I’ve had a bizarre year, i could never of dreamt it was gonna run that way. January, a slow start. February i lost all my work. March i did 160foot Bungee jump and regained my work. April i took 7 days off the road and spent almost every hour refurbing my chassis. May was Truckfest Peterborough, all i wanted to do was sleep!!! June, myself and the East coast truckers took 50 children plus carers to Santa Pod truck show. July was quiet. August i was in the wrong place at the wrong time, Mr V was written off beyond economical repair, then repaired after much begging. Just in time for the 24th childrens convoy. September i went to court to win my damages for the fork lift incident 18months earlier, and i did win 
October, November, December have been quiet in comparison. Despite all odds, and exspenses, it’s been a successful year. Successful because i’m still running and still smiling, a little tired and a little wiser. I hope you’ve all had a resonable year, feel free to ad your year. Above all, i wish you and yours a very merry christmas and a happy new year. Mr V.
Nice one Rob…
Well the whole year it’s been work work work with not much me time running the kids around most weekends … 
Well met some really good people here and there 
, a pleasure to talk and meet … 
It’s also a year where I’ve met up or contacted old friends…
Next year will be much the same but I’m gonna have more ME time and do things for me that I havent been able to do before… .
so on that note I’ll wish each and everyone of you all the best for 2010, hope to meet up with some of you again.
Keep safe , keep well,
All the best Nick …
Toot Toot keep on trucking
Maybe try and get more of a chat with you at Tfest this year mate!
Good to meet you via FB Rob . One day I’ll meet you in person.
can’t decide if my mind’s gone blank or it’s been a really dull year 
I know I’ve got some pretty serious changes to make next year though.
Out;
one of my cars
■■■■
the mrs 
you think I’m joking?
In;
get back in touch with old mates
new mrs
hopefuly full time job
and I seriously need to “get a life” 
Happy christmas guys, look after yourselves.
my year has’nt been the best to be honest made redundant in june had no work since, car put off the road etc back living at my mums, although i know a few lads who r just up and running an irish firm in liverpool so got a day’s work on the spanners yesterday(crimbo eve) which hopefully could lead 2 a full time position when they finally move into their new yard, the job is also looking very good for the future and i am good friends with the lads who r running the show so fingers crossed for 2010
hope you all have a good christmas an new year and hopeully see you at the post xmas party !!!
I’ve been pleased with this year.
I passed my Class 2 last December, and couldn’t get any work at all. I then took my Class 1 in April, which i failed. I then took a re-test and passed in May, and by July i had a full time, Class 1 job on the Milk Tankers, which i love. I went from driving a transit van to driving artics, which was a bit scary at first, but my driving has improved ten fold, and i am so pleased with the way i’ve managed to pick up reversing, which is just as well with some of the places i have to go. I went to Oakthorpe for the first time this week and got on the bay with just one shunt (anyone who’s been there will know how tight it is )
It hasn’t been all plain sailing though. I’ve broken a few mirrors on trees Taken out a mirror on a car with the rear of the trailer and bent a rear bumper when i reversed into a post, as well as over shooting the pin this week, but nothing too major. and when i first started i did wonder if i could actually do this job when i couldn’t get into a few places, because my reversing was shocking when i first started, but it’s all come together nicely 
Thanks to everyone on here for the advice, it’s helped me out no end.
Merry Christmas to you all, and here’s to a better 2010 for us
2009 hasnt been all that great for me tbh
jan-march was really quiet with work.
april-november - met some great people at peterborough/ectc convoy and brands hatch, i even got to ride shotgun in mr vain at the convoy
end of november wasnt good as my grandad died from a stroke,was very close to him but he was in alot of pain so its for the best.
so just gotta thank you rob for everything,its a pleasure to know you. also bricktrotter and mr&mrs V8 actros thanks for everything aswell and you shall see me soon unfortunatly
if ive missed anyone else out im sorry but thanks to everyone ive met this year
ive had quite a good year this year, a little bit of turmoil with getting kept in the navy on a medical board then 3 weeks later being told im getting medically discharged. put a bit of stress in my life i could have done without. but it has forced me into the job market early and i have landed on my feet with a full time job i enjoy. to start with i was only casual at another firm then got taken on full time by a different one working with a good bunch of lads with a lot of variety. im even starting to enjoy driving round london now!
had a little ■■■■ on the M25 that affected me mentally (not too bad i couldnt drive) but it has made me a lot more wary on the motorway, and i believe a better driver on the whole. my reversing is getting a lot better, and my bank balance is improving (which is a good thing)
i have made some very good friends that i know would be there for me if i ever needed them, both on here and at work . everyone is just a phonecall away. you know who you are
i have recently moved house (more stress) and the wife is a lot happier now, at least that is one battle that i have one and if the wife is happy its makes your life a hell of a lot easier (doesnt it fella’s?)
lets just hope this recession ends soon and everyone can get back to earning a decent wage for a decent days work, especially the O/D’s that i think have had quite a rough time of late but most have struggled on through by sheer hard work and pure determination against all the odds
i hope you all have a merry xmas and a happy new year and i wish you all the best of luck for 2010, may all your dreams come true
Lee G
The year for me has got better as it’s gone on really, start of the year lost my job temping at Panasonic driver mate with my class C under my belt. Applied for every job under the sun that I may have had a slightest chance of getting, got none of them.
