John Oldfield

Inducted into the Shell Rimula Wall of Fame at Reunion 2007.

At just 17 years of age, John started working for MacMahon Constructions out of Alice Springs operating graders, bulldozers and scrapers building the South Road from Orange Creek Station to the Northern Territory border.
While working in this job he used to watch the roadtrains travelling by on the dry, corrugated, dusty roads and decided then and there that he wanted to drive trucks. He was later given the opportunity to drive an ex-Bell Bros R600 Flintstone Mack carting water and machinery.
John went on to work for Northern Transport under the guidance of Ivan Wiese and Ian Lovegrove. John's was the first truck with two trailers to travel to the Kintore Aboriginal Settlement near the WA border. Using a mud map he often had to stop and ask the aboriginals directions to find the place. When he got there, all he found was an old caravan under a not-too-shady tree. John went on to cart general freight, fuel, food and just about anything else to remote areas of the outback through SA, WA and the NT including remote locations such as the Giles Weather Station, Ayers Rock, Black Stone and Jameson.
Northern Transport subbied to most of the fuel companies so John was hauling for Shell, BP, Ampol and Caltex to cattle stations and remote settlements. He also shifted oil rigs to WA via the Tanami Track and shifted crude oil from Merenie Oil Fields out of Alice Springs. He also pulled triples to Darwin and Mt Isa out of Alice. John eventually left the Territory but continued to drive trucks working in Victoria for Snowy River Transport at Orbost. In 1995 he moved to SA and bought his first truck. Over a period of 10 years he purchased another four trucks to haul livestock.
In June 2006 John sold his beloved Western Star and was now employed carting crude oil around the Cooper Basin to Moomba.