Come on then lets have some tales about who you’ve had sat alongside you.
I had a little Fillipino sat beside me once, trouble is it was a Fillipino grandfather who was a linesmen working on the National Grid pylons and we were moving this tractor and winch. 
I once had a guy on agency who says he was taking leave from the army.
He kept having a lie down after lifting a few boxes.
Think he was in the Salvation Army myself 
I had to put up with the most irritating bloke on Earth for a few weeks. At first he was a passenger over the course of a week whilst driving around the north of England setting up and taking down various shows, he was the most complete ■■■■■■ I ever met and for reasons not to embarras him I won’t say his name … but it was Mick Johnson.
I once had a female USAF sergeant (officially) as a passenger.
My load was 3 bombs, of the kind that the USAF drops from aircraft, so the sergeant was there to prevent them from going missing. She had her rifle with her, which made me feel quite safe.
dieseldave:
I once had a female USAF sergeant (officially) as a passenger.My load was 3 bombs, of the kind that the USAF drops from aircraft, so the sergeant was there to prevent them from going missing. She had her rifle with her, which made me feel quite safe.
Did you rifle her? Drop your bombs on her?
thelorryist:
dieseldave:
I once had a female USAF sergeant (officially) as a passenger.My load was 3 bombs, of the kind that the USAF drops from aircraft, so the sergeant was there to prevent them from going missing. She had her rifle with her, which made me feel quite safe.
Did you rifle her? Drop your bombs on her?
Smash open her cargo hold?
The strangest passenger must have been in Hungary. I was driving along near Kescamet minding my own business when all of a sudden there was a slight bang followed by a loud explosion. All I could see was dust and mud.
I stopped and walked back and there were 5 Hungarians in a field surrounded by yellow dust. It was formerly a Trabant and in true Hungarian style, he had pulled in as soon as his back wheel was past my Volvo bumper 
Fearing the worst I went over and they were all smiling and one was waving. Luckily they were alive, I was quite wary when the Rendorseg arrived. He looked at my lorry, went over to this group and discovered who was the driver, he punched him and then said “English, No Problem, You Go.”
I was worried that I may have a problem at the border if anyone reported this, he said, no, no problem, but this man is quite old and needs to go to the doctor, you must take him to Gyor.
I agreed and all the way to Gyor, the old man could only say “Sorry”, but he was pointing out at things from the window and saying things in Hungarian which my only knowledge of was Evet (Yes)
I dropped him off at a bus stop near Gyor and he gave me some money.
The damage to the lorry was a cracked sidelight lens, the damage to the Trabbie was just dust 
thelorryist:
dieseldave:
I once had a female USAF sergeant (officially) as a passenger.My load was 3 bombs, of the kind that the USAF drops from aircraft, so the sergeant was there to prevent them from going missing. She had her rifle with her, which made me feel quite safe.
Did you rifle her? Drop your bombs on her?
Err, no mate… She had the rifle.
Herongate:
Used to be my co-pilot on night runs, he wasnt much for conversation, but was a good listener!!
lol i had to carry out a 6 weekly inspection on a merc actros unit one morning, ran up the steps into the cab and nearly fell back out because there was a “gorrila” in high vis!lol was quite big as well!!
the spannerman:
Herongate:
Used to be my co-pilot on night runs, he wasnt much for conversation, but was a good listener!!lol i had to carry out a 6 weekly inspection on a merc actros unit one morning, ran up the steps into the cab and nearly fell back out because there was a “gorrila” in high vis!lol was quite big as well!!
Turn Right Clyde!
i had one years back when i was on the milk , he was a driving assessor , & was there to see how i drove & if he could improve my style of driving , when asked about his own driving carreer , he said he’d never driven an HGV & was currently on a drink driving ban, which explained his lift in every morning
brilliant 
we then entered into a surreal conversation almost worthy of twilight zone scripting & then he went quiet for the next 6 hours… not a word passed between us 
Wheel Nut:
the spannerman:
Herongate:
Used to be my co-pilot on night runs, he wasnt much for conversation, but was a good listener!!lol i had to carry out a 6 weekly inspection on a merc actros unit one morning, ran up the steps into the cab and nearly fell back out because there was a “gorrila” in high vis!lol was quite big as well!!
Turn Right Clyde!
Right turn Clyde. Classic…LOL…
Sent from my iPad.
Many years back i did agency job (stitch up) delivering pig feed in bags, to farms.
Any way on way back to Reading i picked up a soldier at first roundabout coming into Newbury (pre bypass).
Next roundabout he says thanks drive this will do.
Though that was very odd untill i got home and other half ordered me to take a bath as i stank of pigs:grin:
Back in the old days I used to give lifts to all and sundry, and hitch hikers were everywhere. General rule was: No single girls (too many tales of scams); No one in Jesus robes and sandals (no need to explain that:)); No one with a huge rucksac.
One week I went up to Scotland in a rented van. I don’t remember the make but it was basically a big box with a driver’s seat (no seat for passengers) in the front right corner and the engine sticking out looking like half a dustbin; it was also very slow.
I left Aberdeen in the early hours, intending to do London in one hit (yes I know). On the outskirts I picked up an American guy who said he didn’t mind sitting on a box in the back. At Dundee I picked up a young Australian couple who were going to London. In Edinburgh I dropped the Aberdeen guy and picked up an English couple with a guitar.
Near Berwick I was knackered and I turfed them all out (I think there were 5 or 6 by then - all nationalities) and got my head down for a couple of hours and then went in the cafe to eat. When I left, most were still there plus a couple of others, so I picked them all up and spent the rest of the trip doing this free bus service with the musical couple leading the singing.
I sometimes wonder if any of them remember that trip as fondly as I do.
I remember back in the day when people had common sense and were allowed to use it. I was a keen cyclist but not a great map reader,was puffed out near Montrose and had to get home to Dundee .I spotted a lorry in a layby and asked for a lift,the driver took me to within a mile of home.The cycling club old hands told me if in trouble try to get to a transport cafe as the lorry folk would most likely help out a fellow traveller.Sadly its changed days now.
i gave a lift to a japanese student. dropped him off at charnock, he was heading for scotland. the nicest, most polite person i’ve ever met.
i picked up an austrian student at bonneville, he bought me 3 espressos, and a panini. very intelligent lad, he spoke loads of languages, this was due to the amount of birds he’d been out with.
dropped a lad off way up north, somewhere in sweden. real pain in the arse, he didn’t agree with anything i said, so [zb]ing opinionated.
then there was this one. 
i picked up a young lady in dover, she had no money, but needed to go to romania. i told her i could get her across the water that day, and as far as austria after that. i knew i’d made a bad choice, she [zb]ing stunk. but i bought her some dinner on the ferry, she didn’t know how to use a knife and fork. she had no clean clothes. apparently she was running away from some abuse, she was brought to england to escape family abuse in romania, but she was on her way back to them. she ended up getting a lift from calais by a romanian driver.
most of the time i don’t have a problem, or any regrets by giving people a lift, but this one was another matter.
Was on Agency once at Dalkeath Transport…
Down to Winsford to drop load of Flour and then across to Manchester to pick up load of paint…
Anyways… i take the first stint of driving and he got his self comfy in the bunk… he took his boots off and i swear his feet where rancid… and he snored like a pig…
Thank god when it was his turn to drive … took the smell away …lol
