21st - 25th July 2008

Monday
0630 Start. Week 8 on the artic, 3 more to go until I'm back to 6 wheels.
I'm loaded up ready this morning with a Doosan DX225 it's a 22 tonner and the widest one we've got being just shy of 11' wide.


It's this one here, taken last week when I collected it from another site.

Reversing out of the yard into the industrial estate is not usually too bad first thing, but some dick has parked a car opposite the gate right where the arse of the trailer needs to go. It's not that bad but you can see less than bugger all past the machine, luckily one of the others arrives and sees me out. I'm off to Langdon Hills near Basildon with this one, it's doing a job on a water main and has to be unloaded on the road.



Once I'm unloaded I need to call in at the compound for out duck which is there, unfortunately there's nowhere to turn so I have to carry on up to Laindon and loop around to get there. It's a good thing I didn't come that way though as the road is narrow and twisty and a squeee to get the empty trailer past other vehicles at times.

At the compound I have to help the driver modify a grab so it will fit the new machine and then we load the Volvo 18t duck.



It's back to the yard now to unload. There's no other actual work to do for me so I finish off stripping down an Escort van for usable spares, remove the wheels and drain the diesel ready for it's final journey to the scrapyard. There's a few bit's to move about in the yard and I all it a day at 1700.

Tuesday
0630 Start. I'm off down the road to the bosses house this morning to load one of the 2 of our machines I've never yet moved. It's only an 8t Hitachi ZX80 so it's amazing it's escaped me this long. It's got a regular driver attached to it and he's a top driver, really helpful and often getting put on long jobs as contractors don't want to let go of him. There's no sign of life and the gate is locked, it's a bit of an arse as I'm heading central London but it's getting to the time where it's better to wait a while.


At half seven he wanders out "Oh I didn't hear you"

There's also a dumper there to go back to the yard so I load that on too, to

a) save someone else doing it later
b) waste some more time and avoid some of the rush hour.

It's only a mile or so back to the yard to unload the dumper.

I'm out of the yard at 0830 with the ZX80 and off to Pimlico, thankfully the traffic is light and I get to the site just after 10 even after cutting through by City Airport to avoid the accident on the Canning Town flyover.

It's a switchover at Pimlico, the ZX off and a Volvo 140 on. The Volvo was destined for Woolwich but they've damaged the ram whilst it was on self drive and are returning it virtually empty of fuel so it's got to go back to the yard. An easy run back and I'm in the yard at 1230.

There's the usual shunting in the yard and I load our Komatsu duck ready for the morning. Then it's a turn round and drop the trailer before running the unit bobtail across to Truck East at Witham for overnight service. Finished at 1630

Wednesday
0630 Start. Off to Truck East to drop their car back and pick up the unit. I could get used to not having the trailer behind, those 420 horses are a bit more eager wihout. Back at the yard it's a simple job of conecting up the trailer and off I go, because I don't uncouple & recouple very often I'm paranoid the trailer is going to fall off. It didn't (or at least hasn't yet)



My first run is down to Belvedere in Kent to drop off the Komatsu duck right next to the Asda RDC.



It's a bit rammed with stuff here, there's 3 proper job lowloaders in front. Two of them are 8 leg units and the one at the front has got a 4 axle Nooteboom trailer with 2 axle dolly on it. I'm pushed from pillar to post trying to find someone to hand the duck over to but eventually I find someone and get unloaded.



The only way to turn around is to driver past all the big boys ahead and turn in a bellmouth just in front of them. Luckily I don't make an arse of myself and turn round perfectly.

Back to the yard now and the Volvo 140 I brought in yesterday is just being finished off and is ready to load. I'm off with this one to........................Belvedere in Kent, about a mile from where I've just been. It's an unconnected job for a demolition company at an old social club. Machine off and I'm off back to Essex.

I get passed on the way by an old VW camper, what caught my eye was the sticker that said Danbury Motorcaravans, I don't know of anywhere in Danbury that does that sort of thing. Then I noticed the reg WX54 ??? Eh?



A looky on the web at home, reveals it's a Brazilian import and a different Danbury.

Back at the real Danbury, there's a Hyundai 140 to load for tomorrow before scuttling off home at 1530

Thursday
0630 Start. Off to Southminster this morning, this makes a nice change as there's bugger all traffic down that way. On one side of the road it is residential, on the other just fields and it's going in the field. The field is firm enough so I drive on, round in a big loop and stop in the entrance to unload.





