Keep on trucking.

Good evening. 

That was a nice surprise today. I turned into the car park entrance at Aldi, and this beautiful Mercedes truck was parked outside the car garage next door. Oh wow, what a beauty. I watched the driver load the third car onto the top deck. She then raised the deck and was about to load the lower deck. 

Yes, I did say 'she'. I was delighted to see a young lady in charge of this rig. I parked my car and went across to have a chat. 

This is Tania, loading up the second car on the lower deck. 

Check that it's in the correct position and attach the ratchet straps. 

The last car to load she reversed it on. 

Now finish tying the load down. Check that all the straps are tight. 

Yep, it's looking good. 

Six cars loaded, now ready to roll. 

I get a buzz when I see women driving trucks. Tania is enjoying her job. She started with this company a few years ago on a smaller vehicle, then moved up onto this artic after passing her class 1 test. I really enjoyed our chat, it was so nice to meet her. 

I did all kinds of different jobs when I was trucking. Different lorries and all kinds of loads, but, I never did car transporters. So well done Tania. 

I then did my shopping. Thanks for popping in. Catch you tomorrow. 

Toodle pip.   ilona 

Trucking memories.

UKcheckpoints.info

Yesterday at 04:41 ·Rocked into Dover last November..

A joint operation with Border Force and Port of Dover Police uncovered a fully loaded HGV missing a wheel, hub and brakes during an inspection 
The driver admitted he’d lost the wheel two days earlier but had no idea where or when it happened. The vehicle was taken off the road and fully repaired before being released, making sure it was safe again.

This brings back memories. I had a big heavy lump on my stepframe trailer, to deliver to Ireland. Two of us travelling together, Mark was behind me. Suddenly he came on the cb radio and shouted for me to pull over and stop. There's something not right on your trailer. Luckily there was a layby just there that I could get into. He pulled in behind me. 

We both got out to have a look. A double set of wheels were missing on the nearside centre axle of the three axle trailer. No sign of them. If this happens while in transit they usually run away on their own. Could be anywhere. 

I dropped my trailer there and carried on to Pembroke Docks with Mark and his load following. We were due to load onto a boat that evening. At the docks Mark couldn't get on the boat because his load was too high. That meant staying there all night and getting the morning boat which could accommodate him.

I rang my boss, it was before we had mobile phones. Boss said go back to the trailer and they will send a tyre fitter out to me. Find the wheels and he will put them back on the now hanging on the ground axle. 

Mark came back with me and we looked for the wheels. We could only find one, they had run off into a wood somewhere. 

The tyre fitted came and said he could not attach one wheel, there needs to be two. He had a plan. Chains, hooks, and tensioners were deployed. Luckily in heavy haulage we always carried the equipment that we might need. 

Attach the chain to the opposite side of the trailer bed with a hook. Run it across to the other side, jack up the hanging axle and run the chain underneath it and take it back across the bed to to the other side. Another hook would hold it there after a tensioner was used to pull it tight. It lifted it enough so it wouldn't drag on the road.

I drove to the docks like that, about an hour away. Parked up next to Mark, and we both got on the boat in the morning. Then drove to the delivery point, and with both trailers unloaded we got the crane to lift mine up onto Marks. He piggybacked that back to the depot in Leicester, and I drove back solo. 

I doubt that an emergency like that would be easily solved now. 

Catch ya later.   ilona

The future ?

Mercedes-Benz Trucks celebrates world premiere of the battery electric long-haul truck eActros 600, in Germany

Am I excited about this? No. I can't enthuse about electric vehicles. I think that the idea we can replace all our petrol/diesel vehicles with electric is pie in the sky at the moment. We already have commercial electric trucks on the road, mainly for local work, but these Mercedes vehicles are supposed to be capable of long distance work. 

I read that this one has gone through a lot of tests, fully loaded and on mountainous terrain. If you want to find out more, check out the Daimler Truck web site. 

For years manufacturers have been experimenting with reducing the weight of tractor units and trailers alike, to give the maximum payload. Cost of freight is paid by the tonnage and volume of the load. I can't see any pictures of the batteries buried deep inside this unit. On a diesel engine mechanics tilt the cab or lift the front grill to gain access for repairs. The battery bank must be under there somewhere. I wonder how the weights compare now.  

I asked a friend once if I could see the batteries in her Tesla. She said no, they are underneath the floor and only the garage can get access to them. I find that a bit worrying. 

Anyway, I don't like the look of this Mercedes truck. Can I say it is rather ugly. Is that allowed? 😝 

I can't see an electric truck pulling this load. 102,750 kgs. 

