sandway:
Knowledgable ex Promotor drivers or others. Is this Gordon Jones? This lad was on the company mid 80’s and was on the Tripoli and Benghazi double exhibition event we set up for medical and pharmaceutical companies in Libya around that time.
No. That’s not Gordon, well not the one that I knew.
sandway:
Vodka Cola Cowboy:
Nottsnortherner:
Yes, still at the rly station but I,m no longer part of it and I believe the company has been “aquired”. I was part of the small team that operated the IBM mobile exhibition trailer for almost 10 years, when they decided not to re-new the contract 2 years ago, I turned it in too, nothing else to do that was as good and now too bloody old!I heard that Marshall Steve had retired from Motorvation, some time ago.
Looks like you got a bit of a stutter there Micky T. Micky T. Micky T.
What Stut - tut -tut - tuter Sandway ?
Regarding that route through the Shipka Pass, I was coming back from Baghdad and drove up that way to Russe, heading eventually for Brno, to load from the exhibition. Not that tunnel, but out in the sticks I approached what I thought was a bridge, but may have been a short tunnel. Waiting on the other side was a Bulgie Polite Officer who nicked me for not using lights in the tunnel. He then asked me if I had any alcohol. I showed him a 2 litre bottle of Johnny Walker red label, with just about a shot of scotch left in it. Thinking that I had drunk the rest the previous night he breathalysed me. His face was a picture when the test showed negative. I had not drunk anything for days. He obviously thought that he was on for a windfall and was probably thinking what he would do with $100.
robert1952:
You could avoid the Shipka pass by going via what we used to call ‘Little Shipka’ but that could still catch you out in wintry weather - here’s me on Little Shipka in '95, going to Turkey). Robert0
Hi Robert. I got a copy of “Trucking”. You were right. The review for the book was very good. Thanks for pointing it out to me.
Coming down from Russe one dark, wet night I came across a piece of the road that was covered in white dots. It was so weird that I stopped and got out to see what it was. It turned out to be frogs that had been squashed by the traffic. They were obviously on their way to their mating ground. It struck me at the time that those frogs did not know whether they were coming or going.
robert1952:
You could avoid the Shipka pass by going via what we used to call ‘Little Shipka’ but that could still catch you out in wintry weather - here’s me on Little Shipka in '95, going to Turkey). Robert0
Hi Robert, I am not exactly sure where “Little Shipka” was but on my first trip back from Turkey I had to go and load tractors in Transylvania. I got lost somewhere in Bulgaria oweing to the fact that most of the road signs were in the Cyrillic alphabet but one word that had stuck out in my mind was the word PYCE which I knew was the word Russe, which was the Bulgarian/ Romanian border. Things were not that bad until I came to a Tee junction where the sign said PYCE to the left and PYCE to the right. I took the road to the right and after about ten klm’s I had a feeling that I was on the wrong road but just ahead I could see one of Romtrans (F. Troop) parked in a layby changing a wheel. I showed the drivers my map and they said that they were also going to the border so I decided to follow them. What a big mistake that was as they had a fridge trailer and it was loaded. They couldn’t go over the pass which was the shortest route as they would never of made it. Instead we went around the mountain on a cobbled road which was probably about an hour longer but what seemed to take about a week. Eventually, I had to overtake them and make my own way to the border and I never saw them again.
Regards Steve.
mushroomman:
robert1952:
You could avoid the Shipka pass by going via what we used to call ‘Little Shipka’ but that could still catch you out in wintry weather - here’s me on Little Shipka in '95, going to Turkey). Robert0
Hi Robert, I am not exactly sure where “Little Shipka” was but on my first trip back from Turkey I had to go and load tractors in Transylvania. I got lost somewhere in Bulgaria oweing to the fact that most of the road signs were in the Cyrillic alphabet but one word that had stuck out in my mind was the word PYCE which I knew was the word Russe, which was the Bulgarian/ Romanian border. Things were not that bad until I came to a Tee junction where the sign said PYCE to the left and PYCE to the right. I took the road to the right and after about ten klm’s I had a feeling that I was on the wrong road but just ahead I could see one of Romtrans (F. Troop) parked in a layby changing a wheel. I showed the drivers my map and they said that they were also going to the border so I decided to follow them. What a big mistake that was as they had a fridge trailer and it was loaded. They couldn’t go over the pass which was the shortest route as they would never of made it. Instead we went around the mountain on a cobbled road which was probably about an hour longer but what seemed to take about a week. Eventually, I had to overtake them and make my own way to the border and I never saw them again.