I pull out and have a quick cuppa before heading off to Pitsea for the next load. I'm loading a JCB JS130 down here at a country park, there's just the machine and not the dumper that it arrived with and I'm soon loaded along with the driver who is hitching a lift to the next job. We're going to a site down a little road between Hatfield Peverel and Witham, it's where it was previously and unloading involves blocking the road. We stop just short in a place so traffic can pass and unchain everything, it's then a quick shunt forward past the gate, ramps down, machine off, ramps up again and pull forward to sweep down and tidy up. Total delay about 3 minutes.



My next job is over at Southend Hospital, I'm due to load a 21t machine for a demolition contractor and I've been in and out with them before and know it's going to be a squeeze. The site appears shut and there's nowhere to stop so I trundle off round the corner (then some more) and ring the contact number. The guy on the phone is in Welwyn Garden City and no-one has told him they've booked us to move him.

I'm now told to run back over to Truck East at Witham, because they need to fit a new level plug to the gearbox. So back I go, it's about 2 miles from where I was earlier. Truck East are waiting for the part but it arrives as promised within 20 minutes. Changing it over takes well over an hour though as they have to cut notches in the old one to undo it. Next job is to drop the trailer in for service at Bicknacre, there's no point unhooking it and taking the unit away as I've got nothing else to pull and I don't think he's got a unit there. I'm given a G reg Escort van to get me back to the yard. Nothing doing here so I make the most of the weather and have an early 1430 day.

Friday
0630 Start. Just a quick call at the yard to collect my paperwork and switch to the old van for the run to Bicknacre to collect the truck. First call is Runwell Hospital at Wickford, it's an old mental hospital apparently once the home of the largest collection of preserved human brains.

I'm here early and there's already a load of wagons waiting to get in and unload at the site. I sneak past a load of McBurneys that are carrying concrete staircases and will need the mobile crane that's at the front. I'm only waiting behind a block wagon. The gates open around 8 and I back in behind the block wagon next to the compound. I'm loading a Hitachi ZX210 21 tonner.



Here's a video of me loading it.



With that loaded and secured I'm off to another hospital rebuild over at Braintree, it's a simple switch over job the ZX210 comes off and is replaced by an older ZX200.



I'm not sure the logic behind it but this one is going back to Runwell. This time I'm not so lucky with the queue and have to wait nearly an hour to get in.

Here's it coming off, obviously there's a couple of minutes to knock the chains off and a couple more folding up the trailer but I can unload in about 5 minutes.



It's now back to the yard, where there's not much else happening. I'm done and off home at 1430.

Friday 18th July 2008

It's been a bit slack this week with only one load a day going out, mostly places I've covered previously so I won't bother. I got a yellow box fine come through from last week's Brixton run, but it's only he very rear of the trailer and hopefully I'll get off and not have to pay the £120 fine.

Friday.
0630 Start. I'm all loaded ready this morning, I'd picked up a Hitachi ZX130 from Eltham yesterday afternoon and was due to deliver this morning near Watford before coming back to Braintree for a telehandler to go to Farnborough. I'd thought this daft an arranged for one of te 6 wheelers to bring the telehandler to the yard, so when I got in on Thursday I loaded it at the front and tucked the machine on the back.





I'm out of the yard promptish and along towards Watford, it's actually Leavesden which isn't so bad and amazingly the traffic is light and I hit the site at 0750. The groundworkers are not going to be in until 10 but there is a security guy there and I'm to back in and tip off the ZX130.





At 0820 I'm done and even had a brew and off along the little spur of the M25 and fearing the worst around the M4 turn. A few 50 limits on the variable speeds and a 40 at one point but steady traffic all the way to J4 on the M3. There's a fair bit of traffic here but it is 0900 and I just plod along following the signs for Airshow with the lorry symbol on. The airfield is always on the left and I reckon it must be about 10 miles before I arrive at Gate A, which I suspect is very close to where I started the mystery tour. I'm delivering a brand new JCB 535-125 and it dawns on me that I've got no paperwork for it.



It doesn't matter, I just tell them I'm going to ETPS road (yes really) and they point me in the direction of the plant compound. There's a forklift wagon just coming out and I pull in when he's gone, I reckon he'd just dropped a few of these.



I'm done by 10 and out of the gate turning left and arriving half a mile later at the start of the freight route. The plan was now to head back to Essex, grab some diesel on the way and get a decent break in on the A12 somewhere. Now the mistake here was making a plan because at 1030 I'm on the M25 closeish to the M40 when the engine dies and I coast to a stop on the hard shoulder.




