Pete spent 35 years as a Victorian police officer. Sonia ran clinical programs inside the prison system. Then they sold the house, bought a caravan, and drove away. That was three years ago — and they haven’t stopped since.

Steve Zammit sits down with Pete and Sonia at the Queensland MDC Muster — right in the middle of the community atmosphere they’ve come to love — along with MDC’s Assistant National Sales Manager Wayne Chevis, to talk candidly about what it actually means to live full-time on the road in Australia.

This one goes deep. The freedom, the logistics, the moments that make you glad you did it, the things nobody tells you — and the remarkable people you meet when you’re willing to park your van on a stranger’s property in Orford, Tasmania.

Their dog Indy comes along for the ride too.

In this episode:

• How Pete and Sonia went from weekend trips in the Victorian high country to full-time life on the road
• Why they upgraded from their MDC 16ft van to the XT19HRT MKIII (Wayne had something to do with it)
• Managing no fixed address: mail, Medicare, rego — is it really as hard as people think?
• Spontaneous vs. planned travel — and why they drove across the Nullarbor for someone’s 50th birthday
• House sitting: a break from van life, or just another adventure?
• 8 months in Tasmania — the hiking, the roads, the weather, the highlights
• Pete’s story: how an online connection led to a week on a stranger’s property overlooking Orford — and an Easter at their shack at Macquarie Heads
• Travelling with a senior dog and the practical reality of hitting long hikes with Indy in tow
• What nobody tells you about full-time van life (including why a UHF radio might be the most important thing in your rig)
• The MDC owners community: genuine friendships, musters, and why people will travel from WA for a birthday party
• What’s next: WA, the Northern Territory, and a trip to London to visit the kids

Explore the full MDC range at https://www.marketdirect.com.au — and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Off Grid Down Under.

Escape with Confidence — MDC Campers & Caravans

🎧 Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts — search Off Grid Down Under by MDC

📱 Follow MDC:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marketdirectcampers
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mdc_caravans_and_campers/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MDC_AU

📻 Full podcast playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjsVAcWloYAYA64q9ewHGiJ5uhgEGBJYZ

Escape with Confidence

What does it take to pack up your life, ignore the doctors, and go live in a 13-foot caravan full time? Cain and Katrina from Hapnin' Empty Nesters know exactly — because they did it.

When Cain received a heart transplant assessment, they faced a choice: wait or go. They went. Four years later, they're still on the road, building an audience on YouTube, and Cain has written two fantasy novels along the way.

In this episode, Steve sits down with Cain and Katrina alongside MDC's Mark Banks (Banksy) at the QLD Muster for a raw, honest conversation about life on the road — the freedom, the fear, the finances, and what it really means to stop surviving and start living.

In this episode, we cover:

• Cain's heart condition and the wake-up call that changed everything
• How they went from a "one month test trip" to selling the house and never going back
• What a typical week on the road actually looks like (spoiler: there's still dishes)
• Free camping secrets — why WikiCamps is their bible
• Managing finances full-time on the road ($1,000/week budget and how they cut it back)
• Building an audience on YouTube and social media — and why there's room for everyone
• Cain's fantasy novel series (City of Stone, Song of the Death Swords) — from sparky to published author
• Cain's upcoming heart transplant and why they're still out there making memories

Explore the full MDC range at https://www.marketdirect.com.au — and don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Escape with Confidence — https://www.marketdirect.com.au

Escape with Confidence

What does it actually take to build appliances tough enough for the Australian outback? In this episode of Off Grid Down Under, Steve sits down with Damian Orleanski and Cain Dixon from Dometic Australia, along with MDC's General Manager of Commercial & Product, James Field, to pull back the curtain on one of Australia's most trusted caravan appliance partnerships.

From the Dometic testing lab in China — vibration rigs, water jets, anechoic chambers and fridges that have been running for over a decade — to a frank conversation about grey market air conditioners and the real risks they pose to Australian caravan owners, this episode covers territory most brands won't touch.

You'll also hear how the Gold Class Caravan range came together as a near-complete Dometic ecosystem, how the 48-volt air conditioner changes everything about power management on board the new MDC MK4 range, and what's coming next — including a battery upgrade that fits more capacity into the exact same case.

