NewLad:
Saying that when I first started at my place I got caught out a couple of times when I was told I’m on a day run, only later for the phone to ring and a “can you just” at the other end.
You can rough it for a odd night without any n/o gear, use your bag for a pillow, night heater on all night (obviously not at this time of year) as long as you got some cash you’ll always get fed and watered.
Why rough it when you have the kit. I used to be a caterer so I always carry food and drink even in my car, wouldn’t do to die of malnutrition would it?
Never trust what the “office staff” say there’re not the one’s sleeping in the cab, look after number one because no one else will.
I don’t even carry a bag anymore. Bring a clipboard in with me for carrying paperwork, a pen, my gloves and thats it. I have a pack of multi surface wipes and a few spare tacho rolls in my jacket. Use Google Maps on my phone for planning any routes. I work nights and don’t eat anything, have a big dinner before which ties me over.
What’s all this bedding and that■■? If on day work then gloves food drink and bit of cash with a few pens jobs a good un. If get ‘stuck out’ overnight then give em plenty of notice that you gonna either need to swap with another driver or they gonna have to put you up in a hotel/B&B for the night.
jusholmes:
‘…what you take with you as essentials…’
Knowledge of having had an annual Flu’ jab as a belt & brace defence against “The Dreaded Annual Depot Bug”: Morrissons or Superdrug being my easily found providers of choice every Autumn
Meanwhile:
commonrail:
‘… a blow up pillow…’
Or the PC, anti-terrorist term ‘inflatable pillow’ if you take it within an exclusion radius of an airport, London bus or tube train, eh
taffytrucker:
What’s all this bedding and that■■? If on day work then gloves food drink and bit of cash with a few pens jobs a good un. If get ‘stuck out’ overnight then give em plenty of notice that you gonna either need to swap with another driver or they gonna have to put you up in a hotel/B&B for the night.
you misunderstand taffy, here in the uk, as opposed to Canada, we don’t cover 800 miles a day, we sit on our arses for 8 or 9 hrs waiting for someone to unload us, hence why we need bedding on day work, it gets very tiresome looking out of the windscreen
rob22888:
I don’t even carry a bag anymore. Bring a clipboard in with me for carrying paperwork, a pen, my gloves and thats it. I have a pack of multi surface wipes and a few spare tacho rolls in my jacket. Use Google Maps on my phone for planning any routes. I work nights and don’t eat anything, have a big dinner before which ties me over.
Not doing many + 12 hour shifts then? Id have eaten my right arm by the end of a 15.
taffytrucker:
What’s all this bedding and that■■? If on day work then gloves food drink and bit of cash with a few pens jobs a good un. If get ‘stuck out’ overnight then give em plenty of notice that you gonna either need to swap with another driver or they gonna have to put you up in a hotel/B&B for the night.
In the real world it doesn’t work like that, I once gave them three hours notice that I would need to be met and they couldn’t manage that, the one time I didn’t have any kit, that’s why I then carried my bedding every trip. Oddly enough there is always a shortage of B&B’s or hotels that allow you to park an artic on their premises.
taffytrucker:
What’s all this bedding and that■■? If on day work then gloves food drink and bit of cash with a few pens jobs a good un. If get ‘stuck out’ overnight then give em plenty of notice that you gonna either need to swap with another driver or they gonna have to put you up in a hotel/B&B for the night.
My place would die laughing on the other end of the phone if we demanded a hotel/B&B, we’re specifically told when we start that it is transport nothing is set in stone and to ALWAYS carry your kit.
The old “I don’t have my n/o gear” doesn’t work.
They will only rescue you if you have duty time left and are out of drive time. You’re allowed to be rescued by family/friends if you’re out of duty.
I tell a lie,i remember a few lads than ran out of time coming back from dartford ,they just crashed out on a rolled up coat for a pillow ,they only had 9 off and had some dinner and a night heater so they werent bothered ,one was moaning that one side of the cab curtains were missing though
seth 70:
I tell a lie,i remember a few lads than ran out of time coming back from dartford ,they just crashed out on a rolled up coat for a pillow ,they only had 9 off and had some dinner and a night heater so they werent bothered ,one was moaning that one side of the cab curtains were missing though
The night out I mentioned was returning to Norfolk after tipping at Asda Dartford and their Christmas overflow warehouse just along the road behind the store. It took an hour from there to the roundabout as you cross the M25 to enter the tunnel.
