This opinion piece will be my last as the PowerTorque Editor. Next week I will be moving on to the next phase in my trucking life. I will still be involved, but at a more hands-off level, writing feature articles for the magazine and the website, but no longer involved in the day-to-day of running a publication. Therefore, it is time for me to reflect on my years involved in trucks and the trucking industry.
My first truck driving job involved a 1967 Ford D Series on its last legs, hauling waste paper around Yorkshire in the UK. I fell into the trucking industry, because I grew up on a farm and could handle large equipment (a common route into trucking for many of us).
The road from that truck, with its maximum speed of 64km/h and a leaky cab, to test driving the latest trucks on the market, telling operators’ stories and engaging with industry groups, has been long and convoluted.
Apart from the joy of being out on the road, seeing the world and meeting new people, the thing which has always drawn me back to the trucking game has been the people. There is a special culture within trucking, which is difficult to pin down, but we know it exists and feel comfortable in it.
It is also a global culture, truck drivers in Australia look at the world in much the same way as they do in the UK and Europe. In my experience, in places like Spain and Italy, trying to communicate with non-English speaking truckies doesn’t need great language skills, there is an unspoken understanding coming from a common culture.
Australian trucking is also understood by trucking people across the world. They look up to us and find it hard to believe the combinations, masses and road conditions we have to work with. Our industry has led the world in increasing productivity and simply getting the job done.
The level of ingenuity shown by the people in the industry to solve seemingly insurmountable transport problems and still make a decent buck out of it never ceases to amaze me.
If there is a message I can glean from reflecting upon my years in the trucking game, it is probably, that, if we work together on any issue, we have the resources between us to develop and improve the trucking life for everyone.
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