Talking to a friend on the phone today and the subject of JFGOP came up, it suddenly came back to me that I used to store a wine glass between the sunvisors in my cab, the gap between them was the perfect width for the stem of a decent sized glass and being upside down (not to mention used often) they never got full of dust. Along with a deckchair down the side of the passenger seat, the wine glass was an essential part of my kit.
I have many memories of sitting out in the sun, a cheeky little red keeping dehydration at bay, a loaf of fresh bread and some cheese/ham to nibble on and some good company, happy days indeed
Absolutely mate. Happy days!!
Fitted perfectly between the visors on my old F12 Globetrotters amongst others.
JFGOP & occasionally JFGOPSMM although the last bit was employed drivers only as a rule.
Couple of bricks of Don Simon. Cheeses Hams and bread all tied together with sunshine and the craic.
Long gone for most of us though nowadays.
Tramping in style … a wine glass and folding chair was an essential part of my tramping kit too. At least, until I accidentally drove over the folding chair at Arbroath harbour one morning.
Excellent memories. Always had a folding camping chair and a little table tucked away.
Some of the best memories of trucking around Europe throughout the 80s and 90s are of warm nights sitting outside the truck, listening to Radio Luxembourg on the truck cab radio and munching on freshly bought baguette avec fromage et pate or some other regional / local / delicacy whilst washing it down with white / red wine or local beers. In France I used to by the 24 packs of a beer called “66” or Kronenburg. In Holland it would be those plastic crates of Becks, in Deutch it would be whatever beer took my fancy in the nearest supermarket. In Italy it was usually “Frizz” !!! and in Spain, whatever I could find except San Miguel!
Usually I would end up leaping in and out the cab every 10-15 mins to turn the radio dial knob (remember them!!! ) a micron to left or right as the signal faded in and out!! Great times, even with the mossies!!
The other thing I used to carry in the cab was a small folding barbecue. I had a few nice summer evenings parked up with a bottle of red on the go, grilling a steak and grazing on home made Greek salad.
I gave up using wine glasses with stems because they kept getting knocked over, so I always used a glass tumbler instead. It also came in handy for standing on the dashboard when waiting to board ferries (ahem). The best garden chairs I had for jamming down the back of the driver’s seat (I’m little, so there was room) I bought from the convoy truck stop in Homs, Syria. They were brilliant because they were slightly padded and immensely comfortable. You’d never have found them in Europe because they had politically incorrect metal sticky-out bits that might decapitate small children. Spent many a happy hour in various corners of the Mediterranean shores sipping vino collapso in those chairs with other drivers. Robert:)
If I could get out of Milano between midnight and 1 or Padova before ten that would put me at the Total on top of the Col Du Lac about 6.30 Saturday morning. That’s when the local baker used to do his morning delivery, so I would get a fresh baguette and a couple of chocolate croissant that were still hot enough to have the chocolate runny inside.
Fresh fish down the Volga, Sheshlacks east of Astrakhan, spicy Apple pie round Almaty , or stale Tesco crisps and Fay Benttos pie filling depending on how long I’d been out.
Fresh Baguette, Laughing cow cheeze and a bit of tomato,in Europe.
Haggis and chips ( Haggis supper ) covered in brown sauce, with a Tunnocks tea cake in Scotland.
Chips and grave in a paper bag in Australia.
I used to have my airbrush and paint with me, and had it hooked up to the red line with a regulator. If I was weekended I usually did a few t shirts of the local area,( most were sold on site ) or perhaps a trucks as well.
I never did drink so it was cold coke for me. Pepsi if I had to…
Trailer box,folding chair, pork chops,bottle of tinto,Carajillo/brandy & the stars in out of the way Spain.Would use a big whiskey tumbler for the wine & then for the carajillo without washing it-lovely! Still keep two folding chairs in the back of my car to this day.
Tipped 25t of sugar in Andorra, ran empty down to Brut near Barcelona, loaded Spanish champers - some bottles in the cab to keep the driver happy. Then I was weekened. Needless to say the cab champers never left its native country. Robert