When I read empty I actually mean 200 litres.

The fuel gauge is empty but I know for a fact I've got plenty left, well plenty in the right tank and none in the left where the feed is. The tanks are not balancing properly / at all and I've drained the small tank about 15 miles short of the Shell garage at St.Albans. I suspect I'm in for a bollocking and call in to report, surprisingly the boss is OK about it and arranges for Scania Assist to well err...assist. They ring me and tell me it could be 2 hours.....I'm going to get a break just not quite as planned.

I get a visit from the HATO's who take my number and promise to check on me later, the Scania man arrives at 1200 and crawls underneath and annouces that the isolator taps are almost shut. It would appear I've drained the tank quicker than the big one can replenish it. The fuel starts to flow through and before long we get the engine running on about 4 cylinders and gradually back on to all 6 without bleeding. I'm on my way at 1230 just as the HATO's ring me, at least they keep their promise. There's now some big incident between J23-J21 so I peel off and skirt round through Watford and get to the Shell garage near St.Albans. 309 litres later (That's 191 litres on board) and I'm off to complete the rest of the journey. As I come down the A12 I'm passed by another plant wagon, he was alongside in the traffic before I left the M25. It was a good route choice as I'd stopped at the garage for about 20 minutes.

Back at the yard I loaded our Doosan 225 ready for Monday and was given more bad news, I'm being reported for failure to stop after an accident with a Smart car (that I knew nothing about) in central London.

Oh the joys of this job.

I'll post some pictures later but can't be bothered right now.

Thanks

At the start of the year I was finding maintaining this blog a bit of a chore and gave it a bit of a rest, I had a few emails and PM's and I decided that maybe it was worth persevering with. I added a counter on 30th Jan and I'm amazed to see it's ticked past 5000 hits.

It's nice to get comments, emails and questions but it's amazing to see those sorts of numbers.

So thanks for reading.

7th - 11th July 2008

Monday
0600 Start. In for an early one, off to Corringham with a 21 tonner and a dumper. It's a wide load job so I want to get there before the traffic gets too bad.



I park outside the job although I think I might be overweight for the carpark. And who uses cwt nowadays?



I'm just in the throes of unloading when a bloke appears and opens the gate, I'm able to track straight in and get the machines signed off.

I'm now wet as it's chucking it down with rain, that's the way it's going to be today. On/Off all day. Back to the yard now and I load our Kobelco 60 up on top, it's a bit of a squeeze but I need it up there as I'm off to near Braintree now to load a Hyundai 130.







They both fit on the trailer quite well together, no roller today though as that's got one last trip to make and it ain't going on my wagon.



I'm off to Kent, to Gillingham at a park just through the Medway Tunnel. Surprise surprise it's lashing down with rain as I unload and then it stops when I've finished. I decide to take a break here as it's quiet and I'm out of the way and I need the time for the next part of my adventure.



Before I stopped I gingerly brought the Kobelco down which was a bit hairy as the tracks aren't very grippy but the ramps are quite slippy. It's now on the ground floor and at 1230 we set off up the A2 heading for Brixton. It's a crap site at Brixton awkward to get to and nigh on impossible to get away from. You cannot turn round and the way out is through residential roads with cars parked either side. It wasn't too bad a couple of weeks ago with an empty trailer but today I'm collecting our Volvo 140 and that overhangs the trailer. I get an earful of abuse from a resident on my way out but he's not being unereasonable and calms down when I agree with him about how ridicoulous it is. I later discover that whilst negotiating a path out I broke a light on a van belonging to someone on site. Funny how they noticed that but didn't bother to send anyone to help me get out. According to the resident bloke there's numerous trucks coming and going to the site (it's a school rebuild) and plenty of damage.

It takes me about 20 minutes to get away from the site and to the main road heading in the right direction. This is not helped by having to make a right turn and go all the way around Tulse Hill before heading back towards Brixton as the left was impossible thanks to a traffic island. In fact it takes me just a little longer than that to get to my next destination which is a school in Pimlico where the machine is headed. Thankfully it's a much wider road and getting the trailer backed in and the machine off is far less eventful. Off out and away by 1530, I've now got outbound traffic and torrebtial rain but I get back to the yard about 1715. 60t plant moved. 371Km

Tuesday.
0645 Start. The working starts in the yard this morning, loading up a Hyundai 140. It's only a short hop across to a waste transfer station at Stock where it's tipped off and I've then got some time to kill before the next job.

