Been at it a few years myself and I still have off moments
Yesterday for example I pulled into Hilton park south, lorry park was empty took me 6 shunts to reverse into a bay 
we’re as av just been the yard and put 1 in a space with trailers either side in 1 go, practice makes you better not perfect, because nobody is perfectt !!
We are supposed to be professional drivers and that means being good at what we do. As said, if after 2 years you are taking more than 2 shunts then you really need to take a good look at yourself.
There are too many people willing to make excuses for ■■■■ poor driving and drivers hence all the damage being done nowadays. Driving a lorry should become second nature and reversing on full revs in high ratio should be something that isn’t going to scare a driver to death.
You should be sizing up a yard as you enter it, looking for anything that might cause damage to your truck or trailer, remember it and avoid it. Look for your turning circle etc. and get on with it without making it look like a big drama.
May I suggest you practice in your home yard or start applying for jobs in other areas. Would you like to hear a surgeon say that he’s been doing the job for 2 years but he’s not quite got the hang of stitching you up yet?
Some people are born drivers, some wing it and get through life watching accidents in their mirrors. 
I imagine the bloke is looking for the wrong reference points or is failing to understand how an artic works. They don’t bend in the middle, the front part pushes the back part in the desired or required direction.
If you are looking at the two trailers in your mirrors, you will ■■■■ it up, if you aim for a fixed point on the floor near the bay, or follow the black marks that are always there, the trailer will sail in.
As a tanker driver I have often got out and laid a glove on the floor next to the correct delivery point or under a loading arm, especially if there are a lot of pipes all coming out of the wall or the tankfarm.
m1cks:
I find it easier to stick it between two parked trucks. Give me an empty yard and it’s all over the place.
Nailed it in one last night and one of the old hands congratulated me. I’ve been doing it 9 years but it still makes your day when someone else appreciates it.
+1
I always find the more room there is the more of a hash I make of things. If it’s a tight one I normally do it like a boss, every time. Never forget when I was on fridges when I rolled up at Tesco Avonmouth and was virtually the only wagon in the yard, yet I was reversing over the bleeding tyre guides, forgot to open doors, took loads of shunts. I just couldn’t seem to get it right for some reason. Don’t worry about it, we all have crap days. Don’t let it knock your confidence and certainly don’t listen to the hand wringers on here.
claretmatt:
I always find the more room there is the more of a hash I make of things. If it’s a tight one I normally do it like a boss, every time. Never forget when I was on fridges when I rolled up at Tesco Avonmouth and was virtually the only wagon in the yard, yet I was reversing over the bleeding tyre guides, forgot to open doors, took loads of shunts. I just couldn’t seem to get it right for some reason. Don’t worry about it, we all have crap days. Don’t let it knock your confidence and certainly don’t listen to the hand wringers on here.
You sound like a hand wringer to me, making excuses for crap driving. We don’t all have bad days for your information, some of us can do our job the way we are supposed to do it without making it look hard or expecting a medal for hitting the bay in only 4 shunts.
Truckbling:
You sound like a hand wringer to me, making excuses for crap driving. We don’t all have bad days for your information, some of us can do our job the way we are supposed to do it without making it look hard or expecting a medal for hitting the bay in only 4 shunts.
Bully for you, would you like a lolly pop? 
MY first job back so long ago I cannot remember, circa 1983 ± was working for a dairy in Dagenham, delivering the milk in bulk to the depots, trust me once you learn that one, you never worry about backing on bays or tight yards ever again
claretmatt:
Bully for you, would you like a lolly pop?
No need, thank you for offering though. You might try to mock me but I’m not the one openly admitting that I’m a sub standard driver the way you have. Maybe you should try sucking the lollipop because you might make a better job of that than you do your reversing.
Truckbling:
No need, thank you for offering though. You might try to mock me but I’m not the one openly admitting that I’m a sub standard driver the way you have. Maybe you should try sucking the lollipop because you might make a better job of that than you do your reversing.
Ha ha… What a hoot… I am completely defeated by your awesome wit
Took my CE test yesterday. Failed on reverse, didn’t even make it out the ducking yard. Most annoying thing is I’d got it perfect when practising!
Bulldog164:
Took my CE test yesterday. Failed on reverse, didn’t even make it out the ducking yard. Most annoying thing is I’d got it perfect when practising!
Just the pressure got to you mate. Better luck next time. However that can be excused. You have not had 2 years of regular driving of artics like the OP claims.
Rob K:
dar1976:
I think maybe the OP exaggerated the 100 shunts.The advice about getting some refresher training isn’t such a bad idea though. If its going bad more than it goes in right, then remedial action would save a lot of embarrassment.
Failing that, practice makes perfect. So get your 45 breaks in MSAs with reverse bays.
Look at the recent threads with plenty of good advice about how to reverse safely and efficiently.
Come on Dean, stop making excuses please. He’s been doing the job TWO [zb] YEARS. If you can’t pick it up in that time you never will. Simples.
I was just trying to balance things. Not make excuses. The OP has not been back to defend his opening post so maybe it does take him 100 goes. And in that case I think you are right Rob. The guy may not be safe behind the counter at McD :-/
dar1976:
Bulldog164:
Took my CE test yesterday. Failed on reverse, didn’t even make it out the ducking yard. Most annoying thing is I’d got it perfect when practising!Just the pressure got to you mate. Better luck next time. However that can be excused. You have not had 2 years of regular driving of artics like the OP claims.
Mate I was a mess. Shaking, sweating, the lot
dar1976:
Bulldog164:
Took my CE test yesterday. Failed on reverse, didn’t even make it out the ducking yard. Most annoying thing is I’d got it perfect when practising!Just the pressure got to you mate. Better luck next time. However that can be excused. You have not had 2 years of regular driving of artics like the OP claims.
Agreed. Test nerves, that kind of thing happens, but there’s always next time.
Sounds like his positioning is all off before reversing. If you get that wrong it messes the whole manoeuvre up. I would watch closely the position an artic takes before probably loads of YouTube and copy it. Getting that angle perfect to guide it in the lines is key and going nice and slow gives you time to adjust if you see your wheels going out of position.
OllieNotts:
Sounds like his positioning is all off before reversing. If you get that wrong it messes the whole manoeuvre up. I would watch closely the position an artic takes before probably loads of YouTube and copy it. Getting that angle perfect to guide it in the lines is key and going nice and slow gives you time to adjust if you see your wheels going out of position.
Agreed. It’s something that set me in good stead for reversing. Get the back of the combination pointing in the right direction and you are half way there. Otherwise you are using room up correcting that before sorting out the rest of the manoeuvre. If the yard is tight, make sure that there is room to bring the unit round to straighten up as clouting a wall or another trailer on your near side while having your head over your other shoulder causes damage and lots of embarrassment.
Too much talking about reversing isnae gona help this geezer. See i never had my ‘‘click’’ moment i was a night shunter for years before i sat my class 1 so ive always found it a doddle.
If it hasnt come in 2 years of constant driving in all sorts of environments then maybe it will never come. Unless in those 2 years you have been shying away from it or maybe your job dont have the need for 10-12 reverse maneuvers a day, maybe you only do 1 or 2 if its trunk work - you need to do more and more.
Either get a couple of weeks on shunting or get a couple of weeks on mulitdrop is my advice. Drop yourself into the deep end cause it sounds to me like its playing on your mind big time.
Bulldog164:
Took my CE test yesterday. Failed on reverse, didn’t even make it out the ducking yard. Most annoying thing is I’d got it perfect when practising!
Bad luck - keep trying.
If you fail on the reverse, the examiner is supposed to still offer you the chance to continue the test (still under full test conditions) to give you practice / what to expect etc. You have paid for it!!
I agree with both sides here. Everyone has bad days and sometimes I give myself a mental slap to concentrate harder and have another crack at it. The OP got it on a Bay without damage and did his job.
However, he’s been driving two years and should by now mostly be getting it right. It may have been an off day but if it’s happening regularly, maybe he should think of extra training or something.
The thing was i got the positioning wrong. I’ve done it before and I got it right. It’s just today that everything seems to be going ■■■■ up. It’s not like every time i take 100 shunts or take ages to get on a bay. If I’m honest it’s only 2nd or 3rd time in 2 yrs that it went so horribly wrong