we all like to moan and groan, its human nature. but i personally cant imagine doing any other job. ive seen most of spain, italy, germany, and the benelux. ive had four days sat on a beach in rimini waiting for a reload, ive been over snowcapped alpine passes, ive been through ski resorts, ive been through dark forests where eagles fly and deer roam, ive been to the top of scotland and the bottom of cornwall. ive met different races and cultures, ive learnt a basic knowledge of french, german, spanish and italian. ii earn 27,000 pounds for four days work, if i wanted i could earn over 30k. i didnt have to go to college or uni. my employers over the years have put me through my first aid course, adr, manual handling trainer, health and safety risk assesor courses- all free to me. YES WE ALL HATE MOTORWAYS ON FRIDAYS AND PARKING PROBLEMS AND STROPPY RDC STAFF, and ive done my share of long hours and dirty tilt stripping in the wind and rain. BUT I STILL WOULDNT DO `OWT ELSE 
. just my own personal thoughts and ramblings on a job which gets so much bad press
Nice one Jonboy. 
Like you I wouldn’t really want any other job at the moment, I’ve been doing it 20 years and still look forward to setting off to work.
I agree mate - when you’ve a bad day it’s bad, but when things go great there’s nothing like it. Did a full 10 hour punch last saturday through France, shiny new FH12, beautiful day, great music - my little world was at peace. Then crashed back into the real world with 3 drops in UK - sides out, rain, surly rdc staff…but then again you know i’m still cab happy - love driving - dont like meeting people (it’s prob why double-manning at RH suited me so well!)
I’me with you 100% on that Jonboy. Been there and done that and loved almost all of. I’ve trained for other things which pay more and given them a good try, but I always jack it in and get back on the road.
Tony, if , is a negative reply to Jonboys post. Why on earth do you still do the job? There are plenty of alternatives out there, if you are prepared to put a bit of effort into it. Judging by your other posts, it can’t be the money you are earning. Judging by that reply it also can’t be for love of the job, so again. Why are you a truck driver? 
tony proberly loves the life as we all mostly do… 
…like has been said b4… we are the worlds best moaners… but hey we love it… yes i do aswell… …wouldnt do owt else… …
I adore trucking… can remember going out with my Dad when I was a kid and he worked for a firm called Claytons in Wandsworth. They then became Hunts (soft drinks people, who remembers the advert … “Call for Hunts”). I can remember going to Birmingham in an old Bedford and Dad with a brick on the throttle doing 45mph.
I have driven many types… I left trucking and went coaching for 5 years … I owned my own limo and chauffeured for some very very rich people where it certainly WASN’T mop and bucket money but where do I always end up?? Back trucking.!!! I used to run down the A3 at night and as I passed the M25 junction, I would see all the trucks parked up there and I used to think to myself “I miss that”. This is while driving a 2 year old Merc Limo!!!
No matter where I go, I always end up back trucking. Its not the money, its the camaraderie, the craic when parked up abroad, nothing better than pulling in somewhere miles from home and seeing a Brit truck and even better its someone you know
I’ve always said it’s something that is in your blood. I’ve come back to driving after being office/warehouse bound for nearly seven years. (redundancy does have it’s advantages!) It has taken me a couple of weeks to get back in the swing of things but up with it now. I like the new CD type tachos. Seemed strange to start with but soon got used to it. The biggest difference I have noticed is the amount of weight/width limits that have sprung up all over the place, been caught out a couple of times 
Dave
A few weeks ago I was having a bad day, at least I thought so, took a drawbar down a narrow street to an " industrial estate", even in a Land Rover I could’nt have got closer than a 10 minute walk. No where to turn, backed out for a week or so to find some where to turn around. Next drop was Wakefield… home of low bridges! I was 14 foot! most are 13’9!. bad day getting worse!
Got to drop, couldn’t turn around to get out, suggested they come out with fork truck… they did!. Off to Leeds for next load, on the roundabout above M1 some one in a white car with a big red stripe on the side it pointed a big gun at me… escorting a prison van…
Loaded at Leeds back to yard… yes a bad day.
THEN I watched a programme on the TV, "The boy whose skin fell off." My day was easy…He had a skin complaint. sice birth… couldn’t touch anything, badaged head to toe… changing his bandages had me with tears in my eyes from ther pain he had to endure. Tthis guy was wonderful, dead now Jonny Kennedy, Had a very short (32 years I think) life but he had an effect on me
How lucky I am. I will never have another bad day!
Simon:
Tony, if
I think he was probably at Neil’s comment about looking forward to going to work personally, knowing what Tony’s like.
i still enjoy driving i always wanted to be a trucker i lived eat and breathed it my mrs says i still do i go to truckshows by truck magazines post on trucknet .ive tramped around the uk and benalux .i do nights know and once you get used to being awake when you should be sleeping its great.the day i get fed up with it i will pack it in no moaning no whinging and do something else
as carl said, if you dont like the job why do it? nobody in the world is driving a truck with a gun held to there head… be positive, there are people in a HELL of a lot worse positions than truckdriving. enjoy it for what it is (not aimed at anybody, just me ranting before i go to bed!! )
Jonboy as many of you know i dont drive trucks any more ( well not full time) but when i did i absolutely loved it ,parking up at night getting a beer out and switch the telly on it was great.
I work in a busy little office now and sometimes envy the guys who come in in their trucks knowing they will be “away from it all” until their next drop.
Respect to those of you who still do it , i sometimes think about it but then i think 2 am start? NO not again ,M25 friday! definately NO, ANY Tesco site NO,not seeing my 5 year old son and 2 year old daughter for a week !!! no thanks.
But hey each to their own.