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John r2hallis
John Challis, a partner in Crocker Haulage small but successful tipper business in Kent auld be described as "Mr Average" in ansport. His is the kind of business which aes to make up the largest part of road aulage—firms with fewer than 15 vehicles. When John Challis left the RAF in 1955 he id his two partners each put E50 into buying
small business, and he'll never forget a ?mark made by Barbara Castle, when as linister of Transport she declared: "We do ot want people to start in business buying acond-hand lorries." John commented to me n this: "To get started in tipper work you've ot to be prepared to take the roughest jobs nd those who are prepared to do that are sually the kind of people who can only afford acond-hand tippers. This is how most of us tart as tipper operators."
Every morning, Monday to Saturday, John .hallis drives one of the company's 10 ppers; he's been involved in motoRkay work, uarry work and the rough world of emolition where he made his start. He acalls, not with too much relish, that he had clamber over buildings, prepare them for emolition, knock them down and cart them ff. Even at only 39 years of age, he onfesses to being too old for that kind of larking about" now.
His ambition is for the partnership to ontinue to prosper and he is building towards his through service. "Giving a bad promise neans you've adopted a bad policy," he says. ohn Challis believes that some operators luote job times, which they know they will lot meet, in order to get a contract.
John Challis speaks highly of all Iritish-built tippers and is loud in his praise of ipping body and gear manufacturers. He offers only two criticisms: lighting equipment, le thinks, could be improved and better olaced, and tyres need lots more meat on the idewal Is.
He is a family man and has the popular lobbies of golf and darts and he enjoys oitter. Whether or not you have the pleasure of meeting John Challis face to face, the next ime you see a tipper on a building site look at he driver . -he's very likely a John Challis in he making. I.S.