Colonel:
Diyarbakir is the correct spelling, Roger, just for information. Not the most pleasant of places. I came back home through there one time after deciding to miss out Mardin and go straight on to Batman, then Diyarbakir and back to the roundabout at Urfa. Nearly a costly mistake as the little town of Batman was very tight to get an artic through.
Quite right John, Diyarbakir was not the most pleasant of places. My first trip to Turkey was with an oil rig, nodding dog, pipes etc to an Alladin Oil camp east of Diyarbakir. There were seven of us in the convoy and due to Armenium unrest in the area we had an armed ■■■■■■ from Istanbul. About 10 k’s or so from where we were tipping my head gasket started blowing, Dave Cooper and Frankie Andrews dropped their trailers at the camp and came back for me. We tried to retighten the head, gave it a road test and it seemed to be O.K. as I was now empty
Big Tony Gibbons ( Big T ) told us not to mess about and get the thing up to Ayden’s in Istanbul but we decided to give it a go.
A couple of hours later we were passing the American radar base ( do you remember the size of that dish ? ) not far from Diyarbakir and the temperature gauge started to creep up, so I decided to stop. A Turkish army patrol came out to tell us that we couldn’t park there and they called an American Military police patrol to come and interprete for them.
The Yank’s were great, they said it was to dangerous to stay where we were for the night and allowed us into the camp.
They let us all eat in the sergeant mess for free and the following morning we stripped down two tilts and with the help of one of their ramps we were able to put my unit and trailer onto the back of Big T’s Scania with the back axle chained up.
We eventually got it up to Aydin’s who sorted it .
Best regards Steve.
Were there 2 Tony Somersons because the one u say in pic wearing the check shirt is not the one I know Tony lives not far from me in Medway runs a pub/Resturant on the river had a Daff on his last days with Astran we used to call him fingers du to the lack of fingers on his left hand will check with John Bruce if he still runs the pub we are suposed to be getting together soon the last suvivers in the early days before we all croke I think there is now only five alive so sad
Roger(Rita)Haywood
L.O roger, the last time I saw tony S was at our last reunion before Xmas with D Poulton, Royston who as you know has now passed away, Bob Paul, and myself, But at that time tony had finished with the restruant, and had turned his garage into a workshop and was refurbishing old cars and was doing quite well.Keep up the good work, J.L.B.
Hi Rita you said Bob Hedleys wifes reunion, is this Bob - The Animal - who had the Transcon, does that mean he also is no longer with us? If so although I met him a couple of times I didn’t have that much to do with him, but another one gone -phew! It’s funny how on the M/E and to an extent Greece you would meet some people regularly and others you would never meet.In your case I remember saying hello in passing but I don’t recall ever being together long enough to have a conversation,I don’t think I ever met Dave Chamberlain either, on my first trip out I shipped Prinz line with Jim Smethurst and Bill Bentley, I met jim quite a few time afterwards but never met Bill again.Did I see somewhere that Jim is also no longer about?
Where and when is the reunion?
Gavin
Yes mate big Bob with the Traney Benny told me about the reunion so at the moment dont know where it is but its not till Christmas time, he was a chef befor his driving days so if u stoped with him he made a great nosh ,his trailer box was always full of fresh food and he liked a drink dont know what killed him but he was a bit of a lump John Bruce might know I think he went to the funeral will ckeck with John and post it later unless anyone else knows.
Gavin McArdle:
Hi Rita you said Bob Hedleys wifes reunion, is this Bob - The Animal - who had the Transcon, does that mean he also is no longer with us? If so although I met him a couple of times I didn’t have that much to do with him, but another one gone -phew! It’s funny how on the M/E and to an extent Greece you would meet some people regularly and others you would never meet.In your case I remember saying hello in passing but I don’t recall ever being together long enough to have a conversation,I don’t think I ever met Dave Chamberlain either, on my first trip out I shipped Prinz line with Jim Smethurst and Bill Bentley, I met jim quite a few time afterwards but never met Bill again.Did I see somewhere that Jim is also no longer about?
Where and when is the reunion?
Gavin
Hi Gavin, for the last 4 years Dave Charlton has organised a do between xmas and new year, the last 2 being nr daventry because it is in the middle of the uk etc. At this last one the general concensus was that the venue was not what we wanted (not Daves fault) and Bob Hedleys miissus said she would organise the next one, not sure of her e-mail address though. She contacts me by post as only i just got a computer, and yes the animal was very much alive when i saw him last.
Gavin McArdle:
Hi Rita you said Bob Hedleys wifes reunion, is this Bob - The Animal - who had the Transcon, does that mean he also is no longer with us? If so although I met him a couple of times I didn’t have that much to do with him, but another one gone -phew! It’s funny how on the M/E and to an extent Greece you would meet some people regularly and others you would never meet.In your case I remember saying hello in passing but I don’t recall ever being together long enough to have a conversation,I don’t think I ever met Dave Chamberlain either, on my first trip out I shipped Prinz line with Jim Smethurst and Bill Bentley, I met jim quite a few time afterwards but never met Bill again.Did I see somewhere that Jim is also no longer about?
