Timmy McDonald
Inducted into the Shell Rimula Wall of Fame at Reunion 2009.
Tim (Timmy Mac) McDonald started operating trucks at the age of 19 in 1967 driving an old "48" Bedford out of Abbottsford brewery in Melbourne. At the age of 20 he got a start at "Multi Transit" driving an old AEC Mandator.
He then upgraded to an Albion Clydedale which took 20 hours to drive from Melbourne to Sydney pulling a 37 foot single-axle trailer. Later, he drove a petrol 190 Inter to Adelaide and Sydney. Next it was a C160 Cummins in an Inter 184 running to Brisbane carting general freight and spuds.
At about 21, he managed to get a job with Frank "Barney" Kerr and it was here that he listened and learned from all the old timers, the Reed brothers, Billy and Joe, Ivan Farley, the Shegogs, Darby Drape, Barry Banner and the Witch Doctor, along with Barry Morgan and Ronnie Doyle. All taught him respect of the highway whilst driving R200s, 1418 and 1923 Benz prime-movers until Mayne Nickless bought them out. He went to work for Dave and Jack Toll carrying GMH boxes to Adelaide.
At the age of 25 he married Jan and went back on local. He bought a truck with a contract to cart engines for Repco but he sold after five years. He went back to driving interstate for Jim Liapis at Deer Park, subbying to TNT and then Eastoes. He went from a 290 Cummins in a cab-over KW to a new cab-over KW when Cummins introduced the "400" (unheard of power). After 18 years driving interstate, the last five with Jim Liapis and Eastoes as a company driver, he bought an Atkinson prime-mover working for Alltrans. This didn't work out so after a year he sold out. After trying to work local he headed over to Des White at ICD who offered him a start running to Sydney and Brisbane on freezer and chiller freight.
In 1988 he started carting chemicals for Melbourne water as a sub-contractor, and in 1994 he tendered for the contract directly and is still doing that work to this day in a 1987 SAR Gold Nugget. He still drives Melbourne to Sydney in his own KW 404ST.