Went for my C&E in April passed first time, then got a 7.5tonne job in Barhill which meant 100 mile round trip per day, getting paid the square root of f/a the sums didn’t add up to stay doing the job, but it was the only thing I could get.
In June Nobby Ds had an advert for drivers, it was in Northampton and there would be loads of plus points with getting it, rang them up got an interview and assessment, passed both of those and the day after the interview got rang up to start with them after the weekend, which I jumped at. Since then it’s been top notch, getting paid better than I was close to home and gaining experience and learning new things all the time.
During the year have made some cracking friends both from here and at work, who I know would be there for me no matter what and do what they could to help me out, and I would do exactly the same for them.
Here is to a better new year in 2010 for everyone I know most of us have had low points this year, but we’ve all knuckled down got on with it and we’ve come out stronger, wiser and better than before, going to be making some wholesale changes in my life hopefully for the better during the next year, and hope they are all the right ones
stupidly lost a good job quit 2 crap jobs passed class1 got another crap job cant get class 1 anywhere still gotta do crap job MAYBE if i get off my buttocks and actually return next week HEAD is starting too go already but GOT A BLINDING TRUCKERS ATLAS FOR CHRISTMAS LOVE IT
After an absolutely crap 2008 where I met someone, got engaged, moved to just outside Doncaster with her then 3 weeks later got told to ZB off (and hence Im living with my mum now), I decided to do something the ex wouldnt let me do - do my HGV!!!
After reading on here that a few people went with Zenith near Fareham I decided to book the course which included the class 2 and 1 for a reasonable price, I passed my class 2 with them with only 1 minor fault (big thanks to Pete and Gordon, and to Lee G for letting me pop round for a cuppa!!), that was in the Febuary and could a find a job, could I hell!!!
Anyway, 4 monthes later I thought Id better do the class 1 part so I duly booked the dates for a 5 day course (which ended up as 4 days and a different instructor every day) and I hand on heart thought I would fail because of it and the fact that the tests that day were all running late and a load of mistakes I thought I was going to fail, got back did the usual uncouple/couple excersise and then got told I passed, with 10 minors I think, and first go as well!!!
Less than a month later I was starting a new job with Norbert Dentressangle…
DAF95XF:
After an absolutely crap 2008 where I met someone, got engaged, moved to just outside Doncaster with her then 3 weeks later got told to ZB off (and hence Im living with my mum now), I decided to do something the ex wouldnt let me do - do my HGV!!!
After reading on here that a few people went with Zenith near Fareham I decided to book the course which included the class 2 and 1 for a reasonable price, I passed my class 2 with them with only 1 minor fault (big thanks to Pete and Gordon, and to Lee G for letting me pop round for a cuppa!!), that was in the Febuary and could a find a job, could I hell!!!
Anyway, 4 monthes later I thought Id better do the class 1 part so I duly booked the dates for a 5 day course (which ended up as 4 days and a different instructor every day) and I hand on heart thought I would fail because of it and the fact that the tests that day were all running late and a load of mistakes I thought I was going to fail, got back did the usual uncouple/couple excersise and then got told I passed, with 10 minors I think, and first go as well!!!
Less than a month later I was starting a new job with Norbert Dentressangle…
Give the details of new Hounslow depot opening by Jon who you love and who loves you…
garnerlives:
Give the details of new Hounslow depot opening by Jon who you love and who loves you…
You didnt tell me that the depot at Hounslow was opening…
And yes I love you too Jon xxxxxx
All in all, this has not been a good year for me.
it saw the enforced end of a career that i had spent nearly 9 years working on, and with it the loss of an extremely good income. I also suspect strongly that i have been “blacklisted” in the industry in which i worked as a i cannot even get an interview for a junior position to what i was doing.
The loss of the income has had devastating effects on home life, to the point where i now fully expect to lose the house.
Fortunately it looks like the year is going to end on a positive as i have managed to get a full time job back on trucks which means that i will have a reasonably steady income, more than the dole would pay anyway.
Unfortunately it is around only half of what i was earning, which means that there are still huge issues financially. You get used to having a certain income and you end up living to it, then when it is ripped away from you, you are left with many bills you cannot pay.
I now no longer can afford my life insurance, and as i have lost my occupational pension when my career ended which also had “death in service” benefits, i am effectively totally uncovered…whereas 4 months ago i was very well protected…which meant if anything happened to me, the wife and kids would never need worry about a roof over their heads etc. I will still not be able to afford my mortgage payments…and having missed 2 in a row, things do not look good.
However, i am determined not to let this defeat me. No matter how heartbroken or bitter i am, i am going to keep fighting.
