Hey all as we all know we all love a good laugh at someone else’s expense ( especially a stobart driver , but just for a good giggle let’s for a change point the finger at ourselves and share our stories of our own silly [zb] ups I’ve only been driving HGV a few years and have learnt so much (the hard way) at the time they were horrible and humiliating but now I can see they needed to be done to get where I am today…
I’ll kick off with… I had only been driving a week or so and got a job working for biffa on a bulker doing food waste (yh not nice) lol on my first day there I was reversing into a very busy pub beer garden right at the end of my round, rushing to get back as it was about 5:30pm and I had started at about half 4 in the morning completely forgot about a fence on my offside as I’ve got to reverse around the corner I’ve ripped the metal fence up out the ground and took all the o/s front wing and light off the truck with it ive then had to get out the truck walk across the beer garden with everyone having a good snigger to themselves into a packed bar I’ve had to lean over the bar ask for the manager and explain to him why his fence isn’t where he left it lol that experience will live with me for the rest of my life… I can laugh about it now but at the time i had one he’ll of a red face…
that said we’ve all been newbies and I’m sure we’ve all got a funny story or 2 so come on don’t be shy let’s all laugh about them
When i first started driving i had to go to boalloy at congleton for a new curtainsider,i was told to go bobtail,i had never been before so i went in the office after a while and asked where bob taylor was so i could follow him
Like the time I went around a roundabout and heard a bump, and in the corner of my eye in the mirror I thought I saw a ratchet strap fly off the bed…So I stop on the slip road and look at the forklift truck on the back and see all straps are in place and tight, but there is only one fork on the truck
After the initial feeling of shock horror and wanting to be sick, I saw a guy in a yellow hi viz at the roundabout waving me…then I did want to be sick.
He was a cyclist and was well pleased with himself for dragging the fork out of the road (thankfully it didnt hit anyone or thing) So I called him a hero and he seemed chuffed (not all there me thinks)and I picked this flippin huge fork up and ran down the slip road with it sweating like a pig and my arms killing me, I just wanted to secure it and the other fork and sod off before any blue or orange lights turned up.
Turns out the engineers (loosely termed) had not replaced the bolts in the carriage after a mast change
That was a bum twitcher
seth 70:
When i first started driving i had to go to boalloy at congleton for a new curtainsider,i was told to go bobtail,i had never been before so i went in the office after a while and asked where bob taylor was so i could follow him
Drift:
Like the time I went around a roundabout and heard a bump, and in the corner of my eye in the mirror I thought I saw a ratchet strap fly off the bed…So I stop on the slip road and look at the forklift truck on the back and see all straps are in place and tight, but there is only one fork on the truck
After the initial feeling of shock horror and wanting to be sick, I saw a guy in a yellow hi viz at the roundabout waving me…then I did want to be sick.
He was a cyclist and was well pleased with himself for dragging the fork out of the road (thankfully it didnt hit anyone or thing) So I called him a hero and he seemed chuffed (not all there me thinks)and I picked this flippin huge fork up and ran down the slip road with it sweating like a pig and my arms killing me, I just wanted to secure it and the other fork and sod off before any blue or orange lights turned up.
Turns out the engineers (loosely termed) had not replaced the bolts in the carriage after a mast change
That was a bum twitcher
Nice that does sound like a bum twitcher made me lol tho
I’ve only been driving artics since end of march but in my second week I was doing pallet line deliveries (usually do the easier distribution stuff). As anyone that has done pallet line stuff will know, it could be pallets of anything going to anywhere.
Anyway, second Friday into it I was sent to Wisley golf course with 13 pallets. It’s off the A3, and signposted unsuitable for HGVs, however it’s the only way in, so I went in, had terrible directions, went through Wisley village, tight as a ducks arse, managed to miss the unsignposted entrance and had to carry on to find a place to turn around. About a mile down was a 7.5 bridge and a car park with boulders, tried a blindside reverse with the whole pub garden watching, got a cheer when, after 10 minutes I stopped to let a load of cars past. Couldn’t be done in the end.
Called the office, weren’t terribly interested. So I had to call the police, who came and kindly closed the road both ends so I could reverse the whole mile back. Very steep learning curve for me and needless to say I always make sure I triple check addresses and get phone numbers if the address has the words street or lane in it!
I can laugh now but it was without doubt the worst day of my driving career.
Delivered a goods hoist to posh area of London once, unloaded it at about 6am (yes before the lorry ban)…then site foreman told me I had to scarper quick… drove 50 feet and smacked a lampost with the Hiab as I forgot to fold it away.
jackseymour:
I’ve only been driving artics since end of march but in my second week I was doing pallet line deliveries (usually do the easier distribution stuff). As anyone that has done pallet line stuff will know, it could be pallets of anything going to anywhere.
Anyway, second Friday into it I was sent to Wisley golf course with 13 pallets. It’s off the A3, and signposted unsuitable for HGVs, however it’s the only way in, so I went in, had terrible directions, went through Wisley village, tight as a ducks arse, managed to miss the unsignposted entrance and had to carry on to find a place to turn around. About a mile down was a 7.5 bridge and a car park with boulders, tried a blindside reverse with the whole pub garden watching, got a cheer when, after 10 minutes I stopped to let a load of cars past. Couldn’t be done in the end.
Called the office, weren’t terribly interested. So I had to call the police, who came and kindly closed the road both ends so I could reverse the whole mile back. Very steep learning curve for me and needless to say I always make sure I triple check addresses and get phone numbers if the address has the words street or lane in it!
I can laugh now but it was without doubt the worst day of my driving career.
owe dear mate that story sent shivers down my spine I’m going for my c+e this year and I know I’vegot all this to ccome but that’s the worst you’ve had and you got through it that’s the main thing
kemaro:
I hit this only last week , been a driver for many years but still make mistakes ,£2ks worth of damage to the door & steps … made three last week , the bump was one , delivered fuel to the wrong farm & over filled a tank by 200 litres , I blame the heat …
That post is seriously unlucky tho mate I had to study the pic just to see what you hit … and yes I agree it doesn’t mater how long you’ve been driving mistakes happen but ive found with experience less frequently and just simply not as stupid lol
Dipper_Dave:
Delivered a goods hoist to posh area of London once, unloaded it at about 6am (yes before the lorry ban)…then site foreman told me I had to scarper quick… drove 50 feet and smacked a lampost with the Hiab as I forgot to fold it away.
Haha that’s a classic love it loads of mistakes are made by people rushing newbies I just tell them to [zb] off now lol
Was picking up a tar layer a few year ago the day the new distributor road was opening in East Kilbride “get it to ■■■■ off site asap” ok goes up loads it on a farm track leave the extension pole for the beacon up goes to the first roundabout can hear a scraping sound cant see nothing in the mirrors thot must be a cone stuck under the trailer get it at the next roundabout,gets there goes round to the back and theres a telephone pole with the cable wrapped round the beacon pole oops!
gordonw:
Was picking up a tar layer a few year ago the day the new distributor road was opening in East Kilbride “get it to [zb] off site asap” ok goes up loads it on a farm track leave the extension pole for the beacon up goes to the first roundabout can hear a scraping sound cant see nothing in the mirrors thot must be a cone stuck under the trailer get it at the next roundabout,gets there goes round to the back and theres a telephone pole with the cable wrapped round the beacon pole oops!
Had this post to a similar topic I posted a while back I’ve had to include it because I thought this was hilarious
jbaz73:
attaboy! we are only human and mistakes happen. its how we deal with them that determines character if you had not given a zb then there’s something to worry about but you were shaken up and learned from the experience. trust me, it will make you a better driver
on my first week as an agency driver, I had a job on a bin lorry for cleanaway. I was on my own having to drive and keep getting out to empty the bins. near to the end of the shift I was knackered out and fed up. I had to squeeze into a tiny gap and reverse round a corner to get out. I was watching my mirrors as I rounded the corner, it was completely clear. the point at which I finished braking was when I must have just touched it. hindsight is a wonderful thing. anyway, when I put the gas on to reverse, nothing happened. I thought I may be on the kerb, so I gave it some boot to clear it… nothing! didn’t budge an inch! I switched on the rear camera… there was nothing there. I was exhausted, so I didn’t want to have to climb out, so one last time I gave it some clog! by now I’d come to the conclusion that the truck had a mechanical problem. I got out of the truck and walked around back. to my horror I saw a lamp post which I’d not seen in the mirrors and was just to the side of the camera! the light at the top of the lamppost was about 5 feet from the pavement, it was at an angle of about 30 degrees!!! I had not only reversed into it, I had sat there gunning the engine and spent about 5 minutes PUSHING IT OVER!
my reversing improved a thousand per cent that day! I have never to this day had another reversing accident
Don’t know about a laugh as I could have been killed.
21yrs old just passed my test, green as grass. Had to park on an angle to get into a space to drop trailer, so consequently the unit was at a steep angle to the trailer. Instead of winding legs down first I pulled the pin…with my head between unit mudguard and bottom side of trailer , had to move pretty ■■■■ quick when a trailer with 20ton of steel was rolling towards my stupid bloody head
I stopped for a break in a layby on a dual in a large city, just after I started driving three months ago. The layby was only just long enough for my 7.5tonner and about half a car behind me and had a sharp profile to it, meaning I needed to reverse slightly to be able to turn back onto the road to avoid the kerb. During the time I was sat there, a card as parked by a car-salesman behind me, so that it was half on the pavement and almost touching my bumper. At the end of my break I checked my mirrors, reversed slowly back straight into he car. No damage done, luckily, except to my ego.
Took a night trunk to a place 3 hrs away. When I arrived I opened the doors to see a completely empty trailer. Awkward phone call and 3 hrs back empty.
Had picked up trailer no. 8336 not 8366 as I was supposed to.
Felt like a proper nana walking back into the office. “err what do you need me to do next?”
The security bloke got a ticking off for letting me out with it too. He had changed the no. on the gate pass assuming it was a typo.
PS. it wasn’t always a full trailer so no, the fact is was light didn’t make me twig.
I have checked trl no.s and seals fanatically ever since
Looooo:
Took a night trunk to a place 3 hrs away. When I arrived I opened the doors to see a completely empty trailer. Awkward phone call and 3 hrs back empty.
Had picked up trailer no. 8336 not 8366 as I was supposed to.
Felt like a proper nana walking back into the office. “err what do you need me to do next?”
The security bloke got a ticking off for letting me out with it too. He had changed the no. on the gate pass assuming it was a typo.
PS. it wasn’t always a full trailer so no, the fact is was light didn’t make me twig.
I have checked trl no.s and seals fanatically ever since
That’s class so easily done but in a way it’s good because like you said you check them fanatically now it just shows that a mistake cam be all it takes to make sure in the future it’s not repeated
, but just for a good giggle let’s for a change point the finger at ourselves and share our stories of our own silly [zb] ups I’ve only been driving HGV a few years and have learnt so much (the hard way) at the time they were horrible and humiliating but now I can see they needed to be done to get where I am today…
