Anchors Deep - Sh*tbox Rally

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Anchors Deep - Sh*tbox Rally

We have been accept! We’ll be hitting the road in our $1,500-or-less Sh*tbox, driving from Adelaide to Darwin on an unforgettable 7-day adventure.

It’s not just about the drive—it’s about making a real difference in the fight against cancer.

27/08/2026

The car has been stripped back from its rally look.

Roof racks, roof pod, uhf removed from the roof. Sh*tbox Rally stickers and all our sponsor stickers taken off. A good outside clean getting kilograms of mud and rocks off of it. Most of the dragonflies and bugs have been sprayed off of the front and roof. It is back to looking close to the day we picked it up.

I have to say, Mercedes paint holds up very well over 25 years. It could fool many to think it want a Sh*tbox. Not many car manufacturers paint lasts as well as this car has.

The missing fog light, the dash lights, the cracked plastic interior panels, the sagging roof liner, front bumper damage and rear door issues still remain.

We will hope to sell it to someone who can get it back all of its glory.

Shaun and I already have planned on what car we will try to source next if we take on the adventure again. We saw which cars on the rally faired better than others and had more space as well.

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

26/08/2026

To wrap up our first rally experience we thought we would give you our experience using numbers. I hope this makes it a bit more fun for everyone!

Here we go:

1 - Amount of tyre punctures for our team

3.75 - Most expensive fuel cost per litre

6 - Our Buddy Group number

6 - Cars that made it to finish from our group

7 - Number of cars that started in our group

14 - Buddy group members

15 - Years that Sh*tbox Rally has been around

22 - Date we crossed the line in Darwin

25 - Age of our Sh*tbox

36 - Cars that died along the way

86 - Cancer research programs to date

108 - Donations made to our donation page

126 - Amount of driving time (whole trip)

243 - Teams in 2026 (almost) Spring Rally

1500 - Max amount your sh*tbox can cost

1581 - Kilometres of unsealed roads

2001 - Year our Mercedes was built

2162.97 - Cost of fuel in total

9108 - Kilometres travelled round trip

12,190 - Our team donations total

46,663 - Buddy Group 6 donation total

67,393 - Highest amount raised by an individual team (BARRY THE BRAVE)

2,500,000 (approx)- How much our rally raised including donations and vehicle auctions

68,666,000 - Amount raised by Sh*tbox Rally for the Cancer Council of Australia

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

25/08/2026

Post rally trip - Julia Creek to Townsville (651kms)

And the Sh*tbox is finally back in Townsville where it all started!

I left this morning at 5.30am so I could make it back in time to pick my daughters up from school which I promised the night before.

The trip today went pretty well and so did the car.

In the next coming days I will break the trip down with some numbers. It will be a way of talking about the trip without having too much to read.

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

24/08/2026

Post Rally - Day 2 (708kms)

I had a good sleep last night at Barkley Homestead and woke up to see the aftermath of the night drive with 1000s of dragonflies attracted to the lights. Safe to say the car will need another clean when it gets back to Townsville.

The drive wasn’t even close to the length of yesterday’s drive but felt like it was longer. The drive is straight, flat and nothing in sight. It wasn’t until Mount Isa that the roads started to bend and go up and down.

A few stops along the way to break up the boredom. I went to get a coffee just outside of Camooweal at the Drover’s Camp… wasted $6 on some hot milk 😢. A pie in Mount Isa for lunch was in order as I started to get a bit hungry.

Also had to get the QLD sign picture when entering QLD again.

One more day on the road! The Sh*tbox will be back in Townsville again. It will be returning after 20 days away.

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

23/08/2026

Post Rally Trip - Darwin to Barkley Homestead (1151km)

Yesterday afternoon I decided that I would make a move today. Darwin is nice and all but I needed to get out of there as soon possible. It also gave Shaun time to explore around and see what he wanted.

The Sh*tbox was washed this morning to give it a bit of a refresh and to get all the built up mud and dust. I had to make sure the wheels were balanced and didn’t have chunks of mud clinging on making the wheels shake.

It was smooth sailing out of Darwin but I did notice the fuel tank needle falling quite quickly. A fill up in Katherine and another in Mataranka to make sure the tank was filled correctly.

Just outside Mataranka I got in radio contact with another Sh*tbox to see where they were going… nek minit… engine light goes on. Luckily I had the scan tool which told me it was the Mass Airflow sensor. The team pulled over and gave me a lend of some cleaner and the code was reset.

With the engine light cleared we were off again but now as a two car convoy. The team is called the Stubbyholders and have rallied many times before. After a chat and finding out the were pushing to Barkly Station my plan off free camping just passed Three Ways changed.

