Hi Archie, do you know what the amount of times in the 70’s and 80’s I went over Cenis I can’t picture what the Douane post looked like, I can remember the routiers on the top by the lake and I remember the Italian customs on the hill but I thought the French was only about half a km further up or have the mists of time fogged up the brain.
Charlie.
[quote="Archie Paice.
.
Hullo Mappo,
La Douanne Francaise, 70’ s and 80’s. Top of the Steps on Mont Cenis, pay 10Ff and merci beaucoup mon ami, alez vous . No Permit (?) check, No Gazoil check. phew!! Happy days eh?
Cheers, Archie.[/quote]
…
Hi Archie, happy days indeed mate. i remember a couple of firms i worked for used to pay a tenner extra for using Cenis
and another tenner for keeping the Italian permit clean ( when i had a good,n that is ) Good old fingers aye.
Cor blimey in the 70,s i could take home over a £120 a week while it was open for the summer months. 
The only one of PATRICKS I have.
Gavin McArdle:
Hi Gavin GS Thanks for your ppm. Your Scania is not the one I had in mind, it was a sort of candy apple red.I dont remember yours or Jimmy Ellis’s I remember the cafe you mentioned but we didn’t use it that often we normally went back to Matosinos.It’s funny because our paths must have crossed many times without us meeting. I used to sometimes load back from Graham ■■■■ in either Raymouth street or Silwood st. the other end of the road from Europeanfreightbus, was that the same road that you worked in? Graham became part of the Keedwell empire. I later became friendly with Jimmy Ellis when I worked for DT’s, ask him about the time his MAN froze up at the runways in Czech and he had to be rescued by a KW and a Foden, but I never knew he did Portugal
From the left John Bibby (Biggles)from Macclesfield - Me - R& G ,probably Steve Holland - Pat (Lucking ?) - Mervin Pierce (merve the swerve) Pat used to do R&R for Mike Keedweel (Euromat was going to look out some pics) Merve is still doing a bit of distibution for DT’s out of Avonmouth He’s about 70 now!
Me wih one of Aquilla’s better trailers.
Hi Gavin, looking at that Transcon in your photo, do you recall the name of the firm? It looks the same colour as the F88 that I posted a photo of in another thread where I’m trying to find details of the firm.
Rgds Ron
I can only echo Bushroommans threads further up this page, except this and Mubblemans thread are equal winners at the moment for me. 
oh is it Mushroomman and Bubbleman
This picture is probably better suited to this thread and may get the memories flowing again.
Hi rondavies,the transcon was an o/d,Merv Pierce, hails from Bath,one of life’s definite characters, 
rondavies:
Gavin McArdle:
Hi Gavin GS Thanks for your ppm. Your Scania is not the one I had in mind, it was a sort of candy apple red.I dont remember yours or Jimmy Ellis’s I remember the cafe you mentioned but we didn’t use it that often we normally went back to Matosinos.It’s funny because our paths must have crossed many times without us meeting. I used to sometimes load back from Graham ■■■■ in either Raymouth street or Silwood st. the other end of the road from Europeanfreightbus, was that the same road that you worked in? Graham became part of the Keedwell empire. I later became friendly with Jimmy Ellis when I worked for DT’s, ask him about the time his MAN froze up at the runways in Czech and he had to be rescued by a KW and a Foden, but I never knew he did Portugal
From the left John Bibby (Biggles)from Macclesfield - Me - R& G ,probably Steve Holland - Pat (Lucking ?) - Mervin Pierce (merve the swerve) Pat used to do R&R for Mike Keedweel (Euromat was going to look out some pics) Merve is still doing a bit of distibution for DT’s out of Avonmouth He’s about 70 now!
Me wih one of Aquilla’s better trailers.Hi Gavin, looking at that Transcon in your photo, do you recall the name of the firm? It looks the same colour as the F88 that I posted a photo of in another thread where I’m trying to find details of the firm.
Rgds Ron
Thanks ‘shady’…looking at the caption under the photo again i see that Gavin mentions Merv’s name too.
Hi diesel Dan do you know were dave Wiz is now i went to his wedding to Polly i think she was Patricks daughter i think.
, i used to work with Dave late 60s 70s 80s we used to do M/E together then we were on transmec we finished on Transmec
Ithink Dave went to Patricks I went the wrong way owner driver Love to hear if Daves still about or were he is, or any contact
Danny Midfleet
This picture is probably better suited to this thread and may get the memories flowing again.
[/quote]
Am I mistaken or is this a photpgraph of the truck that was owned from new by an O/D called Eric (and I cannot recall his last name) – a real gentleman driver, used to live in Epping but now resides in Kent I believe ! He was driving that White around the same time we were driving Mack’s on H.G. Browns.
hi danny, i enquired about wizzy for you,i was told he ended up working for homebase but think he may be retired now,think he lives in desborough. hope this helps.
diesel dan.
Hi great site brings loads memorys back late 60s early 70s 80s all european
Would you have any photos some of these LAB international M/E 1975/6ish
Transmec modena Late 70s early 80s ex driver for these
Clan international dover early middle 80s iwas O/d With transcon painted there colours all hanging/frfuit back
Felix viandes owner driver for them 3300 daf trailer painted in there colours all hanging out/peaches fruit back
Ferry line 80s When they did fridge work
Cool trux
I lost a load of photos this era
danny fleetclean
truckerash:
My time driving in Europe was during the late 70’s and the 1980’s which for me, was…and still is…the best era for trucks, although I guess some of you “older ones” will probably prefer the 60’s with your AECs, Fodens, Guys and the like (never mind).