I have learnt some valuable lessons from this…i know now that there is no incentive to own your property…i will never buy property again, because after paying my dues for years and years, never missing a single payment to the mortgage company, when you need help the most, neither the government nor the banks want to know. If i had been renting, i would have my rent paid, in full, from day one…and would not have to worry about losing our home…but because i did what i was conditioned to do, work hard, buy a house, i get nothing.
I have realised in the last couple of weeks, that i do enjoy driving trucks…and that i only stopped doing it 9 years ago because i had the chance to take a job of a lifetime, something that should have been secure for life…
Anyway, i hope everyone has a fantastic 2010, i know mine must be better than 2009 so i am marching forward into the new decade with determination, and a small amount of hope!
DAF95XF:
garnerlives:
Give the details of new Hounslow depot opening by Jon who you love and who loves you…You didnt tell me that the depot at Hounslow was opening…
And yes I love you too Jon xxxxxx
I blame Mickey Finn for making me believe I told you re Hounslow, the Irish ■■■■■■■ got me ratted lasted night
This year has been full to say the least!
Up until September I was completing my third year of my degree (or trying to). Old man fell off scaffolding in December 2008 and fractured his hip, lumbar spine and eventually some sevem months afterwards we found out he had fractured his wrist in two places (there is some seriously strong pain killers out there). Needless to say this caused me to lose sight of my degree and took more of a role around the house and small holding we have.
Managed to borrow the money for both my class C and C+E from a family member. Came out having passed both first time and like most others applied for anything and everything going. Managed to get a couple of interviews, some of which told me point blank there was no point in me being there due to lack of experience, others who were more pro newbie drivers because of the catch 22 situation and the major part of loyalty…however nothing came off. Applied for a couple of agencies and again the experience card came up and they wouldnt take me on…so i got wise and lied. Not to the point of being stoopid but enough that he would stand me in a fighting chance (plus it was stuff i had already covered when i was growing up with the old man anyway!)
Applied to the same agencies who had a couple of weeks before said NO and got took on by them. They are the best at organision but at the minute i take what ever comes my way and its allowed me to get out on the bigguns!! 
Ive managed to win a couple of delivery staff over on drops to the point im allowed to use their ‘facilites’ and also managed to win the over win a dwarf wall came up and bit the lamp cluster on the unit. Ive managed to do day work, night work, auto boxes (which i will not mention 
) and ive been able to tick off a few other things.
Been offered a couple of Transport Manager jobs (simply because I have been to university) with no chance of driving…what-so-ever. Now i know there is a recesion on and no doubt a few TMs on here but after paying out and going thru the stress of getting my licences, I WANT TO DRIVE SOMETHING!!!
2010 hopefully will allow me to get some what of a full time driving job, cause before i got the first jobs i was a stubborn ******* and now AFTER those drives the bug has bitten me and i want more more more!!
this year?..im not going to complain
work:
bad start to the year,with the start of the recession,drivers and friends of mine paid off in droves,and at one point my future was in the balance(as was everyones).a pay cut was imposed on us that were left,resulting in me losing around £450 per month take home,which has had a bigger effect than expected at home.however,things in the car industry did a very fast u-turn almost immediatley,and car sales rocketed,coupled with the fact that we won new business resulted in us being very busy.in the 10 years in this game,i have never been so busy.even through the historically quiet times,things were manic,and i"ve put in a few weekends as well.things have slowly started building up again and we now have all the parked up trucks back on the road,and then some.just hope it continues into next year at the same rate.coming to the end of this year i was getting pretty burnt out,but all the same ive enjoyed this year.
home:
after moving house 18 months ago,projects at home have been put on hold thanks to pay cut,and with being so busy at work,either to tired,or working weekends to do anything.wifey wants kitchen and dining room knocking into one,a new kitchen,bathroom,conservatory and garden redone(then i might get my classic car as promised ),so enough to be getting on with(i think it will be a rolling project like the forth bridge,once you get finished it will start again,so no classic 
,and i reckon that things have been knocked back about a year.
with all that said,and without wanting to sound condecending,i count myself as one very lucky chap.i still have a job that i love,a home,and most importantly my family and their health.there have been ups and downs in the past 12 months,but,there are a lot of people through no fault of their own and for whatever reason in positions they shouldnt or dont want to be in at the moment.
so,with 2010 approaching,i hope for everyone like myself with hopes and dreams,that their goals are realised.
happy new year everyone.
buck rogers:
resulting in me losing around £450 per month take home,and we now have all the parked up trucks back on the road,and then some.
Did the company put the wages back up when the work picked-up again?
marcustandy:
buck rogers:
resulting in me losing around £450 per month take home,and we now have all the parked up trucks back on the road,and then some.
Did the company put the wages back up when the work picked-up again?
no mate,when it was imposed on us,it was for a one year period staring january.supposed to go back to the proper rate after new year(with no back pay).im not holding my breath though,think we are gonna have a fight on our hands.
the company during this period did manage to fit trackers to a lot of trucks,buy and paint a lot of second hand trucks,take on a lot of drivers on a different wage agreement,take on a new"operations manager",and move offices…