The Genesis Of The Shoey… With The Mad Huey’s Hazza Twins

“Hello, it’s Kevin Fucken Costner,” yells one of the Harrington twins (it’s impossible to tell which one) down the line when I call to discuss the origins of the Shoey. It’s a remarkable greeting considering it could have been anyone on the other end (my number was unrecognisable) but you’d expect nothing less from the brothers largely credited with inventing the now global craze of drinking beer out of a shoe. 

From its beginnings in an obscure Rusty video (as far as we could pinpoint, anyway) this quintessential bogan ritual has gone on to pass the lips of everyone from Italian MotoGP star, Valentino Rossi, Scottish actor, Gerard Butler, Australian Formula One star, Daniel Ricciardo, and most recently the ‘Budgie Nine’ who caused a major diplomatic incident in the conservatively Islamic nation of Malaysia when stripped to their underwear and shoey’ed beer over their Anglo-Saxon torsos. This the most exhaustive historical analysis of The Shoey we could find. 

Stab: The Shoey is everywhere.  
The Hazzas: I saw, it went global. 

It’s gone all the way to the top! It’s causing major diplomatic incidents: Mate, it’s the only way to go. 

What is the earliest known Shoey? The Shoey was handed down to us by our ancestors back in 1985 when I was born. And we’re keeping the tradition alive. 

So your father was draining Shoeys at your baptism? They smacked my brother in the head with a shoe! Welcome to life sarn! 

Right, ‘cos I first remember it in that old Rusty vid, Cop It… That was years ago, but yeah that’s where it all began with the Rusty crew. We just started to drink out of our shoes and stuff at the party. We were just maggot being idiots. I don’t remember what the party was for. There was heaps of ‘em. Rusty was wild back in the day; it was fucking epic. 

Early Shoey exponents? Jay Davies, James Catto, my brother, me, it was just us four and (Josh) Kerr sometimes but he was chasing the WQS (World Qualifying Series). But yeah, we used to go travel, shoot movies and just drink beers and have the hellest time. It was the best times of my life for sure now that I look back on it. 

Where role did the Shoey ritual play in that scene? It was just beginning. We were all just doing it, playing up like two-bob watches. It ended up on the videos and everyone started laughing about it but it’s probably been around for years. I definitely didn’t create it, I don’t reckon. 

Where did you get it from? I don’t know (laughter). Someone else was bound to have done it. It’s not rocket science drinking out of your shoe. It is for me actually – listen to this (cracks a beer) 

When was the first sign the Shoey was going global? It’s pretty much just gone ham again now with (Australian MotoGP rider) Jack Miller starting it off. I went to the MotoGP and I was sitting with his mum and she goes, ‘oi, Jack wants to meet ya’. So we went to his little mobile caravan thing at Phillip Island in the pits and I just got dead nude and jumped into his race gear and started doing shoeys and shit and then I dunno he just said to us the next time he gets on the podium he’s gonna do a Shoey, so he ended up winning and the rest is history. 

Source: Instagram (@jackmilleraus)

From there it went on to (Australian Formula 1 Driver) Daniel Riccardio. I was so proud of him. Skolled it like a true champion; after doing a race a couple of hours long and all that sweat in there building up – it was a bit watered down but you gotta respect it. 

And the other day (Australian Motocross Champ) Chad Reed started doing it. He’s one of Australia’s best in motocross. He just won the Australian Open, he’s amazing and he bunged on a little shoey. Big shout out to Chad. All the number one athletes are fucken living life to the max, skolling six packs. 

But Valentino Rossi did one so that’s probably the biggest. We were proud as punch of him (laughter). 

And then the Budgie Nine caused a major diplomatic incident at the Malaysian F1 GP when they stripped and did Shoeys… Yeah, I saw that. You gotta respect ‘em as jail birds. That was heavy. Maybe that country doesn’t know how to take a joke but it was funny as shit. 

Were there lessons learned from that about the appropriate time and place for a shoey? Nah, the lessons learned were don’t get in fucken budgie smugglers! They need to pack a bit of sock in their front bit because they were packing no heat. One of ‘em had spider legs! (laughter).

Where to for the Shoey now? I just hope people don’t get mouth tinea. That’s what I hope. I hope there’ not a massive outbreak. We’re not copping the blame. 

What about Prime Minister Turnbull? Bob Hawke etched himself into folklore with the yard glass… It’d be an honour if he did it but the way he’s acting at the moment there’s no way in hell he’s gonna. He’d definitely get on the Mad Huey’s side if he did it. 

Why wouldn’t he? Because he’s got a vagina; he sits down to piss. 

Do you trip out that something you used to do as 15-year-olds is, over a decade later, being done by some of the biggest athletes on the planet? Yeah, I just laugh. I dunno, I don’t really think about it. I’m just pumped to see people having the hellest time. If it’s making people laugh and have a hell time doing a Shoey, then long live the Shoey!