It's looking like a lovely day again today, so I must go outside. Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Flying Fanny the photographer.

Yes, that really was my CB handle when I was a trucker. Yesterday I indulged myself with my passion. I walked around Truckfest with a big grin on my face. I thought I might be a bit sad that I am no longer involved with transport, but as I looked around, met people, chatted, it became quite clear that us oldies have to move on to make room for the fresh new blood coming in to take our place. Nothing lasts forever, there are new experiences to explore. Leave the old life behind but go back now and again for a visit, just to remind ourselves that yes, we did contribute something to society. The job I did was valuable. Everything that we use, consume, borrow, and bought, was transported on a truck at some point. 

Oh boy, I have some photo's and videos. Here is me in my new life, Superscrimper, Penny Pincher, and photographer. 

Every year I see improvements and updates in new trucks. The drivers who bring their vehicles to the shows are mighty proud to show them off, and so they should be. They get the best paint jobs, they adorn their trucks with lights, and flags, the interiors are customised to perfection. 

Every truck owner has their own style. Some are sleek and sophisticated, some are outlandishly decorated with murals. For this one, a simple company name, and lashings of TLC are all that is needed.

Larger company owners are proud to show off their fleet.

I love wreckers. This truck has to be capable of recovering the big heavies. I think this would be the ideal job for me. Sent out on a mission to help someone who has broken down or had an accident. Dream on baby, I should have started driving years before I did. 

There are not many of these bull nosed trucks about in this country. It's hard to spot them on the road. Craig is a well established Scottish firm. They do a lot of general haulage.

Dodds have been transporting goods for many years. Their trucks can regularly be seen at Truckfest. look at all the trophies they have won. A Volvo FH12, the same make and model that I used to drive for B&Q. 

Spotted in the line up. The driver was nowhere to be seen. probably gone a walkabout. 

Smart new 8 wheeled tipper lorry. Or 8 legger in trucker language. We used to have to sheet loaded vehicles manually before hitting the road. Now they have it rolled up at the front and all it takes is a pull on a lever from ground level and the arms on the sides raise and pull the sheet over automatically. A big improvement. 

The driver loves his lights. This company has several vehicles. Bosses often allow their drivers to customise their truck. Sometimes at the drivers expense, but some of them will pay for the decorations. All good advertising for the company. 

Here we see a customised truck taken to another level. More pics of these to come on the next posts. The bigger Truckfests have a whole lot more of these fancy paint jobs. The Scottish, the Irish, and the Dutch drivers really go to town on this. 

I will get up out of this chair now, and be back later with more trucking posts. Although I was on my feet all day yesterday I don't count that in my walking miles. I need to go a proper walk today. Thanks for popping in. Toodle pip.   ilona

Dear Truckers

Apologies to all the truckers in Canada and the USA. Sorry I couldn't join your convoy with my Western Star. Life has been pretty hectic. I took the rig to the Savoy Hotel where I had been invited to the Women of the Year Luncheon. Caused a bit of a stir I can tell you. The traffic was backed up for miles behind me, ha ha. I pulled up at the door and was swamped by the press, all wanting photo's. They had never seen anything like it before. I felt like a proper celeb as they all went crazy snapping away.  

Of course I got a bit dolled up, bought a new little black frock especially for the occasion. Big hair and plenty of slap on the old boat race. Rhyming slang you know, in London now. Heels with plenty of leg on show. I've got great pins. I always get lots of wolf whistles when I am out on the town. Does a girls ego a power of good you know. 

Mrs lady police didn't like it that I blocked the road with the Lady Louise. That's the name of the truck by the way. I couldn't help it. Fancy building a big posh hotel in the middle of the city with a narrow access road. No where to turn the rig round. Anyway, when all the photo's were done, I just left it there. 

So my trucker friends, keep on blasting your horns. Sorry to have missed your shindig. Sit it out until the big boss man has the balls to come out and speak to you. Good luck, and hold the line. My very best wishes, Trucker ilona. 

Art, shopping, and trucking. What more do you want ;-)

 Good morning. Dull and drizzly outside, but not cold. 

My planned shopping trip went like a dream last night, it's three weeks since I last went.  Aldi extended their hours before Christmas, 9pm close, to a 10pm close. I thought they would have reverted back to the 9pm, but they haven't. I went at my usual time of 8.30pm, holding my breath as I approached the car park, hoping there wouldn't be too many parked cars. I punched the air with glee, YES, when I saw only one car, and it was covered in frost so it must have been there for a long time. I had a big grin on my face as I pushed my trolley through the door. I hope the camera got that. I had the shop to myself. 

