Off-Roading in the Australian Bush for the First Time

Media Mikey

That day was Shenay’s first time driving a manual four-wheel-drive truck off-road, but it wasn’t her first time trying something new at the encouragement of her husband — a professional surfer, an avid outdoorsman, and a real “let’s mess around and find out” breed of Aussie. A man whose signature moves include the grab rail carve, the home-cut mullet, and punk-ing it up for the camera. It tells you a lot about his attitude toward the “professional” part of his career as a professional surfer.

Mikey loves to surf. It’s been the focus of much of his life, and it brings out of him an almost superhuman power — a power often described by commentators as “pure” or “raw.” Mikey knows how to find speed inside a wave that doesn’t appear to be there to the untrained eye. And he uses it to pull off some of the sickest aerials in the game.

In the water, Mikey is a tour de force. But take him out of the water, and he sings a different tune. One that has a strong point of view about work, life, and what hangs between.

A Striking Balance

For a lot of professional athletes, sport is life. A 24-hours-a-day, 365-days-a-year grind. If you’re not competing this season, you’re chatting with the press about next season. If you’re not training, you’re cross-training. If you’re not taking social media seriously, the sponsors aren’t taking you seriously. If you’re not doing the most, you’re not doing enough.

We often write this all-consuming career miasma off as “passion.” It’s the price you pay to do what you love and get paid to do it. Going pro is a privileged position — no one is arguing with that. It should be hard, and it is. But as Mikey well knows, if you’re not careful, you can drown out there.

With a conviction that feels second nature, Mikey keeps the miasma at arm’s length. His passion for the sport of surfing is strong, but it’s second to his passion for living. Specifically, for fishing, for family, for four-wheel driving, and for fun. When asked to describe his perfect day, Mikey talks about waking up in a swag (sleeping bag) next to his wife Shenay. They’re out in the middle of nowhere, somewhere “out bush.” Birds sing. A creek rushes nearby. And there’s nothing on his to-do list except to catch a little dinner.

“I’m building to do cool things with my family. I want to get to a place financially where I can build a touring rig, buy a boat, step aside from surfing, and travel Oz (Aus). I’m talking months and months on the road. We’ll stay at campsites, friend’s places, out bush, or wherever else the ride takes us.” – Mikey Wright

Surfing to Live

Keeping that ultimate goal in mind, Mikey and Shenay spend a lot of time apart while she works at a vet clinic in Sydney and he competes wherever the world’s waves are crashing. It’s a lot of time away from home, but they make the most of it whenever he's back. They’ve mastered the impromptu out-of-town escape. You could say that out bush is where they’re truly together. Fully alive, totally in love, and completely at home.

Feeling at home on the road is nothing new to Mikey and Shenay, who both grew up in four-wheel drive vans piled high with surfboards and siblings. Shenay isn’t a surfer herself, but her brothers were, and the whole family frequently competed in the same contests that Mikey did with his siblings back when they were groms (baby surfers).

“We used to all pile into a van as a family and camp out at the surf events. Then we upgraded to a bus because everyone started to get bigger and couldn't fit in the van anymore. Really good memories. It's probably why I like driving so much now.” – Mikey

“We spent a lot of time at the beach. Spearfishing, snorkeling, surfing. We were always in the ocean. And for holidays, we'd go to our cousins' farm and do a bit of hunting, riding horses, and cattle work. That was my childhood, beach and bush.” – Shenay Wright

Chances are, Shenay saw Mikey surf many times before the two met later in life as adults when they hit it off on a weekend trip up the coast with a mutual friend.

Real-Life Mikey

It wasn’t quite love at first sight, but it was a very pleasant surprise. Shenay recalls being struck by how different real-life Mikey was from the punk on his Instagram page. He was strikingly present with his friends and with her. And so very kind.

The first months of their relationship were a bit spotty. Mikey traveled a lot for work, so they saw each other when they could, which wasn’t a whole lot. After their first camping trip as a couple went life-changingly well, things got a bit more serious. But it’s hard to be serious across a new set of time zones each week.

Then, the pandemic crashed ashore — disrupting their lives, their careers, and ending the sporadic nature of their relationship. With no international travel allowed, Mikey was forced to stay put for the longest time in perhaps his life. For months in Australia, the lockdown rule was that you were allowed to travel only within a 50-kilometer radius of your home. Lucky for Mikey, Shenay was within that radius. And so were plenty of cool spots where they could go surfing, fishing, diving, and four-wheel driving.

Like many couples around the world, Mikey and Shenay enjoyed a pandemi-cceleration in their relationship. Within a new normal, they were able to focus on one another, get into some deep conversations, go on a few adventures together, and crucially, impress the pants off of Shenay’s mum and dad. Much of this time spent speeding up was spent out in the bush, sleeping side by side under the stars.

“Off-roading has this way of bringing people together. If you’re just starting to get to know someone or if you haven't caught up with some friends in a while — just go camping. It’s the richest kind of quality time. Much better than meeting up at a pub or something like that. The real world is full of distractions. Get out bush, go off-grid, go fishing, and have a beer around the campfire. Soak it all up together, and you’ll never feel closer.” – Mikey

Never Closer

When asked about how to craft an adventurous relationship, Shenay is quick to bring up trust. Because getting out of your comfort zone is something that can only happen around people you deeply trust.

“It is so important to have someone in your life that knows you, really knows you. Someone who knows your strengths and your weaknesses, and knows exactly how to help you work through them. Someone who you can trust to give you the push you need to get out there and grow.’” – Shenay

It’s a kind of intimacy forged from fresh air and adrenaline — best enjoyed far away from the real world and its many distractions.

With a few chapters-worth of comfort-zone-expanding experiences under their belt — including pig-hunting with Shenay’s family, wild abalone diving with friends, and four-wheel-driving for the first time with BFGOODRICH^® Tires — Mikey and Shenay are closer than ever. And they’re ready to embark on their next big first run. Later this year, the couple will welcome their first child.

Another wild Wright to camp with, play with, and encourage mom to try new things with. Out bush where they’re truly together. Alive, in love, and at home.

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The First Run

The First Run | BFGoodrich

Media Mikey

A Striking Balance

Surfing to Live

Real-Life Mikey

Never Closer

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