A9 THE BRAVE
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They breed them tough north of the border. Few come tougher than Martin Harrower who runs A9 Haulage from Aviemore.
IN A9 Haulage is an unmistakeably Scottish operation owned and managed by Highlander Martin Harrower and his (English) wife Caroline. The first impression of this seven-truck company is one of extraordinary allegiance to Scotland and all things Scottish. Hardly surprisingly you might think, as A9 is based in Aviemore — but what rams the message home is the oil paintings (it would be unjust to call them mere paint jobs) which adorn every surface of the lorry cabs. Scottish landscapes, Balmoral Castle, ospreys, golden eagles, salmon. . . you get the idea.
Harrower quickly points out the logic behind this opulence. "It's advertising. The A9 Haulage logo is hidden away on the airdams, but everybody knows them as the vehicles with pictures on them." He is proud enough of these pictures to remove the Turbostar logo from the front of his vehicles allowing greater artistic freedom.
Two years ago he scraped up £1,600 to spend on promoting A9 in the hope of qualifying for a regional grant. He was turned down.
"We couldn't afford to lose this money at the time. I was told that the company was self-supporting and therefore not a contender for the badly-needed grant. This kind of thing doesn't turn me off: it makes me grit my teeth and feeds my determination to succeed. We have succeeded, and now we're on the point of doubling our business. We will soon be operating on the continent, and in January A9 will be offering storage facilities."
There are two 6x2 Turbostars, two 6x2 Volvo F12s and a rigid Volvo F6 with close-coupled trailer, in the A9 stable, along with one bulk tipper trailer, seven flat beds and two curtain-siders, all tri-axles.
DRIVER COMFORT
"I've been through a few trucks but I've always had an eye for the Volvos," says Harrower. "I believe in driver comfort. If you want to send a driver far and you want to push him on (or her, but more on that later), then give him a bit more. I've been in an FL10 and I'm not at all convinced that I could get my pants down inside one of those and then climb into the bed successfully, and I'm not a big man."
Harrower always has the future in mind, and is convinced that legislation on the 40-tonne weight limit will come sooner than later. With this at the back of his mind all ten of his trailers are tri-axles. "It makes sense to have tri-axles for tax reasons as well, but when the 40-tonne legislation does arrive we don't want to have dated stock. We'll be ready."
Similarly, all his tractive units are now, or are about to be, 6x2 tag-axle vehicles. "Apart from the tax benefits, the 6x2 offers a better and safer ride for the driver. Again, as I'm about to start running on the continent and convinced that 40 tonnes are coming, I feel we must keep in line with the European Community."
Like any haulier with sense, Harrower has a good grasp of labour relations. "I ask a lot from my drivers. We are running what is in effect a 24-hour service. People know they can phone us well after normal office hours and we guarantee, if they can load us in time, to deliver by 8am the next morning. My drivers don't just drive, they are also my salesmen. Everyone knows that in a company this size the business generated means money in their pockets."
Business generated also means growth. So where does Harrower expect A9 to be in five years from now? "The Highlands is an area needing commercial opportunities. Manufacturing industries need transport. Highland Forest Products is a major client and it is about to increase its output by 100%. We must grow to match this. I would keep our present base in the Spey Valley district but in five years time we shall be running 25 trucks with storage facilities here and in the Midlands."
"I also want to educate and keep my children in the Aviemore area. There's nothing much here other than hotels so a business like this offers them a future in Scotland," says Harrower.
Does he envisage going back to the II A year ago, 39-year-o • vary ea knocked on Martin Harrower's office door, introduced herself and asked him for a job. Harrower looked over his glasses and smiled as he asked her about her experience. The smile soon left his face when he realised that behind Heath's gentle Sassenach accent and impeccable manners was a wealth of experience and an attitude which could only benefit his company, A9 Haulage.
