AndyM's C+E Training Logbook

NEW AND WANNABE DRIVERS (INTERACTIVE)
1

Day 1…

Well, what day. All I can say is that the smile a grin the size of Essex never left my face all day. :smiley:

The day started very slowly, but this was because of the lack of light. For some reason they dont let trainees go out in the dark, and at 7 this morning, it was still a bit to dark, so we went through all the safty stuff, and what the week was gonna intail. This was all done witht the aid of a nice cup of coffee… :confused:

Around 7.30am , we made our way out to the trucks. But what we was presented with was a bit of a surprise. Full size, Iveco Eurotech’s with 40ft tri-axle skelly trailer, with a single 40ft box (container). None of this extended 7.5 tonner, with a little trailer… this was the full monty Big Thing!!.. :open_mouth: :open_mouth:
What me and my mate said cant be repeated in here, but it was along the lines of, " Ohhh… blast!!"… :smiley:
Ford have two of these set ups, and we should be very easy to spot. All ford truck fleet lorrys have there own ID number, well, My lorry was DT1, and the other one is DT2. Both pulling the skelly trailers, and the Containers are bright Orange… they are also on with the doors towards the front, behind the cab, so if you see us next week, give us a flash… we will be the only ford units pulling orange Boxes :open_mouth: :laughing: :laughing:

Anyway, The instructor, Dennis, said that he would have a little drive to show us some of the things to look out for, he also had to fill up with diesel, so in we jumped and off we went. The thing with Ford is that they have a HUGE compound and loads of room to play and muck around, without going out onto the roads. My mate chose ‘heads’ so he was the first one to drive. He took her around the compound a few times, getting used to the brakes, and turning circle, etc. I just sat in the middle seat grinning… at the prospect of getting behind the wheel :sunglasses:

Then it was time for breaky!!!.. Where the hell the time went, I have no idea, but the instructor took over again, as there was some reversing to be done. I had a typical Trucker breaky…LOL, 2 sausage, 2 egg, 2 bacon, beans, fried slice and mushrooms… coffee, and a bottle of water… cost??.. £3.10… I do like the cheap canteens… :stuck_out_tongue:

Anyway, after breaky, it was my turn!!.. :smiling_imp:
I jumped into the hot seat, and drove us back up to the compound, which needed a few tightish turns, but I was talked throught them. I found the gearbox very very notchy, but being a 8 speed ‘Slap over box’ I was pretty used to it, as my Cat C rigid had the same box. I soon got used to the gear box, and started to pick up a little speed, so it was out onto the road. My mate Darren took over again and we came out of Fords onto the A1306 heading east, through Rainham, and came to the A13 at the junction before the M25. Onto the A13 and we went right up to Pitsea, round the roundabout at pitsea and all the way back again. We stopped in a lay-by for the change over, and it was my turn again. I done the exact same thing, up to pitsea and back again. I took us into the compound again, and it was time for lunch. :frowning: :frowning: :frowning:

Back on the road again, and both us trainees said that we wanted something a bit more challenging to do, rather than just get into top gear and poodle up and down a dual-carriage way, so after lunch, it was time to start the back roads and tight bits… although not that tight, just yet, please…LOL

We drove around the industrial estates of Thurrock and Lakeside and heading into Purfleet along Tank Hill Road, dodging other lorrys, vans and cars. Darren did a long circuit, and I thought I was never gonna get another go, but when we got back to the Ford compound, it was my turn, and I had the same circuit to complete.
I must admit, having sat there for so long previously, I must have become tired, coz I let my concentration slip, and unlike the morning, I didnt just touch the kerb… I hit it and ran along it for about 12ft!!!, with the trailer. I was cursing myself for doing it, but hey, it was only the first day. By the time I got us back to the compound again, I felt shattered. All this concentrating lark cant be good for you can it??..

Anyway, I have now got all weekend, to forget everything we learnt today… :laughing: :laughing: But, on monday, the instructor said that the playtime had finished, the Familiarisation had be done, and Monday was gonna be a whole new different ball game…

And guess what??.. I cant wait!!.. :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: ROLL ON MONDAY!!!

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:laughing:
:laughing:
:laughing:
:laughing:

3

Nice one Andy. :smiley: :smiley: :smiley: :sunglasses:

4

Keep up the good work mate! :smiley: :smiley: :smiley:

Bully

5

sorted my son

just a few more days to go

good luck

jon

6

Cheers Coffee, Bully and Jon…

I must admit, today it feels a bit of a dream, and I cant really remember yesterday. But I have just thought of a few more things that happened that I didnt post in my first post.