Which is at Boreham, there's a 25 tonner there to load. I'm half way through backing in when I hear sirens, so I abandon the attempt and pull out of the way to let a police car through. Second time around I get in the gate and there's untold amount of traffic on the main road now.

The machine is ready and on it goes. It's a big old bugger this one at 3.4m wide.



It's not going far though, just back to it's yard at Witham.

My next job is over at Harlow, collecting a demolition companies 21t Komatsu. The bloke is not there when I arrive so I settle in with a cuppa but he's not long before he arrives. It's nice and simple this one, just a single bucket with a grab inside. It's still a wide load, but just over 10' this time.



This one is going back to Maldon, it's an awkward place it's going to. Reverse into a side street and unload in the road. There's just a tiny space for the machine to be parked underneath some cables but I manage so safely bank the driver in. All done I head back to the yard to dodge the rain. There's a 5t Yanmar to load for tomorrow and I'm given some bad news. In fact it's worse than that it's very bad news. No redundacy or death in the family but almost as bad - I'm going back to Brixton tomorrow to do exactly the reverse of yesterday.

Wednesday
0630 Start. Just a little load first off, the 5t Yanmar off to Kelvedon. It's going to one of our big customers who has several of our machine on hire, it's replacing someone elses Fiat Kobelco E135 which is also on hire to them.



They're paying for the move and the 13 tonner goes on next, it's going to Great Baddow and it's replacing one of our Hyundai 140's. It does get confusing but I just do what I'm told (well most of the time)

It's pissing down rain and we have to swap the machines on the main road as the trailer will block the entrance to the site which is now partly lived on. As usual there's no bugger about to help load or act as a banker, but the driver off the 135 is a top bloke and switches the machine whilst I dodge about keeping him away from the overhead cables and keeping the cars back whilst he negioates the slippery ramps.

I'm now set to go to Brixton and in no hurry to do so, stopping on the A12 for an extended tea break to prolong the agony. In the end I get going and decide to go direct, through the city to Vauxhall Bridge rather than mess about in South London. It's £8 for the congestion charge but a saving of £5.80 on the Dartford.

I arrive at the site at Brixton, and they start flapping. Oh you night end up taking it back yet, there's a big hold blocking the other one in.



I reply that I don't give a toss, and the 140's coming off regardless. Whether or not they can get the little Kobelco out is no odds to me, I'll happily leave it there. They had one of our 6 wheelers here yesterday to swap it for an 8 tonner but changed their mind and decided they wanted a 140 back. There's NO way I'm coming back tomorrow because they've changed their mind again. Funnily enough they manage to get the Kobelco out. I decide to wander up the road and see if I can get out today, it's a bit clearer and with only 4 axles on the ground today it's a bit easier.

I head back across the river and get as far as the A12 before stopping for a well earned session on the bunk. Back to the yard there's one to load, our Volvo 18t duck with a grab. The grab goes on the top and the rest as usual.







Finished at 1630. 39t plant moved. 214Km.

Thursday
0630 Start. All loaded ready with the duck and grab from yesterday I've got the added bonus of no rain today. I'm off to a golf course between Horndon on the Hill and Basildon, there's a low bridge enroute so it's the long way round to get there. One of our drivers is there waiting and we unload the machine and then lift the grab off.

Next job is over at Fingringhoe on the river just by Colchester, it's an aggregate company there down an improbable lane that ends at an unlikely looking farm. Fair enough it is called Ballast Quay Road but it still seemed dubious. Venturing through the farm some more the conveyors become visible and I'm in th eright place. Unusually all the material goes out by boat to London which is why the lane seems unlikely. I'm loading a 456 here, that's a JCB 456 not a Ferrari by the way. It's a bloody great shovel, one of the few things I've never yet moved. It's not in a good way it's losing a fair bit of hydraulic oil and it's going back to a JCB depot for the engine to come out. It's still workable though, good job as it weighs 21t. On it goes and it's a tidy load, about 9' wide so no need for markers or flashy lights.



It was destined for Braintree but they've dodged it and offloaded the repairs to Wrotham in Kent, so I've got a nice little jolly down the M20. At Greenshields they only knew they were getting a machine palmed off from Braintree, they're less than impressed to find out they've got to get the engine out and axles off. I leave it in their yard and trundle off round the corner for a break.

There's nothing else for me now, but one of other drivers called earlier as he'd not managed to get 2x 10t dumpers on a 6 wheeler. I offer as it's only at Woodford and I can blast up through the Blackwall Tunnel to get there.