In this episode we cover:

• The 10+ year MDC and Dometic partnership, and what genuine collaboration actually looks like
• Grey market appliances — what they are, why they're a problem, and what can go wrong
• Inside Dometic's China testing facility: vibration, IP rating, aging and sound testing
• The 48-volt air conditioner and how it works within the MK4 electrical ecosystem
• Fridges across the MDC range — from the 70L drink fridge to the 270L dual-door unit
• The Gold Class Caravan's Dometic-centric build and Enerdrive power system
• A brand new battery that packs 460Ah into the same case as the old 300Ah unit
• Tips on pre-chilling, power management and getting more out of your off-grid setup

Explore the full MDC range at https://www.marketdirect.com.au — and don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Escape with Confidence — marketdirect.com.au

Escape with Confidence

One of Australia's most experienced caravan journalist sits down with the MDC crew at the QLD Muster — and he doesn't hold back.

Max Taylor has spent 20+ years reviewing caravans, running Caravan World Magazine, and building GoRV into one of Australia's most trusted independent RV media outlets. This is one of the most honest conversations we've had on the podcast.

We get into what's really changed in the Australian caravan industry over two decades, what reviewers look for that most buyers never think to ask, and what manufacturers are still getting wrong in 2026. Plus — Max gives us his honest take on the MDC SR19 Series 2.

In this episode:

How Max went from print editor at ACP/Bauer Media to building a fully digital RV media business
The single biggest shift he's seen in how Australians approach caravanning
What a "good caravan" looked like in 2006 vs what buyers expect today
The 48-volt revolution and what's next for off-grid capability
The small details that tell Max a manufacturer has actually thought about their van
Common mistakes he still sees across the industry — and why they shouldn't still be happening
His unfiltered first impressions of the MDC SR19 Series 2
Why musters like this one are where you get the real story from owners
The cost of living squeeze and what it's doing to the caravan market

Filmed live at the MDC QLD Muster 2026.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode → https://www.youtube.com/@MDCCampersandCaravans

🌐 Explore the full MDC range → https://www.marketdirect.com.au 📻 MDC Podcast page → https://www.marketdirect.com.au/blog/mdc-podcast/ 🎙️ GoRV → https://gorv.com.au

Escape with Confidence

Mandy and Rolly Heath are back — and this time, they've got 13,000 kilometres of stories to share. Since their last appearance on the show, they've taken Gold Class Caravan's AC17C through some of Australia's most iconic and demanding terrain: the Bungle Bungles by helicopter, Lake Argyle by Barbie boat, three nights in Broome, and then the full length of the Gibb River Road, west to east.

In this episode, Steve sits down with Mandy, Rolly, and Wayne Chevis at the MDC Queensland Muster to get the full debrief. How did the Gold Class handle the corrugations and creek crossings? Was the Horizontal Falls seaplane worth the nine-year wait? And what made a planned two-day stop at Cape Keraudren turn into sixteen?

They cover it all — the bucket list moments, the honest road conditions, the airbag suspension revelation, and why Mandy has absolutely no intention of going back to a hybrid.

They also talk camp cooking — Rolly's recent masterclass at the Ipswich Show that became a fundraiser for the Royal Flying Doctors, and the massive cook-up he's putting on here at the Muster for 250 people: fire rice, pork tacos, and 60 whole pork loin ribs hung over the fire.

Whether you've always had the Gibb River Road on your bucket list or you're just living vicariously, this one's essential listening.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjsVAcWloYAYA64q9ewHGiJ5uhgEGBJYZ

📻 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & more: https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2522398.rss

🌐 MDC Campers & Caravans: https://www.marketdirect.com.au
⭐️Gold Class Caravans: https://www.goldclasscaravans.com.au/
📖 Full podcast library: https://www.marketdirect.com.au/blog/mdc-podcast/

Follow Mandy & Rolly:
📱 Facebook & Instagram: Memories Not Money
🌐 memoriesnotmoney.com

Escape with Confidence

Australia is only covered by mobile phone signal across 30% of its landmass. If you're relying on Google Maps in the outback, you're relying on memory — and memory from a platform that's never physically driven those tracks.

In this episode of Off Grid Down Under, Steve sits down with Sam Hayward, Chairman of HEMA Maps, alongside MDC's Banksy and Vaughan, to dig into 40+ years of mapping Australia's most remote country. From the company's Dutch founders laminating marine charts in Queensland, to sending the entire HEMA staff into the desert in pairs to remap outback Australia, to the Map Patrol vehicles that are still out there collecting ground-truth data today — this one goes deep.

