5thwheel:
…when was the last time we heard from Rita?David
I think He’s probably arguing with shadows thinking they’re Maurice Gray & Alan Piner…
David 
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I think He’s probably arguing with shadows thinking they’re Maurice Gray & Alan Piner…
Hullo Fly Sheet,
Now. there,s a name from the past, Alan Piner. The last time I saw him was in Greece, when he was on for Groupex. I understand later he had a couple of New Fodens running Boxes out of the docks at Ramsgate. About 1991 - 92. Maurice I also knew quit well, a great bloke to know and fondly remembered, now passed on R.I.P.
Cheers, Archie.
The last time I saw Maurice Gray he had more lines than a road map and was at least 150years old(although he would never show his passport) and that was about 20 years ago and he was still round tripping to Greece in 10 days or so he said.But, he was one of the charaters that made the job what it was and I think the industry is a little poorer now that he and others like him are sadly no longer with us.
Cooperman I know Roy Moran quite well he is was big mates with my two oldest boys Paul and Simon. He did several trips with me and our Tony to Greece and other places and a couple on his own driving for us. He got involved in F1 transport and no doubt one of the motors he drove would have finished in your mate KTTs hot little hands. He went to live in Australia afew years ago. Like every one else I knew Maurice Gray and his son Stuart. Some of the most amusing memories I have are of Maurice and Taffy Davis arguing over who had earned the most money a bit like KTT and Loose Wires run ins, on the subject of rates the most we ever got for Iraq was 4400 plus 1700 back load out of Italy thats6100 for what was always a minimum 3 week trip we did very little further South just the odd trip to Saudi and Jordan the rates were so good that I cant remember them.Using your skill and judgement and of course a full belly tank both ways you could do Iraq on about 6 to 7oo quid running money ,the rate4 to Iraq continued to decline and it started to becme uneconomic so as I said in an earlier post we concentrated on Turkey Greece Bulgaria and Yugo.Without taking any thing away from you KTT you re only one waying, your profit is in the sale of what you ve sold wherever and then fly back.ifyou had been round tripping after what was it the best part of 9 weeks there would nt have been much bottom line . Regards Crow.
When I looked at Roys fb page He had a picture of them silver Mercs that KTT had a couple of, I’m getting a flash back that He was on a trip with You & I’ve met Him, He mentioned Alex too & I was often creeping about with Alex at a steady pace…
Archie Paice:
David
I think He’s probably arguing with shadows thinking they’re Maurice Gray & Alan Piner…
Hullo Fly Sheet,
Now. there,s a name from the past, Alan Piner. The last time I saw him was in Greece, when he was on for Groupex. I understand later he had a couple of New Fodens running Boxes out of the docks at Ramsgate. About 1991 - 92. Maurice I also knew quit well, a great bloke to know and fondly remembered, now passed on R.I.P.
Cheers, Archie.
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Piner still has a lorry doing aggregates around Kent Archie, I’m good friends with Maurices son Stuart still Archie, although He’s too tight to ring Me 
Tony Taylor:
The last time I saw Maurice Gray he had more lines than a road map and was at least 150years old(although he would never show his passport) and that was about 20 years ago and he was still round tripping to Greece in 10 days or so he said.But, he was one of the charaters that made the job what it was and I think the industry is a little poorer now that he and others like him are sadly no longer with us.
He was still round tripping Greece in 10 days when He was seventy Tony, unfortunately He tripped over in a Greek warehouse & it set Him back a good bit, He took ill in Italy a few trips later & sadly passed away after being repatriated to Darlington. Yes the job is a tad lacking nowadays & lorries are boring too…
your absolutly right mr crow i would never have done a round trip in them days i was talking to the md of astrans the other day about the rates in them days’ now i know the ex’s were less and the pound was woth more but but i never met any one coming home who had any money left how many times i bailed mates out in italy they had done the running money and the sub they got in italy to get em home the current m d at astrans wasnt involved then but he is well aware of the company history he couldnt remember the rate ever being over 8k and said most of the owner drivers would be to embarassed to say what they were earning then the job has changed greatly and yes the wise purchase and good sale of the truck makes all the difference on a trip but the two still go together as they have done for the last 10 years at least doha and dubai are still in the same place as they were lol just as far the job aint changed in that sense and it aint all roses i had 4 units sitting in doha unsold about 2 years ago and 2 in the uk with about 6 trailers sitting nearly 100k worth of stock iv got to say me bottle nearly went but then qatar won the world cup all the arabs panic brought and me mate sold the lot in about 4 weeks happy days every thing has stabilised now we could do with a bit more work but the team at astrans are doing there best in these hard times but lets hope we still keep getting a shilling that was allways my reason for going to work aint it ?
