these shows have attracted record numbers of trucks and those coming to see them The Colac Truck and Ute Show on March 22 was no exception with the town’s showgrounds chock-a-block with everything from Morris Transport’s brand-new C509 to plenty of oldies that looked as good as new Daryl Pigden to display Pete’s 1980 Ford 9000 Louisville The day cab truck is an ex-genuine Ford Motor Company vehicle that ran from Geelong to Broadmeadows towing a tipper From there it was sold and became a truck and trailer with Robbie acting as gofer and Daryl as the interior specialist bought the truck and stripped it back nut and bolt Their work paid off with the truck winning Best Vintage at Colac There is much to love about this truck from every angle but a standout is the twin pipes held in place by a red painted and scrolled metal exhaust bracket It looks spectacular and makes the rear of the truck really pop Shirl McCosker has spent the last few years buying His latest acquisition is an international Transtar 4700 from 1996 with 525N Cummins Power and this truck he intends to keep for the foreseeable future “I did my first interstate trip to Adelaide in a 4700 for Pattons Transport back in the day and I’d always said that before I go toes up I needed to own one Originally owned by Towns Haulage at Bairnsdale it was being used on a farm carting grain into the silos I bought it virtually for the price of the motor which was new.” Shirl works the Transtar at least three days a week “I’ve done Brisbane and Sydney a few times and next week I’m across to Perth This would be the oldest Transtar running the paddock In fact it might be the only Transtar running the paddock I definitely haven’t passed any others nothing passes me though Shirl’s ‘old school’ Transtar picked up the award for Best Truck 20-30 years was the major sponsor of the show so it was incumbent upon Nathan Krause to bring one of their trucks a 2021 4800 Western Star named ‘Never Late in a ‘48’ along to the show Nathan does an overnight express shuttle run from Melbourne out of the company’s Derrimut depot to Adelaide “I leave about 6pm so I get all the traffic It really is a nightmare getting out of town.” Some 10 hours later he drops the trailer and picks up around 4.30pm the following afternoon to return to Melbourne getting back to Derrimut without the traffic “You know which direction I prefer to travel,” he quipped When asked how many in the Land Transport fleet James is not behind the wheel but is with Greenfreight Transport as an Operations Manager of the logging division “Across the fleet we would probably have around 50 logging trucks On top of that we have five log loaders and then on the interstate transport side five single taughtliners and also flat-tops and another probably 40 or 50 in the linehaul fleet that run up the eastern seaboard.” Robbie Rose is happy to stand around and yack with anyone and everyone that is until someone puts a microphone under his nose or a video camera in front of his face because his truck won Rig of the Show for 2025 who has worked for McColl’s transport for 36 years has owned his Ford Louisville for six years Robbie got together with the late and great Rick ‘Chocks’ Hayman to come up with a new colour scheme My Cadillac (a nine-seat limousine) is black and I can’t have two black vehicles,” he said Chocks and I just kept mixing dark blue paint and added in silver until we got to a point where we knew it was going to be right Then we added the black and white striping “We designed so many paint jobs but then we got to this decided it looked old school and stuck with it This was the second last truck that Chocks painted before he passed away.” This was the first award Robbie has won with the Louisville – hence those trembling hands He was also very proud that it is a rolling dedication to the memory of Rick Hayman Colac can look forward to a bright future amongst the myriad of truck shows staged in Victoria It might be advisable to start a rigorous exercise regime right now to be fit enough to spend the day walking around Colac and all the other shows that Victoria offers – and it’s only the beginning Steve Settineri – 2018 Kenworth T900 Legend Shirl McCosker – 1996 International Transstar 4700 Peter Shiells – 1974 International Atkinson Halfcab Darren Russell – 2024 Kenworth T610 SAR Lewis Johnstone – 2024 Kenworth T909 Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id" "a23771fbb3158d6bcc380764c0d8b601" );document.getElementById("g3bfc1e4af").setAttribute( "id" and website in this browser for the next time I comment Taking over the former Sketa Bar which bid farewell to the Murray Street strip earlier this month The Bar Colac is taking over as the new favourite late-night hang in Colac With new signage added to the street-facing windows and an interior revamp complete The Bar Colac will be in business from Saturday 23 November with a grand opening event to mark the occasion Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region here A post shared by The Bar Colac (@thebarcolac) The Bar Colac will open with a bang with none-other-than good time rollers and timestamp travellers Retro Thieves who will be playing live covers of hits from the 70’s with doors to the new establishment open from 7pm allowing Colac crowds to settle into the new setting of The Bar Colac Entry to the major event costs less than a beer at only $5 The Bar Colac is set to continue some of Sketa’s traditions in offering live music The dance floor will still be rocking for those keen to boogie and punters can flex their vocals with their karaoke nights Starting from the following week of Friday 29 November The Bar Colac will introduce their own tradition of Friday Knock Offs kick off the weekend right with a cold frothie in hand and great company They will also be bringing in recycling fundraisers turning cans into coin for a worthy cause each bottle and can will be taken to the Colac Container Deposit Scheme with the proceeds donated to a new nominated charity at the end of each month The Bar Colac promises to be an exciting new addition to the Colac community Join in the celebrations on their grand opening and become a regular with their weekly offering Keep up to date with all things happening at The Bar Colac here The former Prince of Wales hotel at 2-6 Murray St East is scheduled to be auctioned on September 14 to tearooms and a boarding house for Italian migrants the former Prince of Wales hotel has a colourful past Now a new venture could soon be brewing at Colac’s oldest surviving pub The 1874 brick landmark on the banks of Barongarook Creek is set to be auctioned on Saturday with $800,000 to $880,000 price hopes Ray White, Colac listing agent Toby Kent said the former pub occupied a huge 2560sq m site at 2-6 Murray St East a high-profile location the new owners could tap into RELATED: Historic Batesford homestead sold for first time in 157 years Young buyers grab renovated home for under $600K Geelong suburbs where buyers are nabbing a bargain cellar is still downstairs so it could be really cool as a little cafe,” he said it’s just going to take someone with a bit of creativity someone who wants to put in a bit of effort to bringing it back to life and it will be really cool “The land is subdividable as well so if someone wanted to just keep the building and develop the back further The arched leadlight window is a nod to the past operated as a drinking hole and wayside accommodation until 1921 and then became a boarding house for about 20 years and later a bed and breakfast A Colac Heritage Study reveals a proposal to demolish the building in 1970s to build a service station was knocked back “Ever since then it has been used as a private residence and a couple of commercial pursuits like a craft store and a cafe,” Mr Kent said “It has had a commercial kitchen in the past so it’s got both those avenues and it has had a bathroom and kitchen renovation.” A freestanding bath forms part of this renovated bathroom Many people will have driven past the property travelling through Colac’s centre three-bathroom residence retains original high ceilings many with pressed metal detail and cornices there’s just wear and tear on the inside that really needs someone to take it on,” Mr Kent said “It’s got the original character features inside because it obviously has a heritage overlay to the building so everything that you do renovations wise has to be ticked off with the council.” third parties have written and supplied the content and we are not responsible for it completeness or reliability of the information nor do we accept any liability or responsibility arising in any way from omissions or errors contained in the content We do not recommend sponsored lenders or loan products and we cannot introduce you to sponsored lenders We strongly recommend that you obtain independent advice before you act on the content realestate.com.au is owned and operated by ASX-listed REA Group Ltd (REA:ASX) © REA Group Ltd. 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