On a recent trip to Brisbane Carl Kirkbeck met up with Darren Mullan and his 2002 Kenworth T604 from Kaarimba in Victoria. Darren was tending to the T604 while resting up on a public holiday at the BP Truck Stop in Rocklea, waiting for the produce markets to open up the following day and collect his backload. Darren freely admits that he is a proud lifetime truckie. He and wife Emma run three trucks from their ranch in Kaarimba where they also engage in their other passion, breeding Quarter Horses. What started out as a hobby with just one horse has now manifested into a thriving business, Xtreme Quarter Horses. They have on average 80 to 90 horses on the property. “It is a great family orientated business that we all enjoy,” said Darren.

Darren‘s fleet is made up of two Kenworth T604s and one T409. The T604 pictured here runs a 550hp C15 Cat with manual 18-speed Roadranger and has been a bullet-proof truck. It now has 2.4 million kilometres on the clock and just “fits like a glove”. In fact, over the previous nine days Darren had been pulled in by the RMS (Roads and Maritime Services), and put over the pit three times, all three visits yielding not a single item or defect. “That‘s a good truck,” said Darren. Darren‘s vexing question was Ford or Holden. Darren was very quick to reply “Holden, I have an old HZ in the shed at home”.

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