Has any building started for the world cup?
not a thing they panic brought there are tippers every were waiting to start i think 6 stadiums 92 hotels and a village for the non muslins has to be built (for the boozers) not very much is happening there at all at the moment them tippers out there work for nothing all indian and pakie and syrian owner drivers there are trucks dumped every were on the industrial area were they have borrowed from the banks and not paid back they just bolt
Keith i really can t remember the deep south rates the last trip that Jimmy Hacking did via us was for Astrans out and back for that robbing little bleeder Sammy Cerisse out of Damascus to Germany i do remember that his rate was rubbish ,Jimmy would have been far better off running empty to Italyand getting a far better rate. Incidentally no response from our friend LooseWire yet maybe you ve really upset him and I still think it s Rita. Crow.
geoffthecrowtaylor:
Keith i really can t remember the deep south rates the last trip that Jimmy Hacking did via us was for Astrans out and back for that robbing little bleeder Sammy Cerisse out of Damascus to Germany i do remember that his rate was rubbish ,Jimmy would have been far better off running empty to Italyand getting a far better rate. Incidentally no response from our friend LooseWire yet maybe you ve really upset him and I still think it s Rita. Crow.[/quoteI was only thinking of Sammy Cerisse recently = I was wondering if he is still ticking ? surely he would of sorted out the problems in Damascus if he was still about (For a small fee) Fred
I was sorting thru some old photo’s and this one may interest some of the jockey’s that were running thru Helmstaat prior to the east/west border being demolished. On this occasion I was running thru to Warsaw and when I reached Helmstaat I was ammazed at the transformation considering the aggravation and delays that we once experienced when we put our papers/passports thru a little type letter box and a hand snatched them and left you wondering when you would get them back, I recall that there was only about two trucks to be seen, I could not believe my eyes and I recall walking round for quite a time and noticing that there were no officials - unbelievable - Old Memories eh ? Regards Fred
VOS, kiene Sniffenbarker 
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Freshir,Sammy is probably selling arms to the Syrian Govt. Do you remember the other fly by night at Bab el Hawa Mohammed Ahwad. He used to say to Johnny Howard consider me part of the family and then stitch him up on Syrian transit tax,he should have been called. Ali Baba. Crow.
Hi all.I remember the first time i met Sammy.I was with Mickey Maunders and a couple of guys from Altrex.We went to get Saudi visas.As we went into the office there was a scruffy old guy sweeping the floor.We asked ‘where is mr Sirisi please’.He looked at us suspiciously and said ‘i not know,i cleaner,who you’.We said we were from Astran whereupon he broke into a smile.threw down the broom and said '‘welcome,welcome,i am manager sirisi,please sit.Astran good people,lots of money’.
The first time i Met Mohammed Ahwad was at Bab el Howa.I was talking to Andrew W Young,asking him for the agents when this rather corpulent gentleman came walking towards us.He was dressed immaculately and i thought he was chief of customs or some such important person.
He came up to me,put his hand out and in better English than mine said ‘‘Good morning,i am mr Ahwad may i be of assistance’’.
The roads were so full of interesting people Mike
I also had dealings with Ahwad at Bab-el-howa.I’d arrived there from Bahgdad via Rutba.I was pulling an ex Dowfreight trailer that had side tanks instead of a belly tank,I got diesel checked and was told to get pumped out except for 200 lits.Some kind soul directed me to Mohammed Ahwad’s office,after a bit of haggeling,I paid him 100dm and went back down the hill to pump station.They pumped no more than 100lits out and I left with the paper and no more problem and a smiling Mohammed.
geoffthecrowtaylor:
Freshir,Sammy is probably selling arms to the Syrian Govt. Do you remember the other fly by night at Bab el Hawa Mohammed Ahwad. He used to say to Johnny Howard consider me part of the family and then stitch him up on Syrian transit tax,he should have been called. Ali Baba. Crow.
