Following on from the facebook ‘The One With…’ comes the next installment
With it being bank holiday on Monday there wasn’t any runs for me to do. So it was decided that a late start on Tuesday was in order, 08:30. I woke to find these views outside…
(just remeber when you complain about how hard your job is, the bottom picture is a field full of spring onions that has to be hand picked, hand sorted, basically everything by hand…)
Anyhoooo I managed to get my truck and everything bar the kitchen sink ready and off I set for the magnificent journey of 10minutes to a warehouse on the local airfield.
As I pull in I notice a very similar livery on the truck opposite, so similar that it is in fact one of our own. So being new I go and introduce myself to the other driver and have a good natter.
On the way back to my cab I get a word in with one of the guys doing the loading, it’s going to be a wait apparently. The orders and everything should have been sorted on Friday but it wasn’t, so with it now being Tuesday there were mad thoughts of me being up there for a good couple of days.
Now as this is my first times on containers, I’ve been made away of the dangers of high centre of gravity and the risks of driving like a prat with them. This is brought home when this comes past me…
I know it’s a tipper firm but I don’t want to be the next one like that (hope whoever was driving it at the time was ok)
Now for those not in the know facebook has an option where you can ‘poke’ people electronically. However I prefer this way…pick it up and drive straight at them!! That’s how you poke people properly.
Saying that they are a strange lot up here. I came across this bloke walking a box…
Surely a dog or another pet would be so much better?
So after some 5hrs on break, eventually I’m loaded and I’m off down to Landor Street to get the box off. I get to the checking in box and can’t help but laugh at the poster they have up in there about trying to prevent absentee’s at work. The best one being ‘Death (Your own): It would be best to give two weeks’ notice of your own pending death so that a viable person can be found for your position.’
Just as I’m about to drive thru the gates, the cab phone rings and it’s the boss ‘Oh I’m in trouble now!’ He’s a couple of wagons behind me and suggests that I pull up inside the yard and that way he can show me where to go.
So in the end I get the box off and then got the box on.
We decide on pulling up in the truck park inside and go and introduce myself to the voice on the end of the phone. A brief introduction is broken by the boss’s phone ringing…it one of the other drivers.
‘I need a favour…’ comes the quote. I now need to run to Doncaster and do a trailer swap.
An uneventful run oop north is only broken by the sad realisation that my cooler box has given up the ghost. Darnnnnnnnn it!!
We swap trailers and I get my head down nice and early as I’m due to leave at 5 to get to the Wirral for an 08:00 delivery.
Now I should point out at this point for those that don’t know me, I’m the type of person that loves my kip and trust me when I say I need my beauty sleep as well.
So when a knock at 11:30ish comes at the door followed by the line ‘Are you lonely driver?’
I cant be blamed for in your best Heres Jonny impression ‘’No the voices are keeping me busy’’
Needless to say I wasn’t disturbed the rest of the night.
So a reduced nine rest and I’m up and awake ready to leave at just after 05:00 on Wednesday to self tipping a 45ft on the Wirral. Now thanks to this forum I had heard stories about the lovely people at VOSA sitting outside places like this and checking tacho’s as people come out. So an hour later and with paperwork in hand and I’m off to Lymm Truckstop to fuel up.
Now I have been looking at doing a Long Distance Walk both for fun and also for charity recently. Now there is the option of the big one, Lands End to John O’Groats or the other option of being Coast to Coast. Anyway, with todays effort…
I’m still stuck on which one would be best.
I manage to get the box swapped that night and a quick call to one of our drivers finds me parked up next to him that night ready for a late start the next day.
So after filling out the paper work and with the cool box having passed on, it was decided that the local club was in order for a warm meal.
It really hit the spot and was bang on for price.
For some reason I woke up early the next morning, personally I think it was the fridge trailer next to me. So what to do when your up early, I know, watch postman pat. Just one question though…when did he get a helicopter?
Next drop is nice and easy and after an hour of sitting in Tesco’s driver room I’m given a ticket to punch in to let me out. Personally it seems more like a car wash ticket but alas that will have to be done at another drop.
I get back to the docks and swap boxes once again and I’m heading back down south. I decide on dropping in at Woodall Services and grab a shower.
Then get down to my drop in Birmingham some 2 hours early. Thankfully they have me straight on the bay and tipped in quick time which allows me to turn and burn back up the A38 for the night.
On the jounrey up I have Fridays job texted through to me…oh its going to be a hard day(!) 16:00 tip back at the same drop I had just come from.
I decide on dropping in to a service road where there is already other trucks parked. Managed to get the paperwork sorted, tacho done and still have time to make it to Morrisons before it closed.
As I walk up I come across this little bump in the road…
I can just see it now. “Whats that Lassie? Drive has fallen down a well?”
I decide on a moooosive pasta pot (reduced to 49p…bargin)and settle back down in the truck to watch a bit of Evan Almighty for the night.
Now truck stops often get a bad name (often justified of course) however about 10minutes after I pulled the curtains I see the strangest sight…A bloke gets out of the car, goes to the boot, reaches out a bin liner and a letter picker and cleans up the road. I can only say fair play to you mate.
With it being a late start it was a simply run up to the docks to get the box swapped and away we go back to Birmingham. So I’ll just post up the pictures instead on here.
At container check… 
Sat waiting, wondering, wishing…in the terminal
Waiting out a 45minuter…time for trucknet me thinks
And here doth endth my first week on containers, tramping, and also doing a 3over3 Scania gearbox. Ill be honest in admitting this week seems to have flown by but Tuesday morning seems so long ago now! Hopefully one day I will be able to class myself as a box boy
