ABOUT US
ON THE DIRT was created as a YouTube channel back in the first year that YouTube came into being, 2007. In those days, it was the personal YouTube account of John McCredie with a few little videos of some 4WD trips he had done with family and friends. John had always had a passion for gravel rallying and even won the Australian Rally Championship for pocket rockets in the front wheel drive 0-1300cc category. From there, this passion extended to four-wheel-driving and in 2009 John and his two sons Nathan and Jacob filmed their first 4WD Winch Comp.
The YouTube Channel soon started to grow in both popularity and size (number of videos) and was changed from the name OHM26 to ON THE DIRT. With more videos being produced and more 4wd and rally content being uploaded, the channel now has over 14,000 subscribers and almost 5 million views.
Cooper Tyres join High Country Motorsports
The team at High Country Motorsports are busy preparing for there much anticipated return to motorsport next month at the AMH Automotive Group Rally of the Bay. With the last event for the team being well over 9 months ago, there has been a lot going on behind the scenes. High Country Motorsports is excited to announce they will be partnering with Cooper motorsport tyres to launch the brand new Cooper Discoverer DG1 gravel rally tyre [...]
Green Light for AMH Automotive Group Rally of the Bay
The 2020 running of the AMH Automotive Group Rally of the Bay has now received a ‘Green Light’ from Motorsport Australia. The final approval was given to North Shore Sporting Car Club (NSSCC) based on the event falling within the Motorsport Australia ‘Return to Race Strategy’, which is approved by the NSW State Government. Whilst NSSCC has been pushing ahead with plans for the Rally, there was always the possibility that further restrictions could have been [...]
The Accent on Working Dogs at Bonalbo
It was a completely new event to all at the 2019 Accent Benchtops Working Dog Rally. A joint MTA NSW Rally Championship, Queensland Championship and East Coast Classic Rally Series event that saw 49 cars and crews take to the stages around the small northern NSW town of Bonalbo on a crisp July Saturday morning. The battle for the MTA NSW Rally Championship in particular was rejoined, as championship leaders Richard Shimmon and co driver [...]
Team Ranga – Nissan Patrol Winch Truck
They say only a "Ranga" can call another red head a Ranga, but when your team name is Team Ranga, we may need to make an exception for these two blokes in their Nissan Patrol GU. Paul Semmens and Nathan Mills have had a few thrills and spills in their 4.8 inter-cooled turbo Patrol, sporting a few different coloured panels after repairs from previous winch events that didn't go according to plan. The truck features [...]
Rally of the Bay – Review Part 2
This is part 2 of our review of the 2020 AMH Automotive Group Rally of the Bay. When we left you in Part 1, the Toyota Team pairing of Harry Bates and John McCarthy had built up a significant lead after three stages to be leading the rally by just over 26 seconds. And it was the other Toyota Yaris, driven by Lewis Bates and Anthony McLoughlin that was sitting in second. Richie Dalton and [...]
Arnhem Land – NT
By John McCredie In the North of Australia is a land area called Arnhem Land. It is an Aboriginal reserve that covers almost 100,000 square kilometres and has some of the most remote communities in Australia. You could say that the Aboriginal people own this land and whilst that is essentially true, the idea of ownership has quite a different meaning in their culture. Recently I was privileged enough to be able [...]
Narooma Rally Set to Ignite the South Coast on September 13, 2025
The beautiful Eurobodalla region is set to echo with the sound of rally engines when the 2025 Techworkz Automotive Stages and Horizon Apartments Narooma Forest Rally hit the forests on Saturday, September 13. This action-packed event is the penultimate round of the Shamrock Haulage NSW Rally Championship and the East Coast Classic Rally Series (2WD and 4WD), while also hosting the final round of the NSW Clubman Rally Series and the penultimate round of the [...]
FJ55 Land Cruiser – The Ugly One
Loved and Hated. The FJ55 Land Cruiser was a 4WD that divided 4WD enthusiasts. It looks and styling was loved by some, hated by others! Toyota's 4WD production started way back in 1941 when the Japanese Army took a Jeep, that they had acquired during the occupation of the Philippines, and sent it back home and ordered Toyota to make something similar. Then in the 1950's, the US Army commissioned Toyota to make 100 vehicles similar [...]
New contenders to take on Penultimate Round of the East Coast Classic Rally Series
Round 7 of the East Coast Classic Rally Series (ECCRS) will be held on the 19th of October in conjunction with the final round of the MTA NSW State Rally Championship at the Kosciuszko Automotive Monaro Stages Rally. There is already a good number of classic cars entered, but the more interesting part of the entry list are the new contenders taking on the penultimate round of the series. Heading the list of new Classic hopefuls [...]