Yes Geoff I fell about laughing when you mentioned that geezer Ahwad that has certainly nudged the memory box he had a mirror on his table and when you were in his office doing the business he would keep looking at himself - what a self opinionated b*****d and Hutpik (Hi Mike) mentioned Micky Maunders who I knew quite well but I cannot remember who he was on for was it Pan Express ■■ I recall he was quite pally with Dave Telford (The Fonze) ---- Regards Fred
Tony you mentioned Rutba and I have bad memories of that border crossing. Itwas me the two Daves and that idiot Albert the plank who was working for Lucas and Molloy. We were all empty and on the way home and he convinced us it was quicker and better to go Syria. We had one hell of a row on the Iraqi side over diesel and were there hours arguing begging and pleading and offering bribes we did nt lose the diesel but it cost us I can t remember how much, now if you remember the main Syrian control was at Abu Shamat which was about 300 Ks towards Damascus on arriving there the next day major problem no Rutba stamp in passport we had never used that crossing before and after all the ■■■■■■■■ with the Iraqis if the Plank knew he never said .You must go back Rutba for stamp, ■■■■■■ hell that s 600 wasted Kms no way . As is always the case there s a solution find an agentwhich we did explained the problem to him ,name Ive forgotten,do you have any fish he said, fish , fish what the bloody hell do you want fish for, not me he said Customs Director he like fish . Jesus Christ every rummaging thru trailer boxes we turn up two tins of Tuna and two tins of Sardines go back to him with these jewels, good ,good now 50dm each go see Director problem solved come with me and bring passports. In Directors office , welcome, welcome opened a big filing cabinet inside were more tins of assorted fish than you see in the average Supermarket. The moral of this story is and was don t run with idiots who say they ve done it when it became plainly obvious that they had nt,it was a hard lesson to learn. After that trip we never saw Albert the Plank Palmer again,Alleluja.Regards Crow.
geoffthecrowtaylor:
Tony you mentioned Rutba and I have bad memories of that border crossing. Itwas me the two Daves and that idiot Albert the plank who was working for Lucas and Molloy. We were all empty and on the way home and he convinced us it was quicker and better to go Syria. We had one hell of a row on the Iraqi side over diesel and were there hours arguing begging and pleading and offering bribes we did nt lose the diesel but it cost us I can t remember how much, now if you remember the main Syrian control was at Abu Shamat which was about 300 Ks towards Damascus on arriving there the next day major problem no Rutba stamp in passport we had never used that crossing before and after all the ■■■■■■■■ with the Iraqis if the Plank knew he never said .You must go back Rutba for stamp, ■■■■■■ hell that s 600 wasted Kms no way . As is always the case there s a solution find an agentwhich we did explained the problem to him ,name Ive forgotten,do you have any fish he said, fish , fish what the bloody hell do you want fish for, not me he said Customs Director he like fish . Jesus Christ every rummaging thru trailer boxes we turn up two tins of Tuna and two tins of Sardines go back to him with these jewels, good ,good now 50dm each go see Director problem solved come with me and bring passports. In Directors office , welcome, welcome opened a big filing cabinet inside were more tins of assorted fish than you see in the average Supermarket. The moral of this story is and was don t run with idiots who say they ve done it when it became plainly obvious that they had nt,it was a hard lesson to learn. After that trip we never saw Albert the Plank Palmer again,Alleluja.Regards Crow.
Hullo Geoff,
Bloody Hell was Albert a good friend of yours then ? I only ever bumped into him on the one occassion, we were all sat arround in St,Nicks Square, we had all been there for a while as there was some sort of a strike going on with the Dockers. Then there arrived this bloke in a Black with a Red Roof White Road Commander, this was Albert and the Motor he said belonged to John Lucas. He was there for about two days if I remember right. Then the strike ended, we all went about our various jobs, in different directions and I never saw your Albert again.
Cheers, Archie.