Two mates, an old car, and a mystery route. Raising money for the Cancer Council has never been so much fun – by Frank Leggett
In late 2023, two mates, Jamie Allen and Adam Kraski, were discussing how cancer affects so many families in Australia. It had certainly touched Adam’s family and Jamie knew many people who had to deal with that terrible disease. They decided to do something about it by raising money for the Cancer Council.
Jamie’s uncle had taken part in the Shitbox Rally a few years earlier and raved about the experience. Basically, you buy an old car worth less than $1500 and drive it a ridiculous distance—say, Melbourne to Alice Springs. Jamie and Adam were unable to spend the weeks required for such a trip but instead entered a sister event, the Mystery Box Rally. Starting at Airlie Beach in Queensland, entrants drive a five-day loop, returning to the same location.
“To make it interesting, all teams must drive their own 25-plus-year-old car,” says Jamie. “All the details of the route are kept secret and are only given to the teams each morning.”
Their team, dubbed Midnight Racers, purchased an old Commodore for the journey. “We bought it sight unseen off the internet, flew down to Melbourne on Christmas Eve and drove it home to Paterson, just north of Maitland [NSW],” says Adam. “We had to drive it 1700 kilometres to Airlie Beach, 3000 kilometres on the rally, and another 1700 kilometres home.”
CLOSE TO HOME
Last February, after the car had been purchased and they had been accepted into the race, Jamie received some unexpected news. His wife had bowel cancer. The rally suddenly took on much deeper importance.
“The Cancer Council is an amazing organisation that does really good work,” says Jamie. “We’re just trying to do our bit and help out, but now it’s personal.”
Jamie Allen is a branch manager at CSS member company Sullivans Mining & Industrial. CSS Group and Sullivans Mining got behind Jamie by each making a significant donation to the team. Adam runs his own business, Contemporary Construction, and they’ve also donated.
“One of our sponsors, Full Throttle Custom Garage, made a sizeable donation and took the Commodore into the garage for a day,” says Adam “They gave it a service and tune-up, and put some new suspension in it.”
Jamie and Adam have also run a couple of fundraising events. A pizza night saw them cooking pizzas, 85 racks of ribs and 600 chicken wings for 150 people. They also had a pig and lamb on a spit night at a local soccer club. Their efforts have seen them raise more than $15,000 before the rally has even begun.
BREAKDOWN AND OUT
The Mystery Box Rally will take Team Midnight racers through the outback, mainly on dirt roads, and stopping at small towns that need a bit of support.
“There will be 300 people camping together each night,” says Jamie. “It brings some much-needed commerce to the businesses in these smaller towns. The pubs really see an increase in trade.”
There’s a support crew to help any of the teams that break down on their journey. If the car can’t be fixed on the side of the road, it’s put on a trailer and taken to the next checkpoint.
“If they can’t fix it that night at the checkpoint, you’re on your own,” says Adam. “We don’t expect to have too many mechanical issues. We’re carrying tools and a few spare parts but we’re happy to put our faith in the Commodore. It’s a great Australian car.”
Jamie is also happy with their choice of vehicle. “We went with a Holden because we figured there will probably be a few lying around in paddocks if we need some parts.”
JUMP IN
According to Adam, he and Jamie are looking forward to meeting like-minded people doing something for a good cause. They’ve also been overwhelmed by the generosity of the people in their hometown.
“We live in the small town of Paterson and the community has been right behind us,” he says. “Everyone from the local butchers to the produce companies to the garage to the school kids have shown their support.”
If there’s one thing to be learned from Jamie and Adam, it’s to jump in and give things a go. It’s easy to be overawed or to think things are too difficult or to just leave it all to someone else.
“When we entered the rally, our goal was to raise eight grand,” says Jamie. “But the support from the community and our family and friends has been incredible. We’re just two ordinary blokes. To raise 15 grand for a great cause before we’ve even set off is amazing. That figure’s climbing every day and we may even reach 20 grand by the time it’s over. Adam and I are so happy we took a chance, got involved and made a difference. Since its launch back in 2010, ordinary people taking part in the Shitbox Rally and the Mystery Box Rally have raised $46 million for cancer research. Unbelievable!”
