Brett Ellis was checking some wheel nuts at Coolalinga on Darwin‘s southern outskirts when Craig McCauley caught up with him. He has been driving trucks for 38 years, the past 18 of which have been behind the wheel of fuel tankers. The prime mover on the triple road train he drives for Direct Haul is a Cummins powered Kenworth T909, and was loaded with diesel for delivery to Aboriginal communities and cattle stations around Lajamanu, approximately 900 kilometres southwest of Darwin.

He was looking forward to returning from this trip and having a couple of days off fishing with mates at Corroboree Billabong on the Mary River Wetlands, reported to be home to the largest concentration of saltwater crocodiles in the world! Brett ‘s reply when questioned about the biggest issue facing trucking in the Northern Territory was the overuse of modern technology and the loss of the old way of life as a truck driver. Vexing question time rolled around and when asked was his footy preference NRL or Aussie Rules, he replied “both”, following Melbourne Storm in the NRL and Carlton in Aussie Rules.

Brought to you by: