mrginge:
Yeah but I was worried I might have to drive tonight, just found out they need to go to Coventry now for a part, so I’m going to jump in one of their new FM’s, horse [zb] I turned up in a knackered FH
Ha i know what you mean
syramax:
i used to be a "transcontinental logistics operative "that translates to " I used to trail round Europe in a van "
same job ,totally different job description
There was a time we were known as commercial travelers
Bluey Circles:
I have noticed quite a lot of drivers who are away all week on a set route claim to be tramping - I always thought tramping was not entirely knowing where your next load would be going other than you would be trying to find a load to somewhere near home for the friday ?
Tramping in haulage derived from the term Tramp steamer in the maritime world. It meant exactly that, wherever you lay your hat. A lot of things transport have maritime roots. Most aviation ranks are maritime derived too - Captain, First Officer, second Officer, port/ starboard etc. I later tramped in air cargo. You had a roster, but it vanished once you got going, you never knew where you’d end up. You knew you’d come home somehow, sometime. It’s not pejorative, it’s historical nomenclature from history, from tramp - home is wherever you lay you hat type thing. The bloody pc lot should shut their gobs and get on with it. Logistics this, solutions that…
Freight Dog:
Tramping in haulage derived from the term Tramp steamer in the maritime world. It meant exactly that, wherever you lay your hat.
It was even there before the days of steam ships.It just means running from foreign port to foreign port not returning to a home port every journey. 
In this case from clipper to tramper.
Carryfast:
Freight Dog:
Tramping in haulage derived from the term Tramp steamer in the maritime world. It meant exactly that, wherever you lay your hat.It was even there before the days of steam ships.It just means running from foreign port to foreign port not returning to a home port every journey.
In this case from clipper to tramper.
Exactly! Wherever you lay your hat. Bloody modern UK pc crap gets on my nerves. A bin man is a bin man, not a refuse technician. A tramper is a tramper, not a bloody roamer. Why change it? Bloody pc crap. As if the tramps will be offended. It’s some falluting uni graduate that’s got offended on their behalf. When they finally remake the dam busters you can bet your bottom dollar what the black lab won’t be called…
Freight Dog:
Carryfast:
Freight Dog:
Tramping in haulage derived from the term Tramp steamer in the maritime world. It meant exactly that, wherever you lay your hat.It was even there before the days of steam ships.It just means running from foreign port to foreign port not returning to a home port every journey.
In this case from clipper to tramper.
Exactly! Wherever you lay your hat. Bloody modern UK pc crap gets on my nerves. A bin man is a bin man, not a refuse technician. A tramper is a tramper, not a bloody roamer. Why change it? Bloody pc crap. As if the tramps will be offended. It’s some falluting uni graduate that’s got offended on their behalf. When they finally remake the dam busters you can bet your bottom dollar what the black lab won’t be called…
+1
It’s also a destruction and disrespect of our history such as that maritime example all based on a bs PC crusade.
I wouldn’t say I’m a tramper, I’m a lorry driver.
I go away on Sunday and get back on Friday, I do various loads of almost anything to pretty much anywhere and park in any corner across the country that will let me.
Tramping IS lorry driving, all this trunk work and day shift is just playing at it. Pooftahs.
A.
Adonis.:
Tramping IS lorry driving, all this trunk work and day shift is just playing at it. Pooftahs.A.
To be fair driving these across Europe was/is arguably trunking.Each to their own. 
Carryfast:
To be fair driving these across Europe was/is arguably trunking.Each to their own.
Arguably.
So I’ll argue and say it isn’t.
A.
Adonis.:
Carryfast:
To be fair driving these across Europe was/is arguably trunking.Each to their own.Arguably.
So I’ll argue and say it isn’t.
A.
I’d guess that a regular run which starts and terminates at the base depot ( Northampton for example ) is a trunking operation not a tramping operation.Just as it was in the case of the Cutty Sark working as a clipper ship v a tramper.
Anything that’s regular is not tramping, if you go from home (let’s use London as an example) to Edinburgh then to Sunderland, then to Cardiff, jump over the bridge to Bristol and load for Norwich reload Kings Lynn for Southampton and then grab a load home and you do it every week you are not tramping, but having night’s out. You’re probably well over your hours too lol.
If you start off with the Edinburgh and the rest all comes as a surprise and they’re one off jobs then you are definitely tramping, if you work for Stobarts and run from Depot to Depot with no particular routine then you are again tramping.
It’s all quite simple really.
newmercman:
Anything that’s regular is not tramping, if you go from home (let’s use London as an example) to Edinburgh then to Sunderland, then to Cardiff, jump over the bridge to Bristol and load for Norwich reload Kings Lynn for Southampton and then grab a load home and you do it every week you are not tramping, but having night’s out. You’re probably well over your hours too lol.If you start off with the Edinburgh and the rest all comes as a surprise and they’re one off jobs then you are definitely tramping, if you work for Stobarts and run from Depot to Depot with no particular routine then you are again tramping.
It’s all quite simple really.
I totally agree. And for all their faults, stobart and maritime are the only companies left whose work (some anyway) is proper tramping.
OVLOV JAY:
I totally agree. And for all their faults, stobart and maritime are the only companies left whose work (some anyway) is proper tramping.
Nah, I work for neither and ‘proper’ tramp. I have no idea where my next load will be from and where it will be going. I can have a guess which is usually wrong, we do have regular places to get backloads from though.
The general side can be very, very varied at times.
A.
Well good luck to you. Not many left like it. Most firms just backload back to the yard or nearest customer.
OVLOV JAY:
Well good luck to you. Not many left like it. Most firms just backload back to the yard or nearest customer.
We get left in certain areas sometimes for a bit, like Monday. Start in Gloucester (Base) already loaded from a nearby customer for Sheffield then 2x loads from Chesterfield to Ilkeston for another customer and probably park up and go to pub. At some point in the afternoon I will find out where and who I work for Tuesday, I couldn’t guess.
Lucky for us we have our own depots to grab backloads from if needed moving ■■■■■■■■/skip waste which you wouldn’t pay an outside firm to do.
I used to love the ‘uknown’ with tramping. Main rig was a Volvo F7 unit and a 40 foot flatbed trailer back in the day… we were kept constantly busy which kept us in a job because one reason was we would take literally anything and usually hand ball full loads on and off, it was hard graft but my boss wasn’t choosy about what loads we had to shift.
Roaming 
Bloody "Hipsters " get everywheres nowadays. 
,
Im more of a Wanderer :grimacing: :sunglasses: , If its good enough for Dion since 1961 , it`s good enough for me 
OVLOV JAY:
newmercman:
Anything that’s regular is not tramping, if you go from home (let’s use London as an example) to Edinburgh then to Sunderland, then to Cardiff, jump over the bridge to Bristol and load for Norwich reload Kings Lynn for Southampton and then grab a load home and you do it every week you are not tramping, but having night’s out. You’re probably well over your hours too lol.If you start off with the Edinburgh and the rest all comes as a surprise and they’re one off jobs then you are definitely tramping, if you work for Stobarts and run from Depot to Depot with no particular routine then you are again tramping.
It’s all quite simple really.
I totally agree. And for all their faults, stobart and maritime are the only companies left whose work (some anyway) is proper tramping.
I would have thought that you were tramping, or do you always run from/to the same port or railhead.
I work on containers, but I will run to or from numerous ports, railheads and containers bases. never for sure know where the container will be restituted regardless of what it says on the paperwork. To be honest its a lot better than back to Felixstowe every time. Its not unusual to swap trailers with another driver enroute, so as to get a ship catcher to port, or to get a timed delivery hit, or sometimes were a day driver has a container that needs to be restituted away from his home base, I think that might be classed as tramping
Just Felixstowe and London Gateway. Hardly even work out of Tilbury apart from Pentalvers. I only do a couple of nights out a week anyway.
OVLOV JAY:
Just Felixstowe and London Gateway. Hardly even work out of Tilbury apart from Pentalvers. I only do a couple of nights out a week anyway.
Oh fare enough