Regards Steve.
Nice little anecdote mushroomman. Never went that way myself.
The border crossing between Turkey and Iraq was one pig of a place. The Turkish side was Habur Border Gate and the Iraq side was known as Zako. This isn’t strictly true. The Iraq border posts name is Ibrahim Khalil. Zako, a Kurdish town is I think about ten or twelve km away. The length of the queues getting into Iraq were legendary. I once joined one thirty two km from the border whilst another driver told me he had started queuing one hundred and twelve km out. Another driver told me he had been parked up by the police at Gaziantep or somewhere way back for two days to let some of the traffic at the border clear. It didn’t help that all those thousands of tonka tankers, running into Iraq to load Sadams oil which he was exporting (a large part of it illegally) were allowed to jump the queue. Normally leaving Iraq wasn’t to much of a problem. However, on one occasion going home I came down out of the hills south of Zako to the point on the edge of Zako town where you went off left to the border. There was an hotel on the left which I stayed in once but thats another story. At this junction lorries were queuing for the border and we had to go right to join the end. It didn’t take that long to exit Iraq though. I think we got through in about fourteen hours. It was the only time I had been seriously held up leaving the country.
Whilst queued up at Zako I took some photos of the area on the edge of town which I have attached. It was late November early 80’s. The weather was changing. It was quite cold and rain had just started to fall. Although these were not mud huts, most having been built of rough cement blocks the roofs were built differently. They were made from mud and once the first rains came they had to be pressed or compacted to make them waterproof. Imagine my surprise when I saw this chap, after a struggle to get it up there, start to roll his roof with a garden roller whist holding on to his umbrella. Added another whole dimension to the term “roof garden”.
mushroomman:
robert1952:
You could avoid the Shipka pass by going via what we used to call ‘Little Shipka’ but that could still catch you out in wintry weather - here’s me on Little Shipka in '95, going to Turkey). Robert0
Hi Robert, I am not exactly sure where “Little Shipka” was but on my first trip back from Turkey I had to go and load tractors in Transylvania. I got lost somewhere in Bulgaria oweing to the fact that most of the road signs were in the Cyrillic alphabet but one word that had stuck out in my mind was the word PYCE which I knew was the word Russe, which was the Bulgarian/ Romanian border. Things were not that bad until I came to a Tee junction where the sign said PYCE to the left and PYCE to the right. I took the road to the right and after about ten klm’s I had a feeling that I was on the wrong road but just ahead I could see one of Romtrans (F. Troop) parked in a layby changing a wheel. I showed the drivers my map and they said that they were also going to the border so I decided to follow them. What a big mistake that was as they had a fridge trailer and it was loaded. They couldn’t go over the pass which was the shortest route as they would never of made it. Instead we went around the mountain on a cobbled road which was probably about an hour longer but what seemed to take about a week. Eventually, I had to overtake them and make my own way to the border and I never saw them again.
Regards Steve.
Sounds as if you took Shipka proper! Little Shipka was the alternative, flatter route but it was off the official TIR trail from what I remember. After Veliko Turnovo (going south) you took a left and went over the pass at Republic Pateka and eventually it took you to Gurkovo, after which it joined the main road. I’ll bet those roads have been sorted out now with a bit of EU cash!
Robert
sandway:
The border crossing between Turkey and Iraq was one pig of a place. The Turkish side was Habur Border Gate and the Iraq side was known as Zako. This isn’t strictly true. The Iraq border posts name is Ibrahim Khalil. Zako, a Kurdish town is I think about ten or twelve km away. The length of the queues getting into Iraq were legendary. I once joined one thirty two km from the border whilst another driver told me he had started queuing one hundred and twelve km out. Another driver told me he had been parked up by the police at Gaziantep or somewhere way back for two days to let some of the traffic at the border clear. It didn’t help that all those thousands of tonka tankers, running into Iraq to load Sadams oil which he was exporting (a large part of it illegally) were allowed to jump the queue. Normally leaving Iraq wasn’t to much of a problem. However, on one occasion going home I came down out of the hills south of Zako to the point on the edge of Zako town where you went off left to the border. There was an hotel on the left which I stayed in once but thats another story. At this junction lorries were queuing for the border and we had to go right to join the end. It didn’t take that long to exit Iraq though. I think we got through in about fourteen hours. It was the only time I had been seriously held up leaving the country.Whilst queued up at Zako I took some photos of the area on the edge of town which I have attached. It was late November early 80’s. The weather was changing. It was quite cold and rain had just started to fall. Although these were not mud huts, most having been built of rough cement blocks the roofs were built differently. They were made from mud and once the first rains came they had to be pressed or compacted to make them waterproof. Imagine my surprise when I saw this chap, after a struggle to get it up there, start to roll his roof with a garden roller whist holding on to his umbrella. Added another whole dimension to the term “roof garden”.