Someone else did wander in when I was half way round. They chose a hand basket so was soon out again after they had picked up the items they needed. Half an hour later and £53 lighter, and I was back outside and loading it into my car. 

The most expensive items I chose were £3.99 for a jar of Lor Intense Coffee, £3.99 for a bottle of Chardonnay, and £2,85 for a four pack of Red Berry Cider. Treats for me.  Aldi still take cash by the way. 

Close to Aldi is a very convenient 24 hour petrol station. My tank was just under a quarter full so I thought I would add some petrol to it, just in case I might need to go somewhere. Not that that is likely but at least I am ready if the prison door is unlocked. 

A car pulled in just as I was filling up. A uniformed person with a mask on went into the shop, spending a few minutes at the coffee machine. I had intended to spend £20, but to delay going into the shop while there was someone else there, I took it to £30. There were two other people in the car, all in uniform, and a badge on the door indicated that they were Community Police. I thought it best to keep out of their way. 

I am still playing with the black box. I quite like the look of it filled with nail varnish bottles. The trouble is that it is a bit heavy, but no more heavy than when it had a glass front. Maybe I'll go with this idea.

I did a village walk yesterday for the last hour of daylight. We don't get many lorries in the village because there is a weight limit. They aren't allowed to go through unless they have some business within the weight limit. I was just about to turn a corner when I saw the top of a lorry behind some houses. Looks like a Volvo to me, wonder if I can get a photo. I walked up the short access road to watch the driver reverse his trailer into the shed. For a few minutes it took me back in time. I chatted to a man in a yellow vest for a few minutes, it was exciting. 

This morning I was thinking about it. Maybe, to bring a bit of excitement into my life, I could contact a heavy haulage company, and offer my services as a drivers mate. A lot of the big loads have to have a second person in the cab. With all my experience I could be that second person. I could assist the driver, loading and unloading. I could help the driver to park the trailer when manoeuvring in tight places. It would be great to have some trips out. Oh well, it isn't going to happen just yet. Maybe just a dream. 

Time for breakfast. Thanks for popping in. We'll catch up soon. Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Last video in the series.

Bonfire night, bonfire night, all the fires are burning bright. Do you remember that song. A few bangs going on outside, Mayze looking scared next to me, Oscar is in but has hidden, same with Heidi, can't find them. They will come out eventually.

This morning I made the 13th and final video in the Trucking Life series. Wrapped it all up, it's about my last job at B & Q, and what happened after. There is a message if you watch to the end. About 20 mins I think.



I took the fabric into 20 21 Arts centre, they were pleased. They said they would think up some new activities that the kids could do with it. Picked up some more tablets from the vet for Heidi.

It's gone quiet, I'll see if I can find the cats. Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 12.

I thought it was about time I got on with the Trucking Life videos, there's not much left to tell but now it needs to be finished, so I can move on to the next thing. This one is about a special time for me when I was invited to the Women of the Year Luncheon at the Savoy Hotel. The memory will stay with me forever.



Update. The heart is now full of buttons, not finished yet as I want to add more stitching.
ilona  

My Trucking Life. Part 11.

I'm getting a bit behind with the yooootooooob videos, as one subscriber pointed out to me. Yes, I'm guilty. But fret no more, here is another one of the Trucking Life series. I will make more, new subscribers are signing up to my channel nearly every day.



Windy as hell today. I've just done a litter pick in the woods, the noise of wind rushing through the trees was deafening, exciting though. My one bag was no where near enough, filled to the brim in no time. The wood does look a sorry sight, the youths have trashed parts of it. I used to come here regularly, it was a lovely place to walk. Not now, the footpaths have not been repaired, rotting wood lying about, overgrown with nettles. Not a good place to walk any more. Sad.
ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 10.

I thought it was about time I did another trucking video, the tenth in the series. This one is a bit different, it's a slide show of some of the work that I did. The sound has a background noise from the ancient projector, and the focus isn't too good because the photo's are old, and I had to re focus them one at a time. However, I go into a bit more detail about the different jobs I did. I tried to cut down the length of the video, but each slide has a story to it. The one good thing about watching yoootooob videos is that you can watch part of it, then go back later to watch the rest.

I have lots of amazing memories to look back on, and when I see the pictures I think, blimey, did I do that. I have three or four more videos to go to bring the story up to the present date, it's not quite the end yet. Thank you for watching.



Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 9.

I thought it's about time I made another trucking video, or this saga is going to go on for ever. Not quite at the end yet, still a bit more to come. So, what did I do after I left Leicester Heavy Haulage? If you watch the video you will find out.