I worked for E M Rogers, Northampton and began doing Germany, then moved onto mainly Italy with some NL B L and F thrown in.
As you have no doubt seen elsewhere on TN, I like to take “the odd truckphoto or 2”, so as the response to the ones I have posted so far has been good, I thought i’d start a new topic and post more of my pics.
I notice some of you are talking about and asking: “if anyone remembers” various companies such as Martintrux, Hercocks, CaveWood, ECT, Swains, Coombe Valley, Atkins etc etc, so ill look out my pic of these too.
So many of these co’s are now finished. They all had smart, bold liveries which we all recognised a mile away as they came towards us on the Autoroutes, Autostradas and Autobahns. All we seem to see now is a white cab with a sticker on the door. Oh, and a non English speaking driver!
The golden age of truckin is dead!
So without further ado, dust off your old cassette tapes, snap open a Yorkie bar, sit back and enjoy.E M Rogers, returning from Italy: Tea on the Blanc.
L to R; my F12, Mick “big ben” Bennett (now sadly died), Phil Homer DAF.
who remembers ACH from Aylesbury? Formerly Howe European, Mr Fowler had an immaculate fleet…then they were resprayed red!
This pic taken late one night in Dover.
one for all you “cokernies”. McKeller now taken over by Carr Bros, Northamptonshire.
nice pair of Walkers, pic taken south of Paris on route Italy.
and finally for now: to keep all you “non Volvo/Scania fans” happy, a DAF of Hercocks, Leicester depot. Hercocks became Derby White International. Anyone remember them? ill post a pic next time.
if there are any “old” companies running into Europe that any of you want to see, let me know, see what i can do.
Hi great site any pics LAB int M/E 1975/6sh Transmec Modena late 70s/early80s/ Clan International 80s/Felix Viandes 80s
Regards Danny fleetclean
hiya,
Danny, any of Bowkers in the 70s??.
thanks harry long retired.
harry_gill:
hiya,
Danny, any of Bowkers in the 70s??.
thanks harry long retired.
Will you settle for a couple of old photos that I took near Cerdon heading towards Mont Blanc in the 80’s Harry 
.
I am not sure if one of the drivers was called Jag Joe 
.
Regards Steve.
hiya,
Thanks for that Steve,remember Jag Joe from his time at Bradley’s of Accrington but he did’nt work for Bowkers in my time, a pal of mine now deceased Jackie Leach was the lad i knew doing the over the water work for Bowkers during the time i was there, but he was working for another firm when he died i believe it was Woodside Bros and i think he was involved in a road accident.
thanks harry long retired.
Big Leggy:
Am I mistaken or is this a photpgraph of the truck that was owned from new by an O/D called Eric (and I cannot recall his last name) – a real gentleman driver, used to live in Epping but now resides in Kent I believe ! He was driving that White around the same time we were driving Mack’s on H.G. Browns.
I am not sure of its early life, it was owned by a bloke from Derbyshire who has just become my friend on facebook through some mutual friends. I will try to find out a little more over Christmas but it was on Brit European work until 1981. I know he also pulled for Rokold but not sure whether it was with this truck or not.
Does anyone know the whereabouts of the photograph?
steve jag joe worked for g.e.h. of blackburn he fell out with jags into bentley,s now believe he has 2 all the best for christmas and new year to all on here 
jj72:
some other spanish regulars from the 80s if anyone remembers them; macness, goldfinch, graham broadley from southport way, williams (later eurokover or somesuch), baymex
Baymex, Mick Salt IIRC, he had a right dodgy geezer driving one of his M.A.Ns, right into young boys, always had a “toyboy” passenger, very dodgy…
Mick always had his M.A.Ns serviced @ E.M. Knifton / Lathams, Kilburn Toll Bar, Derby, along with one of Beresfords o/ds, he was a nice bloke, but, the dodgy one gave me the creeps, offered me a trip to Spain double manning once did Mick, with the dodgy one FFS.
Bottled out, could`nt face a week with him…
Stanley Mitchell:
jj72:
some other spanish regulars from the 80s if anyone remembers them; macness, goldfinch, graham broadley from southport way, williams (later eurokover or somesuch), baymexBaymex, Mick Salt IIRC, he had a right dodgy geezer driving one of his M.A.Ns, right into young boys, always had a “toyboy” passenger, very dodgy…
Mick always had his M.A.Ns serviced @ E.M. Knifton / Lathams, Kilburn Toll Bar, Derby, along with one of Beresfords o/ds, he was a nice bloke, but, the dodgy one gave me the creeps, offered me a trip to Spain double manning once did Mick, with the dodgy one FFS.
Bottled out, could`nt face a week with him…
i remember somebody who claimed he was mick salt (driving a baymex motor) popped up in the TIR parking in Barcelona gobbing off about how he’d race anybody around the zona franca unit only and win - everybody just laughed at him, sad case
He always used to claim it was one of “his nephews”