We cover why Google Maps and Apple Maps fall dangerously short in remote areas, how HEMA's maps are actually made, the difference between the Smart Navigator and the app on your phone, and what kit Sam would recommend to any family heading out on a big lap.

In this episode:

• How HEMA Maps started — founders Henry and Margaret's story
• The Great Desert Tracks expedition of 1998 that remapped outback Australia
• Why Google Maps can get you into serious trouble in remote areas
• Australia's mobile coverage problem (hint: it's not 98%)
• Map Patrol — why HEMA still physically drives every track
• The Alpha Program: 50+ volunteer travellers collecting data on the road
• Smart Navigator vs phone app — which one's right for you?
• The biggest mistakes people make planning remote trips
• Physical atlas vs digital navigation — does one replace the other?
• What's coming for HEMA: HEMA Cloud, turn-by-turn offline, and more

Explore the full MDC range at https://www.marketdirect.com.au — and don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode.

FIND HEMA MAPS:
Website: https://hemamaps.com
App: Search "Hema Explorer" or "4WD Maps" in the App Store / Google Play

Escape with Confidence

Almost twenty years ago, Vaughan Hindley started Market Direct Group with $5,000, a laptop, and a bulk lot of 12-volt camping jugs on eBay.

Today, MDC is one of Australia's most trusted off-road caravan brands — with 40,000+ units on the road, showrooms across the country, and a footprint in the United States.

In this episode, Steve sits down with Vaughan (CEO & Founder), James Field (General Manager – Commercial & Product), and Mark Banksy (Beach2Bush Adventures) to tell the full story — the pivots, the product firsts, the things that nearly didn't work, and what's driving MDC's next chapter.

In this episode we cover:

How a bulk lot of camping jugs on eBay started it all
Building the first Australian-designed hybrid caravan in China — and holding a four-year lead on everyone else
Why Vaughan built caravans in Australia and will "never do it ever again"
The one-to-one factory relationship that's been the backbone of MDC quality for 15+ years
Launching MDC USA — and becoming the premium product in a disposable market
Gold Class Caravans, the Forte SR Series, and what's coming in 2026 and beyond

If you're an MDC owner, thinking about buying, or just love a good Australian business story — this one's for you.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode:
🌐 Explore the full MDC range: https://www.marketdirect.com.au
📻 Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts — search Off Grid Down Under by MDC
📖 MDC Podcast page: https://www.marketdirect.com.au/blog/mdc-podcast/

Escape with Confidence | marketdirect.com.au

Escape with Confidence

What if a caravan expo wasn't just a place to buy a van — but a full festival weekend with onsite camping, motocross shows, fireworks, live music, and food trucks? That's exactly what Caravanning Queensland is bringing to Willowbank Raceway this August, and Steve sits down with the team behind it to find out how it all came together.

Joining Steve are Ben Menzies, Business Development Manager at Caravanning Queensland, and Jason Plant, CEO of Caravanning Queensland (CTIAQ) — along with MDC's Event's Coordinator, Leah Chevis. Together they unpack the thinking behind the 2026 Let's Go Ipswich Caravan & RV Expo (28–30 August, Willowbank Raceway), why the traditional expo format needed a shake-up, and what the caravanning community stands to gain from a new kind of event.

The idea has been 8–10 years in the making — conceived before COVID and finally coming to life at a venue big enough to pull it off.

They also dig into the broader industry picture — why younger buyers are entering the market, how caravanning stacks up as a genuine value-for-money alternative in a tough economic climate, and why events like this are one of the best ways to get new people into the lifestyle.

🎟️ Get tickets to the Let's Go Ipswich Caravan & RV Expo: https://www.caravanqld.com.au/show/2026-lets-go-ipswich-caravan-rv-expo/

🌐 Explore the full MDC range: https://www.marketdirect.com.au — Escape with Confidence

🎙️ Catch Jason Plant's previous episode (EP 36): https://www.marketdirect.com.au/mdc-podcast-season-2-episode-36/

📻 Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts: https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2522398.rss

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss an episode — new episodes drop every Tuesday.

📍 MDC Showrooms nationwide: https://www.marketdirect.com.au/showroom-locations/

Escape with Confidence