I went in the lorry with my dad as a young un’ and most likely this is where my love of the open road started. So Friday night my daughter Jemima asked if she could come along for the night. No need to ask the boss as out here it’s acceptable to take the nippers as long as they do not go inside the terminal. So we started our night by collecting our pre loaded truck and trailer from BDX in Luleå. Its a tri-axle trailer so overall we are 25.5metres long. We leave around 2000hrs and decide to call into the services on the E4 / E10 services for a coffee around 2100hrs This will be the last services of the night as they close at 2200hrs albeit the parking places have loos. Jemima decides to have a hot dog - never a cheap outing. Now heading north for Kiruna we stop about 1hr 15 mins later as we cross into the Arctic Circle for the past hour we have seen 1 car only but plenty of Arctic hare and reindeer. Heading off again after 15mijs we get to within 10 mins of Kiruna and its time for 30 mins in the parking plats. In Kiruna its a change of truck to return to Luleå empty. Jemima finally falls asleep around 0300hrs. We finish around 0730hrs having done just short of 700km and it wouldn’t be a good end to the shift without a McDonalds. Quality time together where we chatted loads but Jenima says “mummy’s job is harder all you do all day dad is sit down!”
Yep, it’s nice is that,.and a good opportunity to do some serious bonding with your daughter,…and memories which will not be forgotten by either of you when she grows up…trust me. 
I have some photos but mostly old video tapes of when my kids used to come with me, and they’re great to look back on, although making me feel a bit sad now they have all grown up.
All four of them started coming with me around 4 years old at different times and they all loved it in different ways.
I could tell a few amusing anecdotes,.ike when I took my first daughter in a pub on a night away, on strict instructions not to tell her Mam…first thing she did when she got home btw , …or when my other daughter, about 6 at the time, who watched me continuously sipping coffee on the move, wrote in her essay at school,.that was read out in school assembly…that her dad always did drinking and driving in his big truck .
Both lads also came with me, both wanting to be drivers…but I managed to talk them out of it I’m pleased to say, the job is so much different now to when they came all over with me.
Unfortunately most of these ‘‘modern logistics’’ up their own arses type firms have put a stop to it now, thus preventing many otherwise future drivers.
Wouldn’t be allowed here, not insured!
Strange company cars are insured not only to take passangers but for the spouce to drive them too.
I remember taking my nephew once (when I was an OD), he was bored!
The firm i work for allow kids out with us. School holidays the staff room is like a creche. As has been said its great to spend time together before they grow up and don’t want to be seen with you! Unless they want something lol
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It’s crazy that they forbid it now, one of the ways to bring new blood into the trucking industry was from people taking their kids out with them.
You see people still keeping up the tradition but those usually have their own insurance policies (usually Owner/Operators).
Having said that Tipper / Low Loader Drivers seem to do their own thing anyway and ignore the petty bean counters.
Managed to take my daughter all over Europe with with me back in the eighties. All with the bosses blessing. So much so one time i had to have some time off as she needed a small operation (couple of days). Gaffer rings , how is she? good says I, good can you ship out Sunday for spain and daughter will be recuperating so why don’t you take her with you. Many trips she did with me and it did us both a power of good. Still tells her friends and children of those times. So obviously it made an good impact on her. the bearded one
Likewise I also think its a shame. I’d not want my lad to come into the industry and woulf prefer him to "do better"but I know he’d love to get out and about like I did with my old man and that’s probably why I’m in the job now.
Having said that despite all of the moans and quibbles about pay, conditions etc, it’s a jib that’s given me and as a result him a decent standard of living with frequent (bar covid) foreign holidays, a roof over the head, food on the table and payment first all his sports/activities and all the kit to go with it so it’s hard to criticise if he did fall into it because it’s not the worst thing ever. I’ve got mates who went to uni and have super duper qualified jobs who don’t get near my earnings. And they’re not forklift drivers either 
I love how her hoodie and blanket match the cab! Sounds like an amazing adventure for her. What a lucky girl. I hope you both get to make an occasional habit out of it.
driveress:
I love how her hoodie and blanket match the cab! Sounds like an amazing adventure for her. What a lucky girl. I hope you both get to make an occasional habit out of it.
