[wot i life]

Originally Posted by classicxl

I see some some serious laughs and troubles for you coming in this story keep it coming

Plenty laughs... some troubles and a heartache... but thats life.... Its just a story of my life driving and hopefully I can give insights into European work without making it boring, clogging it up with details of law and roads etc.
Pleased you,re enjoying it, cause its a factual account of the madness that has been my life :wink:

[wot i life]

Dashing across to Newcastle and the big stores that are there, I had the best intentions to purchase the very best European maps I could find.
Problem was though, all the books on sale were aimed specifically at the touring motorist.
Bollocks I thought; I,m no bloody tourist! I,m a professional driver and an ambassador for my nation; Those bloody bookstores ought to recognise that Britains professional drivers are an asset and contribute massively to our growing economy! And what have they to offer us?
Shite fold out maps with cycle routes and directions to Gallic cathedrals!
So I bought a couple because there was nothing else on offer.......
Thank God I was following Billy!
The big day arrived....
I turned into the yard about an hour earlier than proposed and went straight to the office to collect my paperwork and running money.
I opened the folder to find all manner of documents that I did,nt have a clue about, and a small amount of French Francs and Lire.
I must have done about 4 or 5 vehicle and trailer checks before Billy arrived, I was so keen and enthusiastic.
After a very brief description of CMR,s and other papers, Billy said "Time to hit the road kid"
And so, we were off on my first European trip.
Billy armed with several years of experience and know-how
And I with £23 worth of cycle routes and tourist hot spots
TBC

Sorry for quality of photo.

[marylandkw]

Originally Posted by wot i life

driving is a lifelong learning curve. One never totally masters it, one never knows it all, drivers are not born! They are instructed, they learn, they listen,observe, anticipate.

Very well put. Just last week I was approached by a 20 something year driver who had never had occasion to drive an 18 speed. This man has forgotten more about trucks than I will ever know and yet he is SMART enough to know when to ask for help. Newbies most certainly should not be afraid to ask for help. 99.99% of all drivers are happy to help.

Keep the stories coming Wot.

[wot i life]

Originally Posted by marylandkw

Very well put. Just last week I was approached by a 20 something year driver who had never had occasion to drive an 18 speed. This man has forgotten more about trucks than I will ever know and yet he is SMART enough to know when to ask for help. Newbies most certainly should not be afraid to ask for help. 99.99% of all drivers are happy to help.

Keep the stories coming Wot.

Thanks for that marylandkw, I appreciate that :wink:

[wot i life]

Any British driver who has been to Europe will tell you two things; One, is that its a great feeling driving through Dover on your way to the docks, it makes you feel as if you are somebody, everyone knows you,re heading out into the realms and kingdoms of the unwashed hordes that build up the E.E.C, and you,re not afraid of language barriers, driving on the wrong side, or any other troubles you may face. One feels like the "Thin Red Line" of bygone days and facing the rest of the world for King and country.... Well, not quite; But it is an exhilirating moment.
Secondly, they,ll tell you that the hill on the descent into Dover is one steep, long drawn out bastard of a hill and whoever decided to place a roundabout at the bottom of it should be hung, drawn and quartered.
My limited experience meant that I had no knowledge of the junction and I was approaching too fast(determined to keep up with Billy)I managed to slow the truck sufficiently to take the junction in a reasonably acceptable manner and swore... swore by Almighty God, that should I lose sight of Billy again, I would progress on my own.
This decision, although I did not realise it at the time, would save my life the very next evening.
TBC

[classicxl]

come one we need to hear about the next night

[Roadhog]

tap tap tap

ppssssst.... :shock: hey man....I hacked into his MS Works Suite...hehehe
send me say....$19.95 via paypal..and I'll let you download
the full unedited .... :P ...shhh shhh...unrated version!! hehehe
...hurry while supplies last.

[wot i life]

Originally Posted by roadhog

tap tap tap

ppssssst.... :shock: hey man....I hacked into his MS Works Suite...hehehe
send me say....$19.95 via paypal..and I'll let you download
the full unedited .... :P ...shhh shhh...unrated version!! hehehe
...hurry while supplies last.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
I actually wrote a load last night but it took so long, I was logged out and could,nt post it :cry: .. I,ll re-write it later today. Have to go out this morning :wink:

[wot i life]

Booking on to the cross channel ferries is a relatively trouble free affair, provided you have your reference to quote, your consignment notes and your passport; You also need to weigh off before entering the embarkation area and tell the clerk your G.V.W so that they don,t load with all the heavy trucks on one side and light on the other(obvious reasons!).
Loading is a sight to behold as some of those foreigners are diabolical and should not be in charge of a five year olds go-cart, let alone a fully laden goods vehicle. You see, when you drive on, you have to turn around on the ferry and park in line facing the correct way to disembark, this obviously becomes a little more difficult as the space decreases and more vehicles are on board.
To save time, money and claims for damage they should try and load the Brits last. Although, I must admit, the French, Germans, Dutch and Austrians are pretty good drivers too; Most of the other Europeans are crap. Period.
Anyway, I got in line and made my way up to the drivers restaurant.
Next stop France and one big ol scare for me......
T.B.C

[wot i life]

After leaving the ferry, I followed Billy towards the motorway, the sweat was running down my back already, and the palms of my hands needed constant wiping and drying.
It may sound like not much, but, driving in a foreign country, on the opposite side of the road to which you,re used to(and still being in a right hand drive) causes some real problems when approaching roundabouts in particular. It,s a know how thing to line yourself against how you would normally drive on approach so that you get a good view of traffic to your left, which you must give way to.
I took Billy,s line at the first few and then I got the hang of which way to approach(It is still, to this day, something which can cause problems; Dependant on the severity of approach road curvature)
Anyway, enough of that.
We went shopping in Calais for the essentials; Cheap booze and Errrrrmm, More cheap booze, and then we headed south on the A26 towards Reims(A beautiful city, well worth a visit).
After a 45 minute coffee break; Damn those froggies, why is there no tea in France?.... We headed off again.
Billy turned off the motorway and joined a road that I now know to be the N44; I dutifully followed, but remembering my close shave at Dover, I swore that if I lost him, he, or more to the point, I WOULD STAY LOST.
The N44 is a pretty good road but if you,re totally unfamiliar with it, as I was at the time, and you,re trying to follow someone, sooner or later you,re gonna loose sight of em.
And so I did just that, I lost him.
Not even five hours driving in France and now I,m on my own. On a road I didn,t know(come to think of it, I didn,t know any of the damn roads lol)
I let Billy get further and further ahead and began to drive at a pace I was happy with.
On the N44 there is one pretty sharp S bend that if I remember correctly, is near a place called Vitry la Francois.
As I approached this bend, I backed right down, thinking of Dover and my mishap at the roundabout. Infuriating the French driver who was behind me. He let rip with his air horns the silly boy. He could,nt see past the first bend but I now could.
Coming down the hill, was a wide, long heavy haul load with an escort car . If I had been "tanking on" to catch up to Billy, or taking notice of francois the irate behind me; I would have slammed head on into it.
Lesson learned for Froggy boy?
You may know the road, but you don,t know whats on it!
The escort vehicle and heavy haul driver both nodded and waved their appreciation of my cautious approach and carried on their way, taking almost half my side of the road too.
I watched them disappear in my mirrors and I had a dream.
I wanted to be like that
I needed that which they had
I was going to be that man
I would succeed.
I would succeed!TBC