Newbie me.

Approaching my Class 1 in Feb (subject to Lockdown…which means it’s anybody’s guess if they are testing or not by then…),

I’m developing Bridge-Strike-Phobia…(includes bridge weight phobia)…which could be good phobias to have.

To offset this, I have bought Truckers Atlas, Phillips. With the intention of running with the Atlas then using Googly Maps when on top of destination.

Purchasing also a measuring stick from the rHa. Which measures top of trailer to the ground.
…and will hopefully get a job where they have a truckers Sat Nav installed…

I have a question (or two)

Does anyone have a preference between Tom Tom, Garmin, Sygic or can you please direct me to the relevant Link on this site on here?

Question 2
Is it normal to be a tad apprehensive (understatement) the first time in a massive Class 1 on yer own and is it just a case of growin a pair and getting on with it with all due care and attention?

Question 3. On average - how long does it take to be able to reverse like an experienced truck driver?

Thank you for you time.

Newbie 1:
Approaching my Class 1 in Feb (subject to Lockdown…which means it’s anybody’s guess if they are testing or not by then…),

I’m developing Bridge-Strike-Phobia…(includes bridge weight phobia)…which could be good phobias to have.

To offset this, I have bought Truckers Atlas, Phillips. With the intention of running with the Atlas then using Googly Maps when on top of destination.

Purchasing also a measuring stick from the rHa. Which measures top of trailer to the ground.
…and will hopefully get a job where they have a truckers Sat Nav installed…

I have a question (or two)

Does anyone have a preference between Tom Tom, Garmin, Sygic or can you please direct me to the relevant Link on this site on here?

Question 2
Is it normal to be a tad apprehensive (understatement) the first time in a massive Class 1 on yer own and is it just a case of growin a pair and getting on with it with all due care and attention?

Question 3. On average - how long does it take to be able to reverse like an experienced truck driver?

Thank you for you time.

I’ve only been doing the job for 3 months so by no means an ‘expert’ but I’ll give you the advice I was given

Take. Your. Time

You’ll be late collecting a load. You’ll be late delivering a load. Forkies want you unloaded before they go on break. Traffic is queuing behind you. Boss is phoning asking where you are.

Take. Your. Time

As an old boy told me (and a forkie) “the truck doesn’t move until I’m happy with it” …It’s good advice.

Trailers -
every trailer I’ve used has a height marker displayed on the headboard. I think it’s a legal requirement. They’ll also give you the ride height (connected to tractor) which is usually 1250mm you only need a tape measure to reassure yourself the tractor is riding at correct height. Personally never done it as the self leveling system usually takes care of that.

Height stick -
You should only need a height stick if you’re carrying abnormal loads (large plant, trailer homes, industrial machinery, farmers bales (possibly?) the chances of an operator letting you out on day one doing that work is pretty much zero.

Bridges -
Nothing wrong in my book having a healthy dose of respect for obstacles.
Try not to let it turn into a real phobia. Ask yourself before you start the trip what would you do if you do end up approaching a bridge that you won’t get under?
You’re going to be hyper aware of bridge markings. You’ll have adjusted your in-cab height display.

My answer - STOP. Hazards on. Draw breath. Wait. Think. Call customer for more info? Call boss for more info? Use Google satellite view? GOAL behind me. Work out my options ( going forward isn’t an option, can I reverse? Where do I reverse?)

Take. Your. Time

Not smashing a bridge is a good day in my book.

Sat Nav -

I’ll usually go straight to Google satellite and focus in on destination just to give me an idea of what I’m going to see when I get there then maybe street view just to really give myself an advantage.

I use Garmin DZL720

I’ve got enough to think about without trying to work out how to use a new truck sat nav (especially true on agency work).

DZL720 is an older model so a bit cheaper now. It gets good reviews and I find it pretty good. Still need to really learn everything it can do. It updates over your phone tether so you’ve always got the latest maps.

Personally I use Garmin DZL720, Google maps (phone) and Waze (Tablet) all devices are running at the same time. In an unknown area I only follow Garmin because it’s truck specific. Google and Waze have their place when you get near.

I’ve also got Collins (large scale) paper map just in case! And also to do a bit of research when I’m sat about for hours waiting to be tipped.

On yer own in a class 1 -

Did it on agency over Christmas. It’s not great trying to work out how a truck works in ten minutes without a bit of a guide. I found it a bit tough.

