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the road
Having passed her C+E test in January, our news editor Roanna Avison gets behind the wheel with Alan Firm in driver Melanie Griffiths.
Words: Roanna Avison / Images: Graham Richardson
Even though 1 passed my C+E test in January, I haven't had the chance to drive a truck since. So when Paul Denyer, director at Alan Firmin, agreed to set up a day on the road with one of his drivers I jumped at the chance.
I arrived at Firmin's Snodland, Kent, depot at 6.45am on a Saturday morning to meet up with driver Melanie Griffiths. This is a late start for Mel. Her Saturday shift normally begins at Sam. However, it was very early for me, since most Saturdays I'm firmly tucked up in bed until well after 10am.
Trailer swapping
The job for the day was to take an empty Morrisons trailer to the RDC in Burton Latimer, near Kettering, collect a loaded trailer and take it to the Morrisons store at Maidstone.
Mel's truck is an '05-plated MAN, which she calls 'Elsa'. The onboard computer shows the truck is low on oil, so we have to top it up before heading down the road to another yard to collect the trailer.
I've never driven an MAN before: all my training was done in a Scania. It was a bit scary being entrusted with Mel's pride and joy, especially after a couple of months away from driving a truck. So Mel gets me to reverse the cab and hook up to the trailer. Due to the fact that I'm still suffering from the effects of a sprained thumb and I haven't connected up a trailer since January, Mel takes the time to remind me how to connect all the lines.
I then take the truck back to the depot, although, initially, I have a few problems with the clutch — possibly because I'm wearing a brand new pair of safety boots. And I must remember that I don't need to press the brake pedal quite so hard.
We switch places at the depot and Mel does the first stint of driving up the M20, M25 and the Ml ito Stansted.
During this time I decide to find out a little bit about Mel and life on the road as a female driver.
She has been driving for 19 years. Her step-dad was a lorry driver and her step-brothers followed him into the profession. She recalls going out in a truck with her stepdad when she was five or six and says since then she only ever wanted to be a truck driver, Once we reach Stansted, Mel pulls into the services and, having filled out a tacho chart for the first time with Mel's help. I take over. This time, I'm driving in trainers rather than safety boots, which makes it much easier to control the clutch — Mel admits it's very strange being on the other side of her own cab.
After negotiating the speed bumps to get out of the services and a few issues with the manual gearbox as we circle the roundabout, I head out on to the M11 for my first bit of truck driving for several months.
Enjoyable experience
While the MAN is different to a Scania in terms of instrument layout and the position of the gearstick and parking brake, I soon get back into the swing of things and remember just how much I enjoy driving a truck.
Fortunately, the Mll isn't too busy and I'm able to sit on the limiter and take the time to ensure I'm checking my mirrors.
Once on the A14, Mel warns me to stick to the 50mph speed limit because of the average-speed cameras. Sticking to the speed limit has never been my forte — even when I was learning to drive I struggled with it. I even managed to set off a few speed limit warning signs during my test — so I do have to keep an eye on the speedo, especially on the downhill sections.
When I pull off the dual carriageway, I don't quite get my positioning right at the roundabout, but I do avoid hitting the kerb after Mel points out how close I am to it.
The final roundabout before the RDC is a tricky one Mel adds, and she's not wrong.
Outside the RDC we switch places again and Mel drives into the Morrisons site. We drop the trailer at 10.30am, but have to wait a bit to pick up the trailer we're supposed to be collecting.
This gives us enough time for a cup of tea and a quick chat in the cab, before the Morrisons restaurant opens at 12.15pin, where we grab some lunch. The pair of us then head over to the transport office to collect the paperwork before tracking down the trailer we're scheduled to pick up. Once the trailer is connected, Mel drives out of the RDC before we swap places yet again.
Extra weight
I have never pulled a fully loaded trailer on the road before and, at the first roundabout, I stall because I haven't used enough revs to account for the extra weight.
Back on the A14, I once again have to keep an eye on the speed limit, although I instantly notice how I have to go down a gear on the hills because of the extra weight and take more care going downhill because the trailer is pushing me down. Its something else to think about, but I soon get the hang of it. Mel shows me how to use the exhaust brak which certainly helps to keep the speed lower on the downhill sections: While driving along the A14 we hear a banging noise, so 1 NJ over in a lay-by. The engine cover on the trailer's fridge unit has come open and scratched the back of the tractor — defintitely not what Mel wants just before going to Truckfest.
Most of the journey back to Firmin's depot is uneventful. The thing that sticks in my mind is the sliproad from the Ml! onto the M25. When the signs say 30mph, they mean it. The camber is certainly enough to make a difference to the way the truck handles.
The other thing was the toll booths at the Dartford Crossing — they are very narrow, but I got the speed off well before the tolls and went through slowly. I've no idea why they don't make them wider so it's not such a squeeze for the lorries.
Back at the depot, Mel and I swap places once again. The drive into Maidstone is not the easiest to master — Maidstone has a horrible one-way system, so Mel says it would probably he better for me to watch how she does it rather than trying myself.
Once at the store, we drop the trailer off and pick up an empty one to take back to base.
We get back to Firmin's site at 5.30pin — it was a long day for me, but very enjoyable one all the same.
While I love the driving, I still have a lot to learn about handling the load, and I wouldn't have the slightest idea how to load a trailer myself.
It's a tough job and I'm not sure I'd want to do it full time, but I'm willing try it again sometime soon and learn a bit more about what life is really like for a truck driver. All offers considered! •