W&D Training Diary - Now PASSED! YAY!

26th September

The Day of The Copper

So I arrive at the yard to meet Chunky and get the rigid to go and couple up. Have a general bit of natter to hear that about an hour or so after I saw him yesterday afternoon he had been knocked off his bike whilst stationary at the traffic lights :open_mouth: . The woman didn’t only ram him from behind but went up over the bike and then stuck it in reverse…trying to make sure the job was done properly eh? Don’t worry I won’t mention the stereotypical female driver…I know better. :stuck_out_tongue:

Thankfully he was given a clean bill of health from his GP and we spend a while having a little chuckle about it.
We go and pick up the trailer* and find a small issue with the coupling system. The pin when released drops continually instead of waiting for the pressure plate to be activated. Arghhh…stress! But hey I don’t panic and a short while later we both manage to couple it up. I’m now in a position where I know the coupling process and I’m not being told do this and now that followed by, thankfully the confidence is coming. I’m even quick to get in ‘Can you check my lights for me please?’ :slight_smile: Something I hadn’t been quick to do over the past couple of days.
The aim for the day is road and town driving and by jove we did that. Starting from Hednesford we leave and almost immediately we are on tight corners and fiddle little streets. To start with I’m overawed by it by soon my confidence begins to go in this aspect of my driving and I’m fast realising that ‘slow it down, get everything is sequence, and when and only when you are clear then go.’
Soon we arrive at Hill Top in Cannock, proceed over the island by the garage and down to the next one where we turn right and I’m told ‘pull up on the right in a convenient place’. So I spot a nice stretch where there is no off roads, bus stops etc. Check mirrors before I pull up to a stop and notice blue lights in them…’ah perfect timing on the stop, space for him to come round’ I think, ‘oh he’s slowing down…he’s stopped’ Wind down the window…
‘Hello officer’
’Do you know you have a brake light out?’

Frick.
Chucky reaches one out from under the bunk…Band new in the bag, never opened…its only a DUD!! :imp: So eventually to cover ourselves we go down to the nearest garage.
Must say first time I have been stopped in a truck and may I just say quick thanks to the guys in the car who were nice and polite as well.

Soon we are covering the ins-and-outs of Cannock, Brownhills and Walsall. Only issue I had was on the approach back to the A5 (Brownhills Side of the M6 Toll) assumed it was in gear but must have just missed it. Dammit! Won’t be making that error again trust me.
Thankfully not much traffic around to day yet the roads still seemed small and can only imagine that they are minuscule during rush hour. We end cutting along the Black Country Route over the M6 @ J10 and go to the nearest Volvo dealership there. Unfortunately they are unable to help with the light issue…Can get you one, for Tuesday? Erm think we will leave that. :cry:

We end up cutting back up the motorway J10 — J11. Everything goes well and I’m loving it. Loving spending as much in the mirrors as possible, the road positioning that you have to take not only just on the M-Way but at hazards, junctions, lights. I feel I’m a lot better on the approaches to these now and I’m able to get out of car mode and really make the effort to put the truck as far across as possible to try and free up the other lane for traffic. Over the day the routine is getting better as well. I’m slowly beginning to read the road in front of me and choose the gear on the approach so I can keep the truck moving and when need to, stop and be prepared straight away to get going. The only issue Chunky has with this is I’m sometimes dropping the button just a couple of seconds to early. As pre-empting what with be required, instead of making sure that the road demands it. Hope that makes sense? By his word general nit picking. Yet i really dont want this little errors.

I’m cut early off lesson to allow the truck to be booked back into the garage (last thing I want is for that to be an issue on test) and for the purchase of surplus bulbs.
I had a laugh on the way back to be told…If I could I would take you for test tomorrow… at this point I made the comment don’t give me praise. It’s like I consciously then try and drive to that standard instead of allowing it to be natural like and then major errors come into it. :frowning:

Had a phone call earlier to say can I be at the yard for 11:15 because the truck has been kept in, hopefully not the ICU ward. :grimacing: Think we are all over the test routes tomorrow, will probably ask to visit the reverse pad at some point as well just to refresh myself on it.

  • I’m pleased to report nothing else been taken from the trailer and no signs of any new birds (of the feathery kind) hatching yet. :unamused: :laughing: :grimacing: