25th - 29th February 2008

Monday.
0630 Start. In a bit earlier than normal to load up the cab with the essential basics, kettle, mugs, tea etc. a map, gloves and hi-vis should keep me out of trouble until later on. The truck seems to be in one piece and has actually been washed by the bloke who was driving it last week.

But it won't start, it all seems healthy enough but the starter won't crank the engine not even slowly. Initially I thought it was a flat battery but it didn't seem quite right. Then I realised that it had been left in gear and it was trying to trun the drivetrain. Luckily there was just enough air left in the tank to get the clutch down and we're in business.

It's nice to be back in my seat again, and it's nice to have 420hp on tap rather than the 250hp in the old 3 series last week. I'm not going far for now, just down to Sandon to load at Jovic Plant. It's one of their moves, and first I'm given an Avant shovel, and then a skiploader. Bothe are loaded, secured and the ramps are folded before I get told that there is a 1.5t mini digger to go as well. Down come the ramps, the skiploader gets shunted over and the mini loaded alongside. It's nearly 0800 by the time I leave and I head down the A12 and take the M25 heading for Wembley, it's no surprise that the traffic is heavy and I eventually arrive on site at 1000.

There's some TV filming going on with a car on a trailer rig that they use for the in car shots, it's coming and going and some bloke decides to take it on himself to direct me to whereabouts I should go to unload. I'm delivering to a tennis court contractor who is completely unconnected to the filming so I find my own suitable place and unload there. The mini has got a mind of it's own and slips and slides and threatens to fall down the gap between the ramps. I manage to skid the tracks back on squarely by taking the weight on the bucket and slewing the body (which cannot move, and forces the tracks to slew instead)

Once I'm done I head back out along the M1 and stop for a 15 at Scratchwood, before pushing on to the A12 where I stop and enjoy a half hour snooze in the sun. Back at the yard I restock the cab with the lesser essentials, other maps, spare clothes, tools and the like.

Tomorrow's load is ready so I make my way over to Great Baddow to load a Unimog, it's not quite ready but they never are here until you start hanging around, there's always just a couple of little jobs to do.

Back at the yard and I'm done for the day at 1700. Distance 245Km

Tuesday.
Eyes open, 4.30am. Too early. 5am, still too early. 5.15am right OK that'll do. In at the yard at 0545 and on the road by 0600. I'm heading for Leicester and if all goes well I'll be clear of the M25 by 0700 and away from the worst of the traffic. It didn't go well, heavy traffic at J27 and not very good until clear of the M10 at just after 0730. The rest of the slog up to J21 was OK and I'm heading for Leicester Forest West to a farm just off the A47.

It's easy enough to find, and I'm soon in the 'Mog and running up the air before unloading, there's a fair amount of smoke but it runs OK and I leave it parked in the corner. It's new owner arrives and seems happy enough and I'm off and on my way at 0930. I need to get over the other side of Leicester for the A47 and decide that the A46 dual carriageway might be the best way around the top, I'm not sure if it was or not as there was still a fair bit of ring road before getting the A47.

By now I'm down to a little more than half hour left and I'm sure I won't make the next stop so I call my site contact and tell him I'll be there at 1200. The A47 is a nice surprise, I thought it'd be a slow arduous s/c road, but it's a nice clear road with long sweeping bends. And plenty of decent sized laybys to stop. With 15 minutes left on the timer I pull into one around 1030 for my 45 break.

Whilst I'm stopped I pull the paperwork for this move, it's collecting a 3CX from a barn on an airfield. I'd had a quick look at the map, but reading attached directions from the auctioneers there is a short cut along some minor roads, it also mentions trucks so it would seem like this could cut the corner providing the two railway bridges aren't stupidly low. Once I'm on the move again it's about 5 minutes to the turn off the A47 and I discover that the railway bridge is far from low.




Having just come through it once, I make a left turn and go back through.

Into the village of Harringworth.

I'm heading for Laxton and on the look out for for what I now know to be the former RAF Spanhoe airfield, home during WWII to up to 100x C47 Skytrain / Dakota transport aircraft. All that's on offer today however is a windsock, a barn and a Polish Pekaes wagon.



There's also a forlorn looking tractor.

And one of these, whatever it might be. It seems to be in good order though considering it must be old to have a 3 digit phone number on the side.




I'm there at 1130, could have even just scraped in before my break. I wonder if my machine is a good un as it is locked in the barn. Soon enough a farmer type arrives on his John Deere to open up and give me the key. It's not looking good, a 1988 3CX with broken windscreen and flat rear tyre. Not to mention the battery that won't wuite turn the engine over. My jumpstart pack won't quite do it, but the farmer fella is straight in with the John Deere and jump leads and the old Jake coughs into life.







I get the pile of s#?t outside and decide to leave it running for a while at the risk of using all it's remaining fuel. I also discover that the brakes are next to useless, in fact I think the handbrake lever actually continues and rubs against the wheel rather than pulls a cable operated brake.





I get loaded, finally switch off and leave the Polish driver there with his two tractors on board and the problem of what to do about a 9'6" cultivator. It's about 1230 and I head back to the A1 for an easy run back down to Essex. I call at Cambridge services for fuel and decide to try starting the Jake, it's a gamble but I figure if it doesn't start now there is no point in going straight to the delivery point. It starts OK and I just hope that the battery has enough left for one more start. I'm delivering to a private house in Panfield near Braintree, there's 2 ways to get there easily, one each side of Braintree. Unfortunately they have closed the road the M11 side so it's a long detour round.


The house is one I've been to before, down a narrow lane with a low cable above the gate meaning unloading is only possible on the road.






With the slope of the ramps, the lean of the flat tyre and the camber of the road working together with the dodgy brakes unloading is hairy and it leans alarmingly towards the ditch. Thankfully leaning is all it does and I'm soon able to get rid of the hateful thing before heading back to the yard. Finished at the yard 1645. Distance 486Km



Wednesday.
Yard bound today except for a couple of errand boy jobs in the van.

Thursday.
0645 Start. Off to Sudbury in Suffolk this morning, it's an hour whichever way you go but I always go via Colchester rather than the roundabout route through Chelmsford'd roundabouts and onto Braintree & Halstead. I'm there at 0800 and first job is to offload a bucket that had been loaded on last night, my paperwork had a big note, highlighted and underlined telling me to strap the bucket on! Oh, thanks for that, I hadn't thought of it. Honestly, sometimes it beggars belief.



I'm loading an 8t JCB machine here, but there's a slight wait as it's just tidying up and I roll off site at 0845. Back down to Colchester to pick up the A12 and over the water to drop the machine offf in Dartford.

Back through the tunnel and up to the A12 heading back to Chelmsford, I'm making good progress through my job sheet so I stop on the A12 for half hour in the sunshine. By 1130 I'm on site at Great Baddow ready to load a forklift, there's some confusion as they are trying to get me to load a JCB 3CX for Ipswich which is urgent rather than the forks which are not. A call to our office, who call their office confirms that someone else is booked for the 3CX and is now quite late. That same call also passes me another job for when I've finished.



I'm loading a Manitou MC26-4 rough terrain masted forklift, quite uncommon compared to the number of telehandlers that I have to move. Although curiously this is the one piece of plant that I am actually ticketed to operate. It's only going to Braintree back to one of their sites where they store stuff. I've only got 30 minutes left when I leave so I take the other 30 minutes on the A130 between Braintree and Great Dunmow.

My next job is to collect a digger from the Stondon auctions near Ongar and deliver it to Little Burstead, near Billericay. I've never been to this site before although I know roughly where it is, or not so it would seem. In actual fact it was exactly where I first went, but it was tucked behind some sheds and needed another scout about before finding the place.

I tell the bloke in the yard that I'm collecting a machine for errr, Smiths at Burstead and he seems to know what I need and disappears off into one of the sheds. Quite what relic will appear is anyones guess, but in the end it's a reasonable effort. A 2002 Daewoo 5.5t machine, it's a bit rough and I can't get my head around the quickhitch so I get the buckets loaded by them and I'm off by 1500.



Unfortunately it's now school run time and I have to negotiate both Brentwood and Shenfield, both affluent areas chock full of mums in their 4x4's. It's 1600 when I arrive at the farm and I waste no time in lauching the machine off and getting back out again.

Finished at the yard by 1645. Distance 337Km

Friday.
0645 Start. First stop this morning is Chipping on the A10 near Royston, it seems to take forever to get there this morning but I'm there nonetheless at 0815. I'm loading 2 machines here, the first one is this little 800 roller.



Once that's on board, there's a Hyundai 55, buckets and breaker to load on too.



It all fits on quite nicely and I'm back off down the A10 and off to Braintree on the A120. I'm actually going to Panfield near Braintree, that's the small village from earlier in the week with the awkward diversion. Different job but same problem. It's only the machine and bits off at Panfield and I'm on my way back to Chelmsford with just the roller.

The roller is going to E2V formerly EEV, English Electric Valves and probably a few other company names too. I'm in favour of tipping outside the gatehouse and letting them trundle it in, but unusually for a defense contractor type place they let me in and out to quickly offload with all the usual signing in and out. Suits me.

Next call is down at Maldon, at TCP's yard. I'm loading a 5t Hamm roller, it's a big old lump but nice and straightforward to secure.


I'm Kent bound but have to stop for a 45 before I get too far into the journey. The queue for the tunnels reaches back onto the A2 and I make a mental note to take a different route back. I'm actually heading for the Isle of Grain, one of th efew bits of Kent I've never been before. Considering the size of construction project I'm going to, the Thamesport container traffic and everything else out it's a joke that the dual carriageway road finishes about 5 miles short at a roundabout in th emiddle of nowhere and deposits you on a windy single carriageway road.



It's about 2pm when I get to the site, it's some massive gas storage facility being constructed / altered and a quick look at the map shows that I'm actually only about 20 miles as the crow flies from Maldon, yet an hour and a half by road. I make a sneaky detour on the way back, join the queue for the tunnel at J1a and make my way back to Maldon to load another identical roller and a mobile crusher ready for Monday. Finished at the yard by 1715. Distance 385Km

Class 1 Training Report

Up till now I've been quite happy with my lot, tootling along on Class 2 with no great ambition to change to Class 1. However I was recently asked if I'd like to do C+E training at the companies expense, in return for some holiday cover on the lowloader.

Now that's not an offer that you refuse, OK so it's not going to put any extra cash in my pocket but it's experience and another skill and that's just like money in the bank. There is also the possibility of a bit of additional overtime in the form of weekend work if required.

Monday 18th February 2008

I'm booked on a course at DTT in Colchester, it's an 0830 start so I'm off from home at 0730 creeping through the fog and the traffic. I'm there at 0815 and there's a bit of hanging around drinking tea before getting introduced to my instructor. As soon as I saw him I knew he was an ex-copper, dunno what it was but I was bang on the money. Ex police driving instructor in motorcycles, cars, minibuses, trucks and buses, even tracked vehicles, DSA, ADI and just about everything else. It would seem like he should know what's what.

After a bit of form filling, a discussion about my driving history and a quick run through of the course we're outside having a walkaround the motor.



OK so it's not the flashest motor, P reg 93M Scania 250 plated at 28t but it's tidy enough and simple. Gears are simple just the 4 over 4 arrangement, although having got used to Scania's quirky 3 over 3 in my 420 rigid it always takes a while to adjust. I get the passenger seat to start with as we make our way out to the A120 and onto the A12 towards Ipswich and the A14. I'm trying to watch and listen but I really can't pick up anything much of great use whilst we are on dual carriageways. We pull into a layby just before the Orwell Bridge and swap over, with a fresh from Class 2 test trainee he will take them to an airfield first but he's confident that I'll be OK for the next session. After a couple of miles along the A14 we exit the dual carriageway and wander around an easy route with a few roundabouts before getting back onto the A14 and pulling into the Orwell truckstop.

After a quick cuppa (in which I was honestly surprised by the almost restaurant like environment) we are off to the far end of the parking bays and setting out the cones for the reverse. One quick demo from the instructor and it's my turn next, I'm not half as bad as I thought I might be although I'm still far from brilliant. My rigid driving instincts keep trying to take over, not so much the incorrect steering but the trailer we're using is a 40 footer with a short overhang as opposed to the 14' on the back of my 6 wheeler. This means that I'm not sneaking the wheels around the cone so much as straight past, it's not a massive problem as I'm getting in the bay consistantly after a single shunt forward.

I'm aware of what I'm doing wrong, just not quite sure how to overcome doing it in the first place so the unstructor jumps in and starts another demo run, once he's got the outfit through the first turn he calmly climbs out whilst it's crawling back and casually walks alongside steering it perfectly from outside whilst talking me through it. One last go before dinner and I'm the box more or less square with shunting or crossing the line. I'm happy enough with that for now.

After lunch we pack the cones away and spend some time wandering around the outskirts of Ipswich negioating roundabouts and traffic lights aplenty. Being only a 250hp it's a bit of a plodder but really that's no bad thing as it can't be rushed and I'm unlikely to be using too much inappropriate speed (although I may be proved wrong here in time) We drive around for a while before heading back through Manningtree and back to Colchester about 1630.

Overall I'm pleased with how things have gone, I'm happy with how the trailer follows 90% of the time I just need to work on the other 10%. I'm not giving parked cars enough space either but I knew myself as I passed some on several occasions that I should have been further away. The instructor is more than happy with my progress and I'm looking forward to tomorrow a lot more than I did for today.



Tuesday.


Starting today at 0800 & I'm there early at 0745 waiting for everyone else to arrive, after the customary brew up and vehicle checks I'm straight in the hot seat and with head out to the A120 to fill up with fuel. Yesterday we called twice at the Texaco and both times they were dry, this morning they've got fuel and the trucks are queing right back along the sliproad.





Once fueled it's along the A12 and straight into Ipswich for some slightly more taxing routes through the town centre with narrow streets and roundabouts. We wander out further taking some winding roads and tight turns including a junction where I had to almost double back on myself, easy in the artic but I'd have struggled to get the 6 wheeler round.





Today I'm managing to hustle the old beast along a bit quicker, overcoming the really strong spring on the accelerator and the sluggish old 250 engine. It's starting to come together well, I'm giving parked cars more room, taking wider routes through junctions and keeping the spped up.


After a cuppa at the Orwell Truckstop we wander back down the A137 through Manningtree to Colchester and cut through a large residential area with speed bumps and the odd chicane before arriving back at the yard.





I'm pleased with today and the instructor is equally happy, it's only 1200 as he's got a funeral to go to but he reckons he'd normally leave the central Ipswich another day but was happy to take me round as I was clearly used to handling a large vehicle. OK so I know that I can do it, but I'll take praise like that any day.

Wednesday.

Away at 0700 for an 0800 start in Colchester, it's 0830 or so by the time we're warmed up, checked and ready. The training school base is on a little industrial area and it's abosolute carnage with cars and vans all over the place. The instructor gets the wagon out, my car goes in it's space and we're off. Straight up the A12 this morning, into Ipswich for some more awkward town centre stuff, there's a fair amount of nasty junctions where you have to crawl around them at a snails pace and I make a fair job of ballsing them up, nothing major but just not getting them quite right. We stay with it until about 1030 when we stop at the Orwell truckstop for a bit of reversing practice, and have a crack at the un / coupling. This seems straightforward and goes OK and we make our way back into the town and slog our way round. I still keep making the same mistakes, principally turning too early and not slowing enough and it starts to stress me, this leads to some incorrect gear selections and the occasional missed signal on the exit from a roundabout.

By 1230 or so when we pull back to the Orwell, I'm pretty fed up with it, more so after making an arse of getting it anywhere near a bay. Sarnies, tea and fresh air work wonders however and by the time we restart I'm more focussed and ready to give it another crack. We do the un / couple exercise again, this time I do it with prompting and I've got that bit sorted. This gives me a lift and we head back to Ipswich for another round, thankfully by now I'm making better progress and the only hiccup is when I forget to box the range changer to low before attempting a hill start. It's a good one to make me remember in future (hopefully) and we make our way back through Manningtree to Colchester.

As we run through my progress, my instructor asks me how I felt it had gone and I largely detailed what he had written in his notes, he's happy enough though as I'm identifying my failings and working towards fixing them. I'm done about 1600 and head for home thoroughly knackered.

