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.
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