Brilliant! 
Thanks Sandway, it’s always good to see photos of some of the old places that we visited all those years ago and as everybody else say’s “I wish that I would of taken more photographs”. 
And once again your mention of Zacho and seeing strange and unusual things started me thinking of something that I saw while we were a couple of miles away from the Iraqi border.
I had seen this John Player Special Volvo on his way home some months before, it was parked up next to the airfield at Aosta in Italy. I was waiting to clear customs at the time and I decided to walk over and take this photo as to me it looked ‘quite smart’.
So on the 31st of December 1983 or 84 (I shall have to check in my passport) at Zacho, this was parked up pointing towards home with the curtains closed. As the queue that we were in started to move forward we didn’t have the time to see if the driver was O.K. which was something that played on my mind for the next couple of days. When we arrived in the Turkish compound I discussed it with the other two English drivers who I was with. Things started going through my mind like, why was he parked there, was he just having a nap or could he have been sick. Had he broken down or has he gone to buy some bread. One of the lads said that he might of flown home for Christmas but to me it would of made sense to get up to Ankara or why didn’t he fly home from Baghdad. Anyway, he wasn’t there a week later on our way back so I presumed that he was O.K.
Also, I doubt that in December he would of been out to a Grand Prix meeting so I did wonder that if had been to an exhibition somewhere then you Promotor lads might know something about it. 
robert1952:
Sounds as if you took Shipka proper! Little Shipka was the alternative, flatter route but it was off the official TIR trail from what I remember. After Veliko Turnovo (going south) you took a left and went over the pass at Republic Pateka and eventually it took you to Gurkovo, after which it joined the main road. I’ll bet those roads have been sorted out now with a bit of EU cash!Robert
Hi Robert, as far as I can remember The Shipka Pass was where they had a monument on the top with two soldiers fighting. One of them was a Bulgarian and the one wearing the Fez was a Turk. It was to commemorate a war between Bulgaria and Turkey which the The Bulgy’s won. From what I remember there was a parking area at the top with a wooden stall or a hut that sold sausages on bread rolls and beer in the summer. I slept up there a couple of times in the summer because it seemed Mosquito free.
Regards Steve.
Vodka Cola Cowboy:
robert1952:
You could avoid the Shipka pass by going via what we used to call ‘Little Shipka’ but that could still catch you out in wintry weather - here’s me on Little Shipka in '95, going to Turkey). Robert0
Hi Robert. I got a copy of “Trucking”. You were right. The review for the book was very good. Thanks for pointing it out to me.
Coming down from Russe one dark, wet night I came across a piece of the road that was covered in white dots. It was so weird that I stopped and got out to see what it was. It turned out to be frogs that had been squashed by the traffic. They were obviously on their way to their mating ground. It struck me at the time that those frogs did not know whether they were coming or going.
Keep an eye out in Smiths for the other mags - you should get some more reviews mate 
. Robert
robert1952:
Vodka Cola Cowboy:
robert1952:
You could avoid the Shipka pass by going via what we used to call ‘Little Shipka’ but that could still catch you out in wintry weather - here’s me on Little Shipka in '95, going to Turkey). Robert0
Hi Robert. I got a copy of “Trucking”. You were right. The review for the book was very good. Thanks for pointing it out to me.
Coming down from Russe one dark, wet night I came across a piece of the road that was covered in white dots. It was so weird that I stopped and got out to see what it was. It turned out to be frogs that had been squashed by the traffic. They were obviously on their way to their mating ground. It struck me at the time that those frogs did not know whether they were coming or going.