I was so lucky in the beginning. I got a phone call from a small local firm who invited me to interview. I liked them. They liked me. I told them I was fine going forward but couldn’t reverse to save my life. There was lots of laughter around the office, lots of knowing looks from other drivers. “Hey boss, at least he’s honest lol”
Turns out everyone feels like this on day one.
They sent an old boy out with me all week. I learnt a lot. Honestly don’t know what it would be like trying to do it raw on your own.

I hate my reversing. Then again I’m comparing it to a guy in his 60’s who’s been doing the job for 40 years. He reckoned I was okay.

After 3 months, all I can say is little by little it starts dropping into place.

I’ll probably end up going back to my original firm (if they’ll have me) driving a beautiful Volvo FH dedicated to me tramping and no weekends.

You will be nervous the first time you get in a truck but that’s just normal, but once you’ve done your checks and your on your way within half an hour you’ll be loving it,
Regarding sat navs you can’t go wrong with the TomTom 6250, don’t waste your money on the Chinese tat they sell on Amazon and EBay.
Reversing comes with time, once you’ve nailed it you’ve nailed it, it’s all about the set up and getting the right angle, I’ve seen many a driver attempting to get on a bay and you can see from their setup they’ve got no chance, but don’t be afraid to ask if you need someone to watch you back up.

Dear Mr Bluecity and Build5.
Thank you so much for your input.
There’s a lot of psychology in there too.
“Take.Your.Time”
Thanks also for your amusing story.
I feel better prepared now and more inclined to pragmatically deal with an event rather than spend the day in"Flap Central"
Happy truckin’
(quiet roads on Lockdowns…)

Hi Newbie 1,
Completely normal to be nervous the first time taking a class 1 out on your own the first time

I have a Philips Truckers atlas (This https://smile.amazon.co.uk/Philips-2019-Navigator-Truckers-Britain/dp/1849074755) Coupled with a Garmin Dezl 770 with lifetime mapping and so far it’s done it’s job and earnt its keep, including London. Which ever sat nav you go with spend the time to get familiar with it and set it up correctly with your heights etc

After seeing some of the complaints on mapping/routing of TomToms, I would be cautious, especially if you’re going into London as there aren’t many places to turn around.

When you’ve hooked up to the trailer, take a minute to run through everythng in your head to make sure you haven’t forgotten a step - And double check your pin. Don’t let anyone rush you and if anyone comes over to chat, ask them to come back in 5 minutes when you’re finished.

Don’t forget the trailer number plate either - I did Gatwick to Tilbury without a trailer plate in the first week of my first class 1 job, going through the Dartford Tunnel - The guys watching the cameras must have been sleeping as I wasn’t stopped. Funnily enough, I always double check the plate now too.

Good Luck.

Just to add that measuring the height of the trailer when coupled yourself with a tape measure is not a bad idea. Just because it’s marked at xxxx doesn’t mean it’s going to be. At least you’ll definitely know as you’ve seen it yourself.

Although I don’t pull trailers I work with construction plant and you’d be surprised how you can get machines that appear identical and were bought in the same batch but have had various mods and things done meaning that they can vary in height and weight.

Treating everything as if it is fresh is not a bad policy. Obviously if you are working in a company with a regular fleet of trailers you’d soon see if they are all the same or not.

It reminds me of when I started out doing fridges, we had a load of 18t Iveco’s all the same and regsitered in the same MF52 0… range, we had a few in our depot and the other depots had some. I got sent to another depot early one morning in a 13 tonner and switched to one of their 18s. I took it down to Kent in the dark crunching gears here and there thinking it was a right old nail. Got to the prison I was delivering to and had to wait an hour for my slot to unload. Shut eyes for a kip and woke up with some daylight. Turned out that this particular truck was the only one in the fleet to have a slap over range change box and not the standard 6.

Once I’d seen that it made some sort of sense.

To become competent going forward and backwards takes two years of full time driving. By that time you should have come across most of the challenging situations you can encounter and learnt how to solve or at least cope with them.

On the advice front I will pass on what my trainer said to me;

1. Use ALL the manouvring space available to you in any given situation.
2. If your taking a shunt use all the space available, a six foot shunt when you have twenty available will result in more six foot shunts!!
3. Slow down earlier at junctions and roundabouts to give yourself time to look and position yourself correctly.
4. Don’t worry about holding people up when reversing, take your time, don’t rush and keep using your mirrors.
5. Get out and look, don’t commit to a yard etc blind. Better to know what’s over the fence before you go through the gate.

Thank you everybody for your help and advice.