380 Horse Power, 2004 Scania Truck, 8speed manual transmission, riding on full airbag suspension for a smooth drive.
This month’s feature of “Dream Rig” is the perfect performance horse truck. The truck is owned by equestrian 5-Star event rider Tanya Schmidt and partner, eventer and campdrafter Luke Klan who are based in Birnam, Queensland.
Along with campaigning eventers, Tanya is a licensed Thoroughbred trainer, trackwork rider and Queensland-Off-The-Track acknowledged retrainer, having trained countless off the track Thoroughbreds to compete at the highest levels of eventing across Australia. With the pair heavily invested in the equine world, they required a truck that was versatile and yet had all the bells and whistles.
The truck was custom built seven years ago and purchased by the duo 18 months ago. Equipped with solar panels located on the roof of the truck, the truck and all amenities can run off grid. This was designed for convenience to be able to arrive at a show, have a shower and something to eat without having to plug into power. Travelling with such a diverse group of horses from seasoned travellers to young horses, safety is paramount when carrying their precious cargo. Carrying seven horses a key feature in the horse area, not so commonly seen today, is the ability to drop their heads whilst travelling and non-slip carpet matting. With the expanding living area and well planned storage facilities internally and externally, the Red Rig has everything you need for off grid living.
Article & Photos: Ash Grant.
To provide more internal space, the living design features a pop out. This space features the lounge and bunk.
The kitchen features a fridge, freezer and microwave and full-sized sink.
The lounge table can be used as additional sleeping quarters, with the table folding down to form a double bed.
Plenty of storage here!
No space is wasted. Storage drawers under the lounge seating.
The bathroom facilities include a full-sized shower, basin and toilet.
To declutter the bathroom, automatic shampoo and conditioner and body wash dispensers can be found on the shower wall.
A slide out storage shelf is nestled inside the bathroom mirror.
Storage compartments never go astray in a horse truck and this living is designed to hold all your necessities. You will find plenty of storage in the living area, with additional cupboard space above the walk through to the horse area.
The entrance to the truck features three pop out stairs. The passenger side of the truck is fitted with a retractable awning, to provide shelter over the entry to the truck living, and outside whilst enjoying time outside. The truck is fitted with a 200L tank and an additional 200L grey water tank.
Inside the horse section on the wall adjacent the living (and before the horse bays) you will find an internal tack box.
The internal tack box features five saddle racks, with multiple bridle racks and plenty of hanging storage space.
A unique feature of this truck is that there are no storage boxes within the horse area of the truck. This allows horses to completely drop their heads whilst travelling. Air vents are fitted, along with fully adjustable lighting and cameras to keep an eye on horses.
The horse area is open with steel bars to encourage natural airflow and keep the horses cool.
The truck has seven wide bays, that are adjustable to suit the horses onboard. Each bay is fitted with stallion aluminium dividers and halter clips installed for safety and to prevent horses playing during travel.
The windows located in the truck are fitted with fly screens and pop-out windows to assist with airflow and unwanted flies.
The truck is able to camp on or off grid and features a 3kw inverter with two lithium deep cycle batteries.
On the driver’s side of the truck you will notice three large storage boxes. These can comfortably hold ten bales. An additional three external storage boxes can be found on the passenger side of the truck.
Hoses have been installed to the water tank, this makes cleaning the back easier and allows us to fill the horses waters whilst at a competition.
The truck features a single sleeper cab, allowing drivers to take a rest between travelling on long trips.