I had a penfriend in New Zealand, she was truck crazy and painted wonderful pictures of trucks. She has passed away now, but I have some truck photo's she sent me, they are from 1986 - 1988. Two of our lady truckers went over there for a holiday. If any truck enthusiast in New Zealand would like these photo's of older trucks, photo's taken in Aukland, let me know your postal address, in a comment or email, and I will send them to you.

I've finished bunching up the flowers, there are 18, and four smaller ones, and some napkin holders and corsages that Joyce made.

Back to the grindstone, ha ha. Sorting through stuff to sell on the cat rescue stand. Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 8.

Hello, the second post of the day, and guess what, it's TRUCKING TIME AGAIN. YAY, I bet you are all excited. It's a bit longer than the others, such a lot to tell. Back on the lorry driving with this one. Still more to come, I'm on a roll now, ha ha. This covers three years on Leicester Heavy Haulage.



A few of the walkers have checked in on the previous post. You can go back to it at any time. It's the weekend so I suppose you are all out enjoying yourself.

Toodle pip. ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 7.

Let's flit about a bit, just to confuse you, ha ha. Another episode in the My Trucking Life series. Continuing with the Lady Truckers Club news. Make yourself a cuppa and take a break from whatever you are doing. It's been raining here this morning on this Bank Holiday Sunday, but Owain the weather man says's it's going to brighten up.



More walking pics to come. Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 6.

The Trucking Life videos seem to be going down very well, comments are coming in from subscribers on the yooootoooob channel, so here we go, the next chapter in the story. What happened next, the Lady Truckers Club is spreading the word that women can drive trucks.



Churning them out now, I'm on a roll. 32 years is a long time to cover on a few videos. For those not interested please pass them by, I'm making these because my passion for my work was a big part of my life. Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 5.

Here's one for the weekend. Moving on from the driving work I have done, to how I started the Lady Truckers Club.



I'm having the day off, see you soon. Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 4.

Good morning, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY to meeeeeeeeeeee. 70 today........ chuffin heck, how did that happen, where have all the years gone??? I hope I still have a lot of years left, must get on with living the rest of my life the best way I can.

Still looking back at My Trucking life.



Thank you very much to Vicki, my bloggy walking buddy, for the card. I am chuffed.

Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 3.

Here we go, another little trucking chat. Not so little this time, 24 minutes long. It's a bit too long really, I must try and stop waffling and make them a bit shorter. Still lots more to come.



Raining again today. Oh how miserable it is outside. I haven't been walking as much as I should do, never mind, there will be a chance to catch up later. Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 2.

Yooootoooob has a new format which is taking some getting used to. Things change so there are new ways to do things. Crikey, it's difficult to stay ahead of the game when your brain is lagging behind.

Here's a new video.



I've just been watching a video on women truck drivers, it reminded me of how hard the job was. I'm glad I don't have to get up at three in the morning, get myself down to a filthy yard in the dark, check my truck over, and set off for the days work. Sad that my trucking days are over, but enjoying my brilliant life on a pension.

Raining today. Stuff to do in the house. The spam bots are homing in, six comments in overnight, all Anonymous rubbish. Please use the name option in the box. It helps me to sort through them.

I have a car load off stuff outside to sort through, all from Joyce's house. The family have been back to start emptying it, the house sold even before it went on the market. Most of what I have will go to charity shops. I have already distributed two car loads, a lot went to members of the Crafty Club, and some will be sold on the cat rescue stall. At least it's going to be useful elsewhere.
Toodle pip.  ilona

My Trucking Life. Part 1

The first video is done, I don't mess about, ha ha. Talk to the camera, I tell it as it is, warts and all. There may be hesitations, I may get my words mixed up, and I may repeat myself, that's how it is.  There will be more, but not at regular intervals, there will be gaps, they will be published as and when I have time to make them. I have made notes, that's it.

We are close to the end of the month, and it's check in time on Wednesday for the International Walking Group members. Let's have your numbers., one more day left to catch up.
Toodle pip.  ilona

Look what I found, blast from the past.

I've been down Memory Lane, looking at old trucking videos on yooootoooob, and found one that I am in. I have a small part, it was filmed at a Truckstop where the drivers were entertained by the ladies of the T45 club, which was for British Leyland drivers, sadly no more. I was asked to take some Lady Truckers friends with me.

I have this on video here and made a film of my part in it with my camera, and put it on my channel, it's also on here. The quality isn't that good, you may or may not have seen it. So here is the full programme. If you just want to see my small part, three minutes long, move the slider at the bottom across to 33 minutes 15 seconds.  Look at the big hair, ha ha.



Those were the days. Fantastic memories.  ilona