My name is Josh from @the_explore_life on instagram, and I am a professional outdoor product photographer. Part of my job requires me to get out into the remote parts of the country, and live out of my car when doing sO for longer periods of time.
As I built up my last car to do remote touring I learnt alot and also learnt the downfalls of an open tub setup. After my first lap of Australia I knew that when I started with a fresh canvas and a new car, that I would be wanting a tray/canopy to make the set up alot more user friendly. When searching for a canopy manufacturer, I came across GWorks in their very early years of bussiness and instantly loved their styling, design and attention to detail. I also appreciated the fact they were getting out and testing the gear themselves and always improving on different aspects.
So I now have a 2021 Mazda bt50 that I've modified for remote touring. I have a Works 1600mm chassis mount canopy fitted with a jerry can holder, spare wheel carrier, 401 water tank, rear trundle drawer, roof cross bars. Internal fitout consists of a GWorks drawer and table combo, bushman's 85L upright fridge, pull out Pantry, full length roof shelf, and a basic self installed 12v system (redarc bcdc charger, 240ah lithium, charging sockets). Additional accessories include a twin arb compressor and 170w solar panel.
I have only recently finished getting this car ready, so my biggest trip so far has been a trip up to far north QLD from the Gold Coast. The car and canopy setup performed flawlessly and has been a far more a liveable setup for long trips than anything I've travelled in before. have built this car for a purpose, which is to next year travel full time and work in remote areas around Australia, with my partner providing osteopathic services and myself providing exercise physiology and photography.
On our travels, we have identified the lack of allied health services in the areas with the most need for them, such as farming communities, mines and rural communities with limited access. Our plan is to travel to these areas of need and provide pain relief and assistance to those in need -living out of the car and the GWorks canopy and testing them both to their limits.
