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• It is a tribute to the event's pre-eminence that these three manufacturers chose the 12th Truckfest to introduce their new models to the UK haulage 111 industry.
Champion hurdler Kriss Akabusi was on hand for ERF's unveiling of its flagship EC Olympic high-roof cab: the first of the five examples on show was sold to Gloucestershirebased livestock haulier Graham Gilder on Sunday.
Leyland Daf's 95 Super Space Cab 95.500 flagship arrived from Marseilles on Sunday morning; Harris Group conjured up a Super F-cabbed eight-legger for the Commercial Motor stand—by lunchtime Sunday it had attracted a large following of interested tippermen. CM was once again official sponsor of Truckfest and our stand was as busy as ever, par ticularly when Coronation Street's Reg Holdsworth, alias actor Ken Morley, arrived to sign autographs. Jet and Hunter from TV's Gladiators also attracted hordes of young fans.
But the C/Ifpresence had a more serious side too. Hauliers and drivers were offered free legal advice on transport matters from lawyers Jonathan Lawton, Stephen Kirkbright and Gary Hodgson and legal expert Colin Ward. Our four legal eagles were kept busy with posers on subjects ranging from tachograph rules to personal injury claims. Also available on the CM stand was our new action pack to combat truck theft.
Of course, the real stars of Truckfest are the trucks themselves and the hundreds of drivers and owner-operators who spend countless hours preparing their vehicles for the Bank Holiday weekend.
A team of drivers from Lincolnshire-based MC Mountain & Son spent six weeks spraying and polishing up 12 of the company's 16 trucks for the show. Truckfest regular Pete Broughton reckons the company ran up a £1,000 bill to show the impressive fleet at Truckfest: "It's very important to us though, it's a bit of fun, gives the company publicity and helps raise the image of the industry," he says.
Truckfest is the biggest festival of trucking in Europe and, as always, there were plenty of participants from the other side of the Channel. The highlight from France was an exotically liveried Renault Magnum. Other attractions included the Challenge Anneka Truck; the rock band Heathrow Flyers which is made up of four full-time HGV drivers and HGV drivers and Radio IFM DJ II Bruno Brookes. Major sponsor Eurotunnel provided free breakfast for all competitors and turned the entrance and exit to and from the show arena into versions of its Channel Tunnel Folkestone and Calais Terminals.