Where and when is the reunion?
Gavin
Hi Gavin Mc, when you mention the name Big Jim Smethurst, then I hope that you realise that you are talking about my hero. I always loved running with Jim and even now whenever I see an old W.C. Fields film I think of some of the great times that I had with Jim. Sadly, Jim did pass away some time ago ( I think about eight years ago but I shall check ) . Was he working for Chet Trux out of Belgium at the time with Brian Cobb ( Petal ) ? when you first met him. I remember Jim telling me that he and Petal used to both have a Spanish Pagaso each and they often went to Saudi Arabia in them. I first met Jim when he worked for Falcongate and a few years later he came back to Dow.
Mr Smoothie, a.k.a. Bill Bentley has had a hotel for years in Blackpool or he did have up until last year but I shall check on that one also and if you ever met Dave Chamberlain then I think that you would remember him .
Rocky 7 introduced me to an " Animal " called Bob once, was Bob Headley from the Manchester area by any chance ?.
Best regards Steve.
I was on my way back to my truck having spent a night out with Ron the Con and his wife and coming out of Panniotis, staggering across the road with nothing on his feet and three sheets to the wind was Dave. I said, Hi Dave where are you going this time of night and his reply was - Evzoni. I never thought he would make it in the state he was in but he was down in Greece next trip.
You always knew you were following Dave Chamberlain truck by the trail of empty EFFES cans. Never a dull moment on an evening out with Dave, he knew how tell a good story.
Charlie.
bestbooties:
Some other views taken during the convoy over Mardin.
Czech Liaz road train in front of me on the convoy.
Some of the roads were no more than tracks.
Ian
Please put me out of my misery
I did two Bagdad trips April /May 1976 and for the life of me I cannot remember Mardin.
I think we went directly from Urfa to Cizre along the E90 What years are you talking about?
convoys? don’t remember any in Turkey
The only thing I can think, was It somthing to do with an earth quake in the summer of 76?
I was only 19 when I went second man with my father so am only 52 now, but it’s still 33 years ago. They do say your memory for years gone buy gets better with age, so when i’m as old as you lads I might be able to remember.
Hi Dessert Driver, I took my wife to Baghdad in the truck in April 1976 and by that time no one was going over Mardin. We had made that stand in 1975 at Kiziltepe and went straight on to Nusaybin. You will of course remember a bridge that was full of mud and I needed chains to get across safely, but prior to this we had gone through the bog to get through. Possibly the one that has already been mentioned I think by Ian. I did that run from 1974/1980 and I never came across a convoy in Turkey either. In the early days there was a convoy from Zakho down to Baghdad, but I always managed to slip out of it somehow.
Hi - Steve - Jim Smethurst and Bill Bentley were both working for Dows at the time. I remember Jim at sometime telling me he worked for a Belgian co. I thought Butraco- but I can’t remember when he told me. Bill at that time had a pub in Patricroft opposite the Gardner works I believe. I once saw him take off his black leather jacket and in his white shirt and grey trousers change a wheel, when he finished he wiped his hands put his jacket back on he was spotless!! Looked as if he had just had Sunday tea.
The Animal Hedley used to own the mid-lift Transcon with the blacked out grill shown near the front of the Astran thread.
When I did my first Iraq the military route had been open for some months, it must have been early 77, I used H4 on and off during 76 I think the new road was opened also in early 77. I never did any convoys any where, had an easy life haven’t I
I also never fitted snowchains
Gavin
Hi Colonel
Still can’t remember the bridge,I must have been asleep,I remember fording a river that was in flood but for the life of me cannot remember where exactly it was, maybe it will come back to me later.
Also did’nt see a convoy from Zakho to Bagdad, only on one trip we had to pay for a soldier to ride with us.
Hi Keith, I had the soldier once but he was a part of the convoy I mentioned. I pulled off into the desert and cooked a meal. I fed him as well with Chopped ham and pork out of the tin with new potatoes and some peas and he woofed it down. Perhaps he wasn’t a muslim.
Hi Roger
Sorry My fault we seem to have drifted away in time. Anyway Colonel it’s come back to me today. Do remember Mardin. It was the busserds that reminded me,waiting for a wrong move.and very hot.And a convoy of combine harvisters heading east anyone remember them.Sorry Roger I’m at it again
What the hell you on about are u on something mate
Roger Haywood
You will have to be more specific Roger, I am not a mind reader. If you feel that I have said something that is not correct then feel free to put me in my place.
dessert driver:
Hi Roger
Sorry My fault we seem to have drifted away in time. Anyway Colonel it’s come back to me today. Do remember Mardin. It was the busserds that reminded me,waiting for a wrong move.and very hot.And a convoy of combine harvisters heading east anyone remember them.Sorry Roger I’m at it again
Regards Keith.
In the summer the whole area was littered with combined harvesters ploughing along the road, causing difficult overtaking.
.