I slowed down for an overtaking lorry on the A13, let him pass, and then I speeded back up again. As he pulled in, I got the old left-right-left indicators and I felt like a proper trucker. :laughing: :laughing:

Three more days to go, and test on thursday… :sunglasses: Roll On thursday…hee hee

7

is it a morning test or afternoon test…so as we all know to be looking forward to your post with a big pat on your back for passing it…

8

Its at 1pm… so thats fine by me… no skool runs or rush hour traffic…hee hee

And sorry simon, I missed you post, thanx mate… :laughing:

9

glad to hear ur enjoying it! just be glad its not a 45 foot box with a front as well as back overhang lol - oh and as a fellow biker u’ll soon get into splitting lanes when needs be and make MrBoyRacer wait behind you lol

10

are you doing the reverse today… keep going you can do it. thursdays only another day with a different man sitting next to you in a different location

11

Hiya guys… Right, here we go…

DAY 2 - Reversing
Well, woke up this morning, and looked out the window, and boy was it pouring down. The thought was more about rowing to work rather that driving. Got to the truck fleet and it was very dark, very dingy, and horrible… (okay, this is where I try and add some pics… :laughing: :laughing: )

As you can tell from the (hopefully!!) Pic… (this has also been edited to brighten it up… :open_mouth: )

After the normal cuppa and quick chat…(to allow some daylight to show itself!!) we made our way out to the trucks. (The above pic is the truck that I am learning in, by the way) After making our daily checks and checking that we were fit for the road, we piled in and made our way over to the Reversing area. Ford have got a acres of space, and they have there very own reversing area, all marked out as per DSA specs, which is great. My mate went first and I stood outside the cab, having a ciggy and trying to keep it dry, while matey done his first reverse… See pic below…

He made a bit of a mess of his first one, so he drove round in a circle and lined himself up with the starting cones again, (thats cone A and A1) Back he went again, and this time, made a much better job of it, all be it very slowly, but he got it back into the bay, with one shunt. Then it was my turn :open_mouth:
I jumped in and lined my self up at the start, and the instructor talked me through what he wanted me to do. So off I go, Just starting to move and got the right lock on as soon as humanly possible. The cab moved really quick and it caught me out a bit at first, but I managed to save the cab from going over the yellow line and managed to run parallel with the line for about 10 ft. Giving it a little left hand down I saw the tyre and made the front tyre follow the line which pushed the cab back in line with the trailer which was now, pointing well into the direction I wanted to go (and well clear of the Cone in the middle which is cone B)
Backed across the ‘Herring Bone’, which is the markings down the middle of the reversing area, and then put my right hand down to swing the trailer in line with the Bay. (sorry, I am really waffling here, I know…)
Anyway, cut a long story and little shorter, I got it into the bay first time, no shunts, albeit, very close to the three offside cones…

“have another go…” said dennis the intructor…“But wait til I move the Barrier!!”…
The DSA have started putting a barrier across the back of the box, at the rear of the bay, that you can touch but cant knock over. Off he trots to move the barrier from behind me so I could back a little further back, and get myself lined up with the starting cones again. I watched in my mirrors as the barrier started to move… then all I saw was a pile of Yellow Water proofs crumble into a heap on the floor. Yep, this was the instructor going for a perfect six in Gymnastics… :open_mouth:
I was still in the cab, and I saw my mate run over him, then they dissapeared behind the trailer. The next thing I saw was Dennis leggin it up the compound to a little hut at the top end, and my mate running after him… It turns out that as he moved the barrier, it collapsed, dragging him over, tripping up the foot of the barrier and basically chopping off the top of his thumb!! :open_mouth: :open_mouth:

All I could do was watch in my mirrors, but Dennis was taken away in a car, and my mate came back and jumped in the cab…

“So what do we do know then■■?” we both said… No instructor, and one nice big lorry that couldnt be moved with out an instructor present… We both thought, typical, it could only happen to us… a fone call was made, and a foreman came over and said he was trying to find another instructor for us, but in the mean time go and have teabreak. Just sat down to a nice breakfast and our new instructor came and found us…Phew, at least we had another guy to take us out.

We both done a couple more reverses but this time I needed to shunt once on both tries. But I was happy. Gonna do a bit more on tomorrow hopefully.

