Early start on Easter Sunday!

Whilst most people are still in bed on Easter Sunday, I will be up with the lark and picking up a truck to take a frozen load to Thurrock, in Essex.



Thurrock is about the last place you come to before you cross the Thames on the M25. It's right on the edge of the river and a pretty big transport and distribution hub. And I've got to go there twice on Sunday.

The image above is of chalk quarries at West Thurrock in the 1920's. There may well be a few truck drivers who recognise those chalk cliffs. They'll know that today, in 2010, those chalk cliffs overlook the massive Tesco distribution centre in Thurrock. The one where you drive under a railway bridge, and basically end up in what used to be the chalk quarry back before the war.

But enough of Tesco distribution centres. (Although most truckers hate them, I don't have any problems there.... apart from the fact it takes too long to tip your load; I normally enjoy a quick cat-nap once I've reversed onto my allotted dock.)

The point of this post was not actually Thurrock, or Tesco, or even Easter Sunday. It was the fact that I really enjoy driving on an early spring Sunday morning. There's very little traffic at that time, the air is crisp, often there's a few rays of sunshine to give everything a warm feel and as the early morning dew starts to burn off the fields, there's a slightly hazy look to the surrounding countryside.

It's one of those all too rare moments when I really love driving trucks.

Of course, it all turns to ratshit later in the day when the weekend drivers find their car keys, but for a brief moment in time, Early Sunday mornings are all mine and simply amazing.

So whenever you read this, think of me trunking along the A11, M11, M25 down to the place on the edge of the Thames where they used to quarry chalk back in the day.

Automatic gearcrunching!

When I started truck driving in Australia, the only automatic gearboxes were in buses. In fact if you even suggested driving an auto box might have a few advantages, not least economy and reduced driver fatigue, you'd be looked at as some sort of low grade, slightly effeminate, unprofessional, third rate excuse for a truck driver.

At that time Mack trucks were what every meat eating Aussie trucker aspired to, and they had TWO gear sticks!

These days, I generally drive automatics and while I know many current drivers prefer manual gearboxes, I actually prefer an auto. (there, I'm out of the closet at last!)

Why? Well to be blunt, I find it so much more relaxing to let the gearbox sort itself out. It means I can concentrate on where I'm going and avoid the more committed kamikaze drivers out there.

That said, I have driven some strange excuses for auto gearboxes. The Renault's I've driven, have I think, a version of Volvo's Opticruise... which works well in a Volvo, but with Renault electrics is a totally different beast. And don't get me started on the automatic gearbox in an Iveco Stralis I drove the other day.

I like the Mercedes Actros box, the Scania is also great, but if given the choice I'd take the big Volvo version any day. Really smooth, and incredible easy to drive.

Maybe I'm getting old! Or lazy. Or indeed both!

Gearcrunching as a profession...

This is the first post on The Great British Trucker blog and it serves several purposes.

The first is to actually see that the blog is working.

The second is to actually get the damn thing off the ground at last.

The third thing is to say welcome to anyone who stumbles over this.

The fourth is to explain what the hell this is all about!

Well, actually that fourth reason will have to wait until I see where I can insert the rationale for this blog.... Stay tuned!