Ben Grayling
While most kids dreamed of becoming astronauts or firefighters, Ben Grayling always knew he wanted to drive road trains. At eight, he was steering an old Dodge around the farm, accelerator chocked because he couldn’t reach the pedals, while a worker fed hay from the back and shouted directions.
After finishing school, he went to work for Jumbuck Pastoral on Bulgunnia Station, where he drove his first “proper” truck, an old DA Toyota body truck with a four-speed gearbox and diff splitter.
At 19, Ben was under pressure to get his semi licence before new laws kicked in requiring a rigid licence first. Ben booked his test for the final eligible day. Tested by the local copper, Ben thought he’d failed. When the copper tried to open his door and found it blocked by the tree, he turned to Ben and said, “You’d better move forward so I can open the door and write out your licence.”
His passion for trucking truly took hold when he began working for Bulls Transport. A paperwork mix-up by the Alice Springs MVR made him a fully licensed road train driver overnight. Despite minimal experience, he was soon on the road pulling triples and learning fast.
After six months at Bulls, Ben chased a lifelong interest in livestock transport. He joined RTA in Katherine, where he spent three months in the workshop before being assigned to drive station trucks. He later moved into tipper work with Bulkhaul, operating across the NT and WA including to the Granites, between Wyndham and Cadjebut and to the Argyle Diamond Mine.
In 2001, Ben took his skills overseas, driving expedition trucks through more than 80 countries across Africa, Asia, Europe and Central America. As a driver, guide and mechanic all in one, he quickly discovered that carting cattle is easier than carting humans! Ben’s highlight of working in this industry was meeting his wife, with whom he now shares two beautiful children.
In 2006, Ben joined KBR in Iraq, driving heavy vehicles ‘out of the wire,’ hauling everything from ammo and fuel to potable water. Facing threats from IEDs, incendiaries and small arms fire, the job was not for the faint-hearted. After one too many close calls, he returned to expedition work, running his own trucks through Nepal, India, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Between overseas jobs, he worked across Australia for Gulf Group, including hauling the first load of ore from Fortescue Metals’ Cloudbreak mine.
Ben returned permanently to Australia in 2011 and joined G&S Transport, where he stayed for nearly a decade. Here, he ran primarily on the Tanami Road with tippers and freight and occasionally a float, cruising along at an average of 4 or 5 kilometres an hour, soaking in the scenery on the way to the Granites.
In 2021, he joined Toll Energy, servicing oil and gas fields on the Strzelecki Track. It was a smoother ride than the Tanami Road, paid well and meant more time at home. However, a serious workplace injury in August 2023 put Ben off the road. After a long recovery and having recently regained his MC licence, Ben is currently working limited hours in the office but itching to get back behind the wheel.
Trucking has been a rewarding way of life for Ben. Through his career, he’s travelled extensively across Australia and the world, played a part in helping develop and connect the country and built a network of mates he’ll likely have for life.