When I was on VOS and Ewals, the wife made my little girl’s polo shirts with logos taken off mine. …she would never take those shirts off.
She used to sit in the passenger side with a round bowl as a steering wheel pretending to be the driver, and looked the part especially when I was on left hookers , more than once the security guys had to look twice when we approached.
My lad - 6 - comes with me a lot, I do a lot of low loader work into farms and as long as he stays in the cab there’s no issues. We’ve had some great trips and he loves nighting out. On the bulker is a different story as a lot of places e.g. Tilbury docks won’t allow children on site which is fair enough.
Wally Webb:
My lad - 6 - comes with me a lot, I do a lot of low loader work into farms and as long as he stays in the cab there’s no issues. We’ve had some great trips and he loves nighting out. On the bulker is a different story as a lot of places e.g. Tilbury docks won’t allow children on site which is fair enough.
Do what I used to do mate, tell him to stay in the bunk with middle curtains drawn.
I had a tv and playstation set up in there for them, for those occasions and if they got bored.
Macski:
Wouldn’t be allowed here, not insured!Strange company cars are insured not only to take passangers but for the spouce to drive them too.
I remember taking my nephew once (when I was an OD), he was bored!
That’s a myth, any person carried in a vehicle with a provision to do so will be insured. Insurance has to cover them by law.
However company policy may not allow unauthorised passengers.
The eldest is 28 now and has been lorry driving for 6 years. I keep asking him if the novelty has worn off yet
Quite apart from bringing new blood into he industry, it’s very educational.
Took my 15 year old granddaughter with me for a three day trip; she’s seen working environments at first hand, got a grasp of distances, been to places she wouldn’t have been before, and best of all is far more aware of the blind spots in a lorry than she ever was; experience which she has shared with her friends who cycle. The latter is something which I think all schools should, with the co-operation of local hauliers, encourage as part of a kid’s education.
First day she wanted to be a lorry driver; however when we went down to Felixstowe to reload, the truck took second place to a bloody great big container lifting FLT. So fickle, these kids!
Macski:
Wouldn’t be allowed here, not insured!
So long as you don’t care about your job that much who cares. i used to go with my old man right up until he retired. In fact, after I passed my test he chucked the keys at me and said take me to the motorway then I’ll drive 
Sidevalve:
Quite apart from bringing new blood into he industry, it’s very educational.Took my 15 year old granddaughter with me for a three day trip; she’s seen working environments at first hand, got a grasp of distances, been to places she wouldn’t have been before, and best of all is far more aware of the blind spots in a lorry than she ever was; experience which she has shared with her friends who cycle. The latter is something which I think all schools should, with the co-operation of local hauliers, encourage as part of a kid’s education.
First day she wanted to be a lorry driver; however when we went down to Felixstowe to reload, the truck took second place to a bloody great big container lifting FLT. So fickle, these kids!
DHL have a scheme called TACS (trucks and child safety),where an artic and a driver plus another colleague visit schools and show the children the danger’s…blind spots etc. hoping to get my grandson’s school involved.
me and my sister used to take in turns in school holidays to go with our dad in his Atkinson 
on a Saturday we’d end up in the local club with him and the other driver’s who were all knocking the pint’s back 
took all my 3 kid’s in my lorries over the years…but not allowed to take grandson 
My dad would take me out during the school holidays , I had me own suction cup steering wheel, dolly knots at 10 years old and getting sent in to pay the fuel with the opening line " Morning mate " whilst Dad ducked down behind the cab waiting for me to climb back in the drivers side , Good times good laughs, told not to repeat what was said or head out on the road, though the occasional swear word would annoy Mother, but not the pack of white sugar we scored at Shoreham dock during the sugar shortage back in the 70’s !