I really couldnt second that more about transmed insurance as they were first class in the times i was involed with them. The first time was when frank ended up in the hospital at atbasar(kazak). At 25 it made me grow up over night and realise how vunerable you could be stuck in kazakhstan with only the hope that you will be rescued sooner rather than later. With frank stuck at the hospital and me stuck at the police post it was a comfort to have the people from transmed take control of things at the hospital and put both our minds at ease that we were in safe hands. If you had seen the wards in the hospital you would have thought differently though. One day on visiting him there was a patient lying in the corridor on a trolly in major distress and all the staff just passed him as if he was invisable. A nurse who spoke some english told me the mans family had no money for any treatment and they would get to him as soon as they could but it was soon lunch time so he might wait a while!!! I was in the hospital with frank 6 hours and that man was still lying in the corridor when i left to go back to the truck. Frank said to me next day the man was still there when he headed for bed but thankfully he wasnt there at breakfast next day
Regarding the post on the T-shirts, I came up with the original Embroidered design, then for a laugh, i got a printer to print up some, lite hearted t shirts that included Who the F**k is Ralph Davies, also include a picture of me changing trucks with Paul Danter in a services in france, with most of our kit strewn across the car park, with “on the move with Ralph Davies” , Ralph being Ralph saw the funny side, He did order lots of the embroidered shirts coats etc.
sorry for the jack of the original post
p.s. I notice at the begining of the thread, there was a post saying that RD was still doing spain when others were doin Moscow & beyond, simple reason for that is noone had offered him work that way that paid enough money, contuary to popular belief Mr R, wouldnt work for nothing, always got paid to destination that way & back into 1st Western country.
Also I have somewhere a picture of an Irish haulier leaving moscow, running futher east, picture was taken in, 1988/89
Another slight hi-jack.Sorry I used to know a Paul Danter(from the Midlands) quite well -is this the same man you’re talking about?Lost touch a good few years ago.He was running to the Ford plant in Spain then.Is he still doing OK?
UnionJack:
Regarding the post on the T-shirts, I came up with the original Embroidered design, then for a laugh, i got a printer to print up some, lite hearted t shirts that included Who the F**k is Ralph Davies, also include a picture of me changing trucks with Paul Danter in a services in france, with most of our kit strewn across the car park, with “on the move with Ralph Davies” , Ralph being Ralph saw the funny side, He did order lots of the embroidered shirts coats etc.
sorry for the jack of the original post
p.s. I notice at the begining of the thread, there was a post saying that RD was still doing spain when others were doin Moscow & beyond, simple reason for that is noone had offered him work that way that paid enough money, contuary to popular belief Mr R, wouldnt work for nothing, always got paid to destination that way & back into 1st Western country.
Also I have somewhere a picture of an Irish haulier leaving moscow, running futher east, picture was taken in, 1988/89
Hi UnionJack
Good to see where the origins of the teashirts came from. Most times running to tashkent i used to change money with a little lad called nasim who one day showed me his little book of foreign trucks that had past through and which ones who had changed money with him. He showed me the regs of three RD trucks which he then told me were loaded with computers for tashkent, he said the driver of one had told him the load! They sometimes loaded back for cash with an armed ■■■■■■ in one cab from kazak to moscow and so did many others at the time.
UnionJack:
p.s. I