Having another car there put my mind at ease and we made it in Barkly Homestead before 8pm. A quick feed, a couple of beers and a chat before hopping into the swag for bed.

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

22/08/2026

Yesterday we wrapped up the rally by attending the car auction and the award ceremony.

We had one from our team sent to auction and they raised another $600 for Cancer Council. The auction itself raised around $34000!

There were different awards presented on he day. Some included best dressed, least likely to make the finish but did etc.

Shaun and I were nominated for two awards but didn’t win either. To be nominated for them was an honour in itself though.

The first was best fundraiser. This was for the idea of asking for donations of items to sell on Facebook instead of giving a direct cash donation as many don’t just have cash lying around but may have unwanted items around the house.

The other award is the biggest award for the rally. It is the Spirit of the rally Award. It is awarded to the team who showed the 10 values of the Sh*tbox rally throughout the rally.

Like I said. It was an honour to be one of a few who were nominated for this award especially when it was our first rally.

As the sun went down so did the rally end. Our Rally raised over $2.5 Million which is an amazing effort and we are so grateful to be apart of that.

Now for the return trip which I shall call the post trip rally. I am about to drive back to Townsville which is another 2500km. Shaun will be heading back by plane on Monday.

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

21/08/2026

Day 7 - Timber Creek to Darwin (607km sealed)

And just like that… the driving portion of the rally is over. We made it from the start line in Adelaide all the way up to Darwin for the finish.

It was such a hard slog for us and our buddy group but we did it!

From the registration, to the purchase of the car, getting sponsors, fundraising, preparing to leave, getting the car to Adelaide and doing the rally… what an effort! It was defiantly worth it and the experiences will never leave but wow it was it an effort.

Now for a bit of wind down tomorrow with the auction of some donated rally cars and the awards/presentation. Some farewells of teammates as they depart for home and preparing to get home ourselves.

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

20/08/2026

Day 6 - Daly Waters to Timber Creek

Lots and lots of dust! Lots and lots of rocks! Lots and lots of corrugation.

Today was the day where we remember those who we are doing the rally for.

We would like to tell you our story here now about why we chose to do the rally and who we have dedicated the rally for.

For those who are followers of our page and don’t know, we have named our team Anchors Deep because it is the name after the fishing apparel small business Shaun and our good friend Dean Snell made.

Dean sadly was diagnosed with Glioblastoma and later passed away from this cancer in 2024. He is survived by his wife and his two daughters.

Shaun-
Back in 2002 at a house party til the end. Dean never changed. The most genuine bloke I’ve had the pleasure of spending a lot of time with. You are missed every day by our family, mate. The love you showed our daughters they will cherish forever. Forever in our thoughts and hearts mate. Reel in Peace, Dean.

Mitchell-
I met Dean whilst out riding motorbikes around the bush in Townsville with Shaun. From then on Dean was always around as he was good friends with my sister and Shaun.

It wasn’t until I discharged from the Army that I started catching up with Dean more often as a friend. He knew I was into fishing and wanted to keep my mind busy because of my mental health by taking me fishing. I am so grateful for this. He helped me during my darker times and I hoped that I did the same for him.

Every time I drive passed a creek I can hear Dean say, I wonder if there is a Barra in there…

All week we have heard so many stories about how cancer has affected so many people. That is why why decided to do the Sh*tbox Rally. We talk, we support we fundraise!

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

You can still donate to our team fundraiser page to help with cancer research and treatment.

https://spring2026.sh*tboxrally.com.au/anchors-deep

19/08/2026

Day 5 - Alice Springs to Daly Waters (922km sealed)

Not much to report today. Just a big long drive on the bitumen to Daly Waters.

It rained in Alice overnight and had big storms to the South. One swag stayed dry and one got a bit wet… not telling you which belonged to who.

It rained on the way out of Alice for a bit which helped was the cars a little to make them look a bit better after the mud and dust from the previous days.

We had a little stop at the Devil’s Marbles but wanted to keep trucking along and get into camp at a reasonable hour. We left mid group and were the sixth group in which is really good.

Issues of the day came from our car and Team Keepy Uppy. Ours just had a MAF sensor error which after cleaning the air boxes and driving a bit more cleared itself luckily. Keepy zippy has a bit of a fuel leak from the filler neck which we will address soon.

Back on the dirt roads tomorrow!

Sh*tbox Rally
Cancer Council Australia

Address

Townsville, QLD

Website

https://spring2026.shitboxrally.com.au/anchors-deep

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