Unless coaxed, Heath is reluctant to talk about herself — as she points out, there are plenty of others who'll talk about her. After five years with the RAF, seven years cooking and crewing on yachts in the Mediterranean, one year as resident assistant for a Nigerian chief in Watford ("They were darlings to work for . . . much more pleasant than some English families I've worked for"), she is no ordinary woman.
It was agreed that she would drive the "bloke from Commercial Motor home", a small matter of 1,000Icm in her TurboStar. She had a load of Sterling Board to take to Colchester and that was near enough to keep the author happy.
The night before leaving, I accompanied Heath to Highland Forest Products where she loaded up her 12.2m flatbed with 20-odd tonnes of plywood. As the forklift buzzed around the trailer, Heath was ready with straps, sheets and ropes. After 40 minutes she had finished roping and sheeting and was satisfied that the load was safe. "If you do the job right to start with then there's no need to worry about loadshift on bends, or sheets blowing away on motorways," she says.
Big muscles
Thus reassured we headed south on the A9 early next morning. It was becoming very clear that here was somebody who applied the highest of professional standards to a profession which is so often maligned.
Hauling the maximum 38 tonnes, the TurboStar showed no signs of struggling on the steep pass at the Brough, 1001trn from Inverness.
Heath was pleased. "I used to take a Renault 310 on this route. It didn't like it at all. My left arm and leg muscles developed quite alarmingly — you really did have to go through the gears on hills like the Brough." regional grants people for assistance in this expansion programme? -We'll go back to them if they need any haulage done. I doubt if they've changed their tune on giving out money to help business, though," he says.
Harrower is the personification of the canny Scotsman. He demonstrates a sound gip of his business but, equally important, he understands public relations.
That said, Heath was quick to point out the 310's advantages. "The cab was most impressive. If I could get a 310 powered by the TurboStar's engine I'd happily drive for ever."
Apart from the occasional hiss and brief conversation on the CB ("Some of those guys would talk all day if they could. They're worse than old women, some of them," said Heath, whose handle is the Vixen), the journey was uneventful.
We listend to her entire Captain Beaky collection and, before the tachograph could say "that's enough driving", we were beyond Peterborough on the Al. At this point your (male) correspondent became vaguely uneasy. We were to stop at the Truckers truckstop by Godmanchester. How would Heath feel about accommodating me in her cab?
Shepherd's pie and a pint later, she decided to close in for the night. I followed an hour later, nervously. Opening the cab door I found a night light on — too weak to keep her up but bright enough to allow me to get undressed with some dignity. Mine was the top bunk and it looked more welcoming than my own bed at home. Warm and comfortable and appreciative of Heath ignoring my presence (the author is not a pretty site in his underpants and I suspected she might not be asleep) I was out as fast as the night light.
A few hours later we were ready once Charming and courteous, he asked if A9 Haulage might figure on the cover of Commercial Motor. Any one else asking such a question might be treated with a handful of salt but Harrower's talent was in making the author feel quite guilty when explaining the reasons for which this was impossible.
That's business, Scottish style.
0 by Joris Minne more to finish the run to Colchester. The depot was quite empty apart from one other artic. It was her first time here and, a few wry smiles appeared on the forklift drivers' faces when they saw the driver was a woman. She was used to this.
Nothing was said until she expertly reversed the combination through an awkward series of corners and into the warehouse for unloading. It was then that one forklift driver remarked, "You should come here more often, Love. You could teach some of the drivers who come here a thing or two."
Heath allowed herself a quick blush. She refuses to flatter herself and is slow to criticise others. She does, albeit rather modestly, admit to being "a rather good driver".
She says, "There's more to being a truck driver than steering. You have to be good at roping and sheeting. You have to have safety in mind at all times. What's more, you must be seen to be professional, especially since truckers are slagged off so much."
"I get great satisfaction from the most banal things," she says. "A smooth gear change, negotiating a tight corner without clipping a kerb, these little things I enjoy. I've dreamt of being a trucker since I was 16. Now I'm doing just that, it's hard not to enjoy a dream come true. If you love the job, you do it well."
0 by Joris Minne