I'm back to Chelmsford with the dumoer to drop it at Jovic plant, a place where our regular 'number 1' driver avoids like the plague. It's a bit of a faff getting in but even for a crap driver like me it's not too bad. Tip the dumper and back to the yard. Finished at 1700. 45t plant moved. 397Km

Friday
0630 Start. Off this morning to near Ongar, it's a silly little move from a waste transfer station to the green waste station about a mile down the road. It's a Hyundai 180 nice and simple, no additional buckets and completed in about 15 minutes.



The next job is is in Chigwell but apparently not ready until lunchtime-ish, there's no point in going back to the yard as I'm half way there so I unclip the top bunk and stretch out. It's getting on towards 10.00 and I'm getting restless, I'm just about to get going over to Harlow to top the tanks off when I get a call saying the machine is ready. I go over via Harlow anyway and then blast down the M11.

The job is just off Chingford High Street in a side road, it's a reverse in job and tight as you like. I'm several shunts in when an unmarked police car comes screaming along with blues and two's. It'd take longer to get back out so I calmly continue and get backed in out of the way. I'm loading a JS130 here but it's got to be a quick one as nothing can in or out and the numpties are starting to block the High Street rather than wait a little further along.

I'm out shortly after and off to Dunton near Basildon to offload. It's job done then and back to the yard for about 1230. The yard is quite clear so I decide to get the trailer down on the wash and try and clear it off some. When it's done, I park the trailer, drop it and give the unit a wash down. Recoupling takes some brain power (it's only the 2nd time in 6 weeks) Well that's done now, no doubt pointless as it'll doubtless rain again and I'll get sent somewhere messy.


Before long "What's the latest you could collect a shovel in Tiptree to come back to Danbury?"

So at 1500 I'm taking the nice clean trailer out in the rain to a quarry in Tiptree, where I'm loading this dirty great big shovel.



It's a bit bigger than the 456, certainly wider although a little lighter. Although there's no width limit on the road back to Rivenhall there's a narrow hump back bridge there which is single lane only. I guess it's been there some time and scooping the side walls up with the shovel bucket would earn me no friends. It's back to Danbury via Maldon. Into the quarry there, a quick unload and off up the hill to the yard. Finished at 1700. 50t plant moved 197Km.

30th June - 4th July 2008

I've been busy at home this week so not much blogging opportunity.

Monday.
The trailer was still loaded from Saturday, the FK215 that I brought back from Marylebone had to be unloaded. There was not a huge amount doing so I trundled off to the tyre depot for 2 more new ones on the trailer and one on the unit. I also took a couple of old rims from the yard and some part worn tyres from replacing them in pairs and had a couple more made up as spares to keep in the yard to get us out of trouble. (one of which got used the next day on my 6 wheeler)

There was a Volvo 140 to go out to Chelmsford to the canal that turned out to be a horrendous place and involved plenty of shunting to try and turn round. The unit got stuck and we had to use the machine to pull it to a firmer surface to regain traction.

Tuesday.
I'm sure I did something first but I can't recall what it was, but after doing that (or not) (Just remembered it was a JS130 & dumper from Witham to Pitsea) it was off to Woodford to drop off a JS220 and collect a crosshired JCB 8t machine. Then it was off to Volvo at Duxford where one of our 140's has had a new engine fitted. The JCB goes up in the world and sits up top whilst the 140 stays on the ground floor.


Back to the yard, unload the pair and reload the Volvo.

Wednesday.
In early at 0515 as I'm off to the Palace (well Palace St. SW1) the driver follows me in throws his gear in the machine and makes his own way there via the tube at Newbury Park. I'm on site just after 0700 and he's about a minute behind. Machine offloaded at 0745 and off I go outbound past all the queuing traffic trying to get in. Glad I'm early as the fuel protestors were ar Parliment sq. later. Call in at Walthamstow later to drop a spare set of keys to one of our drivers who has lost his. Back to the yard until early afternoon. Off to Witham to load a Komatsu 20 tonner it's off to South Ockendon and has to be unloaded in the road during the afternoon school run time and takes forever as there are lots of overhead cables to avoid.

Thursday
0645 Start. Back to Witham this morning to collect the demolition company's other Komatsu 210 this one's going to Harlow and I'm promised it's a better site than yesterday. It is but there are no end of people who will insist on driving up behind me whilst I reverse into the side road and then get irate because they have to move.





The demolition bloke is having a bad day, he's just backed his smart Hilux into a concrete post and bent his bumper and then the machine won't fit through the site gate. I'm sure the gate would have been gone shortly after I went. I'm off to Braintree now to load a fuel bowser, it's a poxy place to load very awkward to get into thanks to all the cars parked opposite and very narrow bellmouth. I try but decide without an extra pair of hands not to bother as we can lift the bowser on if I stay on the road.

The bowser goes on and is secured, it's a wheeled job (unbraked) and it moves everytime I try to leave. Eventually after adding more and more straps it stays put and I head up the M11 for the next collection.

They are building a new park & ride and I'm collecing a wheeled digger from there, it's an odd one ex. Army Hydrema.


Army Digger.........................be the best.

On it goes and once they've loaded the forks for it too I'm off and heading for a site somewhere on the road between Eye and Spalding. I get to Cambridge services and stop for lunch. The place is packed and I have to reverse park between a couple of wagons, suddenly reversing is a lot harder and is completed with a fair few shunts.

Whilst I'm here I get a call from the customer telling me to call at the their Stanground site in Peterborough (where I'm loading later) to collect a Rammax roller and he'll meet me there and lead me to the site. This is typical of this company, leave no floor boards showing and don't give you an address. Luckily it's not a massive detour to collect the Rammax and there's just enough space on the back to put it.



We set off in convoy with me trying to keep up with him in his Jeep Wrangler, eventually we get into Lincolnshire (it's now past 1430) and he turns off onto what looks to be the start of a new road. It's a wide sandy road that luckily has been compacted. There's a big ditch been dug for a pipeline and the road crosses it, he goes across and waves me through, unsurprisingly the unit stops on the crossing. It's my fault obviously for not going fast enough and I'll be able to get free once I've unloaded. Righty-O then.

The Rammax comes off slideways, the Hydrema gets unloaded and the bowser unstrapped. They track a 210 over to lift the bowser off and I discover that they only put the cossing in this morning and haven't compacted it yet. Once I'm unloaded I'm still stuck (really?) and get a helping hand from the 210. I now turn myself around for another go. There's a couple of 8 leg tippers waiting and even they struggle to get through. I get so far but get stuck again, this time I get a tow out with the Hydrema.

By now I'm right pissed off and just want to head home but it's back to Stanground where I've got to load trench boxes. I hate these bloody things, everything has to be moved off the trailer and every strap gets used to secure them. Left the site at 1615 and finally arrived back at our yard at 1845.

Friday
0630 Start. A little repair job to start with, the indicator cluster on the unit got smashed the other day when it was parked in Westminster. I've got a new one to fit but the bit it screws into is also damaged. One screw and some gaffer tape then.

It's off to Braintree to get rid of the boxes from last night. As it's early I'm able to reverse into their yard, there's a woman in a Fiesta waiting patiently whilst I shunt back and forwards to get in the narrow gateway. When I'm in she parks almost opposite in the exact space I just used to get in. Luckily I got the trailer out past her car, but there was a stretch of road 100 yards long she could have parked in.



The boxes are unloaded and everything replaced in it's usual place on the trailer floor. I'm out of there and off down to Maldon to load. I've got a pair of Hydrema dumpers to load, I'm informed that they weren't supposed to be available until 1000 but there's one ready. It's almost brand new with just 100 hours on the clock.

It's backed carefully onto the trailer, they're odd things being artic steer with you sitting forward of the pivot. They have rear view cameras but the mirrors are more useful. Better still is the non H&S approach of peering out of the rear hinged door to see what the rear wheels are doing.



It gets loaded half and half on the swan neck.





The other one is ready just after I've chained the first one and that goes on forwards as it's easier to see how close they are.



And then I'm done, and that's a tidy load I reckon.



I've a nice little ride now off to a landfill site near Beccles, it's a glorious day and I head up the A140 and cut across towards Lowestoft. It's an easy route, not too much chopping and changing speed limits and few roundabouts. At the landfill they are unloaded and signed off and I'm off on my way back to Essex. I like to vary things slightly so I take the Blythburgh road and pick up the A12 back towards Ipswich. It's a nice road but there's lot's of different speed limits and it'd soon become tedious if a regular run.

I'm on my way down the A12 from Ipswich when I get a call to go to Hutton to collect a Hyundai 140. It's a horrible little site on a private estate and lot's of curtain twitchers there.


Lot's of people itching to complain about everything down here.



It's on, it's 1615 and time to head back to the yard. Back to the yard at 1700, 140 off and replaced by a dumper and a 21 tonner ready to go on Monday. Home at 1730.