Keep an eye out in Smiths for the other mags - you should get some more reviews mate
Yes. I will do Robert. Thanks.
mushroomman:
Thanks Sandway, it’s always good to see photos of some of the old places that we visited all those years ago and as everybody else say’s “I wish that I would of taken more photographs”.
And once again your mention of Zacho and seeing strange and unusual things started me thinking of something that I saw while we were a couple of miles away from the Iraqi border.
I had seen this John Player Special Volvo on his way home some months before, it was parked up next to the airfield at Aosta in Italy. I was waiting to clear customs at the time and I decided to walk over and take this photo as to me it looked ‘quite smart’.
So on the 31st of December 1983 or 84 (I shall have to check in my passport) at Zacho, this was parked up pointing towards home with the curtains closed. As the queue that we were in started to move forward we didn’t have the time to see if the driver was O.K. which was something that played on my mind for the next couple of days. When we arrived in the Turkish compound I discussed it with the other two English drivers who I was with. Things started going through my mind like, why was he parked there, was he just having a nap or could he have been sick. Had he broken down or has he gone to buy some bread. One of the lads said that he might of flown home for Christmas but to me it would of made sense to get up to Ankara or why didn’t he fly home from Baghdad. Anyway, he wasn’t there a week later on our way back so I presumed that he was O.K.
Also, I doubt that in December he would of been out to a Grand Prix meeting so I did wonder that if had been to an exhibition somewhere then you Promotor lads might know something about it.
Mushroomman. Thats very odd and I don’t have the answer but lets think about a few things.
The lorry itself is quite old. Normally these racing teams like to have the latest kit. Even back then. Its all part of the high tech image.
I am fairly sure it was not at the Baghdad Fair. Not much happened there without us knowing. Also the dates of the fair didn’t coincide with your viewing. They were the 1st to the 15th November every year. It had been held at the beginning of October during the 70’s up to 1980 but it was to hot during the buildup period. There was one exception to these dates and I think that was 82 when the Iraqis extended the fair for another week because, so they said, it was so popular. Just biggen themselves up as Iraqis do.
Was it for a private event? If it was it would have been organised at the very top level by someone like Sadaams son in law.
I still keep thinking back to the age of the lorry and trailer. Perhaps someone had bought it and put it on general haulage for one trip before respraying it.
Yes!. Definitely a bit of a conundrum.
Hi Sandway,
With the photos you’ve posted I reckon you can only be one person I know. I won’t give the game away apart from having last heard of you somewhere out west!
Please PM me. It would be nice to talk again.
Andy
Parked up on the filling station at Kiziltepe before going down to the crossroads to get the army ■■■■■■ over Mardin, the Kurdish mountain village, (Seen in the background).
Coming down into Cizre after the detour over Mardin.
Time to catch up with your dohbi while clearing customs at Turkish border customs.
About five clicks from the Iraq border,this was the first roadsign, just by the filling station.
Five clicks before Mosul, an o/d named Adrian Slaughter pulling for Astran, had his load of cable drums break loose. I heard about it in Mosul customs and ran back bob tail to see what had happened.
Great photos bestbooties. Had me reminiscing of times gone by. Then I thought what exactly does the word reminisce mean so I googled it and I got the perfect answer “indulge in enjoyable recollection of past events”. That certainly sums up your post except for one thing. The mention of Mardin. I was hauled up before the bench there and I remember thinking this could be nasty. But thats another story still to be told.
sandway:
Great photos bestbooties. Had me reminiscing of times gone by. Then I thought what exactly does the word reminisce mean so I googled it and I got the perfect answer “indulge in enjoyable recollection of past events”. That certainly sums up your post except for one thing. The mention of Mardin. I was hauled up before the bench there and I remember thinking this could be nasty. But thats another story still to be told.
Had some hairy trips over Mardin.
This was following some Czech road trains over Mardin in the army convoy.
In the queue on the Turkish side for three days, my mate Jimbo doing his dhobi in the stream.
Same stream perhaps bestbooties. Couple of years later and now less grass. Two Promotor men and others mucking about in the water.
sandway:
Same stream perhaps bestbooties. Couple of years later and now less grass. Two Promotor men and others mucking about in the water.
Same queue, different trip, this was a couple of motors in front of me, Rick Ellis, AKA Red Desert Fox,RIP with his Astran 142.
I was on for Expo Freight then also with a 142, as in my avatar.