Thursday.
Same time, same place only this morning my mood is not so bright. Left home on a bad note and yesterday's mistakes are weighing on my mind. We've got another trainee today, he failed last week and is in for test tomorrow so I let him take the first stint and I take the opportunity to watch his progress. This helps a lot, he's making similar mistakes and just generally seems not so confidant and slightly in awe of it's size. He's actually an ADI on cars and it would seem that he has little or no rigid experience, he's not bad by any means but not completely at ease behind the wheel of something so large. After slogging round Ipswich until about 1030 we stop for a break at the Orwell truckstop and stop and have a chat with the trainee on the rigid. It's his first day, he's being funded by his company and he's going to piss the test. Or at least he thinks he is, whereas I suspect he may be in for a shock.

I'm really ready to go when it's my turn and things go well, nice smooth driving on the open and controlled approaches to difficult junctions, mirrors and observation are on the money and even the odd hiccup gets shrugged off and put behind me. We spend a couple of hours out there, manage to sneak into the test centre for a looksie at how to get in and out of the gate (not the easiest of places) and return to the Orwell about 1300, I even manage to get it into a parking bay without too much fuss. I'm really pleased with todays effort, the instructor too and the other trainee remarks about how at ease I am.



After lunch I decline the offer to do a un / couple exercise and watch the other guy instead before taking the back seat once again, for his second stint at the wheel. He's much smoother now, gaining confidence with the vehicle and he said that watching me had helped him with selecting the right gear for different situations. Now I'm not suggesting that he was watching an expert, far from it but it just illustrates the fact that 2:1 training can be just as beneficial as 1:1

We swap over again and I take us back to Colchester via Manningtree for a 1600 finish.

Friday.
This morning I'm not quite so keen to leave my warm bed although I'm confident about my test, I'm not looking forward to it. Down at Colchester I grab a quick cuppa and get the unit checked and running ready for a quick off when the other trainee arrives. I'm first in the seat this morning and we head directly for the Orwell Truckstop and set out the reversing exercise with the cones. I take the first go and get a reasonable attempt, the other guy does it much better on his first. Another go each and we've both got it sussed. We run through the braking exercise briefly and then park up and go in for a cuppa.

The trainee on the rigid is there, today he seems to have landed firmly with a thud saying how hard it is and how exhausting he found it. Apparently his instructor had a bit of a hard time with him and threatened to throw him off the course.

It's now a bit of a waiting game, just over an hour to go and we're within spiting distance of the test centre so we go out again through the town with the other guy at the wheel before rolling into the test station at 1200. There's a rigid just starting test, and I'm booked next at 1215.
My examiner comes out and introduces himself, and we walk out to the vehicle to start the reversing exercise. I take it slow and steady and get it squarely in the bay and stop just short so I can get out and have a look, I'm about 2' short so I return and just take it back the extra. The instructor joins me and we then complete the braking exercise before leaving the centre. The drive round was generally good, the downhill and uphill starts soon despatched and with the gearchange exercise a thing of the past it was a trundle around the town centre. I managed to pick up a minor when the range change wasn't quite as quick as I was and another on a roundabout as I squidged the trailer tyres against the kerb. There was also two more for awareness (not following through) and another for pulling up too close to a vehicle.

My examiner was a freindly chap, was happy to engage in conversation and this certainly removed the tense atmosphere of when I took my class 2 test.

We're soon back at the test centre and after a quick un /couple the examiner gives me the magic words "Well Graham, I'm pleased to tell you......." With 5 minors on a 1st time pass, I'm more than happy with the result.

Unfortunately the other trainee was not so lucky, somehow he managed to completely screw up on his reverse and knocked over the 1st cone, however in fairness to him he still went out and completed the rest of the test bar the un/coupling and didi it with only 7 minors. My instructor was disappointed as he told me he was counting on 2 passes. I was gutted for the other guy too, as he was certainly able to do it and considering he'd no rigid experience he drove very well.

Idle chatter was fairly non existant on the drive back to Colchester, but I'm sure he'll come back and crack it soon. I part company with DTT at 1600 and head back to Danbury to pass the news to my boss who is quite happy with the result.

14th February 2008

Thursday.
0545 Start. It's rare for me to start before 0630 these days but occasionally I'll drag myself out early if needed. After wrestling with the gate this morning (it's usually already open when I arrive) and a bit of faffing about I'm on the road at 0600 down to the A12 heading round the M25 and up the M1. I'm always amazed at the volume of traffic at 0600 it's noticeable busier than it is at 0700.

First stop is just off J13 almost alongside the big Amazon building where they are building a new bypass for Ridgemount. I pull in the site compound and collar a bloke in an JCB belonging to the drainage firm that I'm collecting from.


Follow me he says, and goes bouncing off down the road and takes us in a very big circle almost (but not quite) back to where we started from.

There's 4 "mini" trench boxes to load which is done by their 360. "mini" as in not the big ones called magnums which are 12' wide. They're bloody horrid things, I hate moving anything that can self load or unload and these are amongst the worst of all.


An assortment of chains and ratchet straps are used to keep it all on board before I carry on the mystery tour past Woburn Safari Park to get back to J13 and down to the M25.

I've got to drop the boxes at the roadworks between J2-J3 and I'm told to pass over J2 get in the right lane and dive into the works access and trundle through the roadworks to the end to unload.
I'm in the access point as instructed and delayed by the bowser refuelling the oasis unit's genny.

This tipper has come in through the next access point and holds me up whilst he gets loaded.

After getting to the first of my customers machines I'm waved past them all until I get to this Volvo (after he's loaded a tipper) This is where the boxes are needed but they won't tip them there as there's not enough space. I'm told they will have to come off further back and given a contact number which I punch in and call up as I leave the end of the roadworks and dive across to exit at J3.

No they're deffo coming off by the Volvo, get back and they'll tip you.

So it's back the other way to J2 noting the best place to access the roadworks on the return journey. Only now Costain's HIAB is there offloading concrete drainage tubes and has got about 15 eight leg tippers queued up behind all waiting to either tip or be loaded. I join the back of the queue and slowly the single file snake delivers me back to the Volvo about an hour and a half after first arriving there. It's my turn to cause delay whilst I unchain and unstrap before they drag the boxes with their machine.

I've got 30 minutes left of driving so I get through the tunnel and onto the A13 and stop at the BP at Orset for 45 minutes, although I've done virtually nothing for the last 2 hours I wasn't stopped for more than about 5-10 minutes so couldn't have got a break in even if I'd wanted.

It's gone 1400 when I leave the services and time is catching up, it's into Basildon to collect a Yanmar 75 that we've got crosshired in. As usual there's a delay to get the key and more faffing to reunite machine and buckets and it's getting on for 1500 when I leave site.

I'm supposed to be taking it back to Ongar, but I haven't got the time left so it goes back to our yard where it gets launched off and dumped in the middle of the yard as there is barely enough space to squeeze the wagon in.

Next up I'm off to Witham to CRH Plant to load

a 2CX Airmaster.


and an 80 roller ready for the morning.

Back at the yard at 1630 I'm first told that the job has been cancelled and then shortly afterwards told that it's just the roller that's been cancelled.

I leave it be at 1645 and head for home.
Distance 372Km

Not much to write up for Friday so that's it for now.

4th - 8th February 2008

Blog back to usual this week, the last 2 or 3 weeks have been busy at home and not so interesting on the work front resulting in an odd few posts of interests. It would seem that my army of blog readers want more so here at least for now is this weeks installment.

Monday.
0630 Start. I'm all loaded up ready this morning with a Hitachi ZX50 5t machine, it's off down to Pitsea for an early tip and I follow the sign for site deliveries and end up in a small compound. Whilst I'm unstrapping the machine a bloke in the van is moaning to our machine driver that I'm in the way of the offices. He gets short thrift from the driver who points out the stupid size of the compound and tells him to wait (Use your imagination for a more true exchange of words) Once I'm empty I'm able to lift the tag axle and turn round with about 5 shunts and get out of the way.

Next job is over at Great Totham near Maldon, I'm loading an 8t Kobelco and dropping it off at the groundworkers yard in Tiptree. It's a nice short easy one and I'm soondone and off back to Chelmsford for the next one.



Although the driver starts to pack up straight away when I arrive I'm slightly irritated that he's not actually ready when I arrive on site. I just accept it as though and whilst I'm waiting I notice that it actually says PM on my paperwork for this move. (It's about 0930) It's no big deal anyway, and he's soon ready and loading on. I'm not the biggest fan of wheeled diggers, mostly I move JCB 3CX and 4CX machines and they are are ill thought out out as to lashing points. Today it's a CAT 432 going on, the first time I've moved one of these despite a couple of near misses where my workload has been altered last minute. I'm pleasantly surprised to find good chain eyes at the front and rear, this elevates the machine to joint top of the class along with the Volvo BL71 equivalent.



All loaded and secure it's a hour or so's run along the A12 to Ipswich where I unload the machine in a rough ground carpark opposite site. There's a return load so I park the machine up and wander across to see what's going on.


It's news to the blokes on site about the switch, but it's not uncommon in this game. I'm returning with joint number 1 the Volvo BL71 I mentioned earlier. There's a bit of a delay whilst they get the buckets and stuff sorted but it's no big deal and they're on the ball and soon enough I'm loaded up and ready to leave at 1200.


All this inactivity has worn me out so my 15 minute break by the dockside becomes a 45 and I trundle back to drop the machine back at their yard near Maldon as per instructions. I'm just starting to unchain the machine in their yard when someone wanders out and announces that there is a change of plan and it's now going to their site in South Woodham Ferrers. Bollox, it's 1415 and the site is right next to a school on a modern housing development, access is usually not the best and they are public enemy number 1 there.

The chains go back on and I rattle across to SWF and get the thing off sharpish and make my escape as soon as.

Back at the yard after waiting for it to be washed and checked, I load a Yanmar 75 ready for the morning before leaving for home at 1630.



Distance 280Km

Tuesday.
0645 Start. Not much on today but I decide to get along to Latchingdon early as I'm swapping a machine over and want to do it before it starts working. I roll onto the works compound and the machine is elsewhere although there are some of it's buckets there. The gang will be there around 0730 I'm told and we'll go up the road and switch over then. Whilst I'm waiting (with night heater and cuppa) the weather decides to change and it starts to lash down with rain, it's still raining when we leave the compound so I get togged up in waterproofs before getting out, at which point it stops raining.

I'm delivery a Yanmar 75, the one I loaded yesterday and whilst there I'm collecting this.



another Yanmar 75.

This isn't as daft as it sounds though, when the machine was ordered we had no available 8t machines so this one was hired in until one of ours became available. Once I'm loaded up it's a short run back to the compound to refuel and reunite the machine with it's buckets before heading across to Ongar to off-hire the machine.

Back to the yard and there's not much doing today, some general clearing out and running errands follow before sidling off home at 1615.
Distance 79Km

Wednesday
0645 Start. No rush to leave the yard this morning, my collection is from Danbury Quarry approx 1 mile from the yard so I wait until there's a bit of daylight before wandering down there. I'm collecting a JCB JZ70 and it's parked just past the weighbridge outside the shed where the loading shovels are starting to emerge from. I let them clear off before nipping into their loading area.



Because I've gone past the 'bridge I have to go and sign in and get issued with Hi-Vis Orange overtrousers. Now I can walk back to the machine, get in and load it on. As I back it up to my ramps I notice that the cabside mirror next to the door is missing arm and all. Now I'm fairly sure it was then when I delivered it a couple of weeks ago, I recall loading it at the previous site and keeping my eye on a pub sign alongside. Once I'm loaded I call back at the weighbridge office to point out the missing mirror and they're trying to wheedle out of it even though they admit to having removed and refitted the mirror off the bonnet. I argue that they made me operate the wipers and lights etc. as per an official checklist that they now insist on doing when I delivered the machine, now they say 'Oh well that means nothing'

I make sure that I have got a picture of the machine minus mirror whilst still at the pit before leaving. It's typical that something like this would occur during the couple of weeks I haven't been making a photographic record of my jobs.



It's another short run with it now, about another mile to take the machine back to Jovic Plant at Sandon before heading back to the yard.

There really isn't a lot to do at the yard, so I decide to use the opportunity to replace some of the damaged flooring on the truck bed. It's an absolute bastard job to do, drilling into the steel takes some doing I can tell you and driving the flooring screws requires some serious air tool attention. I also replace my very faded long vehicle marker boards with a one that I had found laying in the road and generally had a tidy up before heading over to Truck East at Witham to drop it in for servicing. I collect a Fiesta and head off home about 1630.
Distance 32Km

Thursday.
0645 Start. Off in the Fiesta to Witham to collect the truck, I notice that when I open the drivers door my gloves and window spray that usually live beside the seat are in the passenger footwell. Ah good I think maybe this time they will have fixed my heated seat. It would appear that they haven't and they also managed to leave the passenger door unlocked all night too. Now there is nothing especially valuable in the cab in it's own right, but there is a couple of hundred quids worth of maps and a few tools. They are all still there, but I'd be properly pissed off if they weren't.

It's a short hop up to the village of Panfield just outside of Braintree to load a Hyundai 5.5t for a groundworker, it's only going as far as Braintree though and that move is soon over.



Next up I'm off to Maldon to move another Hyundai 55, this one a slightly older one along with a 3t dumper. I'm there at 0900 and not expected until 0930-1000 so I have a brew and wander in afterwards. The digger won't start and has to be jump started but the dumper is fine and goes on whilst they are sorting the digger.





All on board, I leave the machine running and notice that the dumper has got a flat tyre. It's all of a five minute run to their destination at Hazeleigh and they are dropped at another farm.

I really can't face too much more yard just yet, so I stop for a break and return about 1030.

After a short while in the yard I'm given another job to do, this one is actually a decent move to do collecting one of our 5t machines from Colchester and bringing it back to the yard. There is at least 2 hours of being out here and easily stretchable to be gone for longer.



A quick blast down the A12 to Colchester, rattle the machine on quick and I can stop for lunch at my parents house on the way back (added bonus being it's my mums birthday)

Back at the yard the machine comes off and I get involved assisting the yardman in rearranging buckets until home time around 1630.
Distance 159Km

Friday.
0645 Start. First call this morning is at Greenshields JCB dealer in Braintree where they are notoriously tardy so I don't leave the yard till 0730, depite the heavy traffic and my 0815 arrival they're still not quite ready but in fairness they don't dick around and soon have my machine out ready.

I'm collecting an 8t machine who's short history is already checkered. It was delivered new (by me) for the dealer to site for one of our groundworker customers, it will become one of my regular moves transporting it and it's 3 identical twins between sites. Last week it had suffered a serious breakdown and was replaced with an identical machine (by me) from A-Plant and taken back to the dealer (by me) for repair. So you see we're already old friends.

I'm away by 0840 and off through Halstead to drop it at a site in Sudbury, there's no buckets with it as they were left behind when it was taken away last week. Once I'm shot of it, I now have to go to Bury St.Edmunds to the site where it was previously and collect the replacement machine and both sets of buckets.

There are 2 entrances to the next job and every time I go there I go to the one I used last time only to be directed to the other one a roundabout 1/2 mile away just to travel a hundred yards. Today is no exception and I gain access to the site at 1000 just as the site is winding up for breakfast until 1030. Once they return I let them know I need both sets of buckets and they trundle off with the machine and dumper for another half hour to round them up.

Foolishly it was me who raised the issue of the buckets as it hadn't occurred to them that the machine had no buckets with it. When they returned we tipped out the dumpers contents and tried to identify the A plant buckets from their ones. Unfortunately the regular driver who could have told us straight away was on leave so we were slightly in the dark as to how many buckets each machine should have with it. We sussed it in the end and I finally left the site at 1145 heading back to Sudbury to drop off their buckets.



After leaving Sudbury it's off down to Colchester to drop the hired machine at A-Plant before heading back to the yard. I arrive back at the yard at 1430 that's a 7 hour! trip, I decide that this is likely to raise some questions when the bill goes in so I take the precaution of photocopying the tacho and making notes.

Load a Yanmar 55 and that's me done for the week at 1645.
Distance 195Km