Then it was out on the road, and it was pretty much the same as friday, but this time there was a lot more tight turns and narrower roads to contend with. I run up the kerb quite a few times, but I just wasnt taking as much of the other side of the road as I needed to. I was taking the corner wide, but then tended to cut in at the last minute, trying to stay on my side of the road, hence making the trailer drag over the kerb. Its a case of trying to make TOO MUCH progress, and rushing the corners, and not thinking about the room I need, and what effect that has of the traffic coming in the opposite direction. My ‘making progress’ is fine otherwise, but I just need to slow down a tad on the bends and corners.
Gear change exercise was okay. I missed 2nd a few times on the down change from 3rd to 2nd and tried to get into reverse… :blush: :blush: which The Iveco didnt like very much. Done the pulling away at an angle, uphill, and downhill, all seem to be okay.

So, two and a half days left, and I’m not doing too bad, I dont think. Just hope that on Thursday, It all comes together for me and my mate Darren, and we both get the result… :sunglasses: :sunglasses:


This is me… and hopefully wont have then ‘L’ plates on for long… :laughing: :laughing:

12

Nice one Andy.

Did you see your instructor at all for the rest of the day (Dennis)

13

Great story made even better by the pics hope your instructor is ok, keep up the daily log and best of luck.

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Nope Shed, the last we knew was that he was taken to hospital, form the Ford medical center… we asked how he was before we left to come home,but no-one knew. Just gonna have to wait til tomorrow…
We dont know if we will see him for the rest of the week. I hope he’s okay too… :frowning:

Thanx abs1… There will be more tomorrow… :wink:

15

DAY 3

I have got the right hump… Why the [zb] cant I get round those [zb] corners!!! :imp: :imp:

I just keep running up the kerb at every reasonably tight corner I come up against. Okay, so I have been round some fairly tight corners today, both left and right handers. But even some of the most normal looking, easiest seeming corners and junctions, I give myself room, stay wide… and I go round… and what happens??.. Yep, the trailer cuts across and goes up the kerb… and if I do that this thursday… its bye bye licence… :cry: :cry:

We spent the morning doing more reversing and doing the braking test, both of which I have not got any probs with at all… did the reverse 4 times this morning, and didnt have to shunt once… first time every time. And thats supposed to be the hard bit■■?.. yeah, Right!!!..

Corners are the hard bit, picking your line round junctions is the hard bit… not running the [zb] stupid [zb] trailer wheels up the [zb] Kerb… Is the [zb] Hard Bit!!!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr… :imp: :imp: :imp:

Oh well, tomorrows another day… sigh…Heres hoping… :frowning:

By the way, sorry for all the [zb] ZB’s… but I aint a happy bunny… :cry:

16

When you take the road wider, stay out wide and dont cut back in until your round, if its a nasty s bend or something, then take some of the road on the other side, you will often find yourselve having to nick road, obvisiously when there isnt any other traffic using it!!
But yes, one kirb and thats it matey, all over, no second chances, you can kiss it and get a minor, but mount it and its goodnight.

17

Yep, I know gurner, and infact I have been told that even just kissing the kerb is a big no-no, as that can damage the tyre, so hence, failure…

I think I know what I am doing wrong, and that is rushing it, but I find the line between Making Progress, and being too causious, a very thin one…

I’ll keep trying and hopefully, it will click and I will have more of a chane, but as it stands??.. Mmmm…we’ll see.

18

Sorry to hear you are having problems Andy.
The first thing my instructor said to me was slow down, driving an artic is a lot more refined you need to take things slower.
Doing multi-drop before it took me a while to slow things down.
Personally I would rather pick up a couple of minors than risk rushing things and making a serious error.
Take things easy get through Thursday, then who cares if you clip the kerb after that.
After all you are allowed to make 15 minors on test. I made 4 on my second test.

19

shedender:
The first thing my instructor said to me was slow down, driving an artic is a lot more refined you need to take things slower.
…snip…
After all you are allowed to make 15 minors on test. I made 4 on my second test.

:laughing: Thats all I have been hearing from my instructor too today, but I just cant seem to do it!!, and thast what has really wound me up today. He keeps saying, Slow down, slow down… but the very next corner??.. Wooooshhhh… Bumb… Crash… Brmmmm…( that was the trailer bumping up the kerb and the container crashing about when it comes off!! :laughing: )

I had 9 minors on my class 2… Mmm, cut out for driving??.. :unamused: :unamused:
Only joking… :stuck_out_tongue:

20

Put it behind you tomorrow’s another day.

But I know what you are going through easier said than done.

I was told that the only kerb you can kiss is a dropped kerb.

YOU CAN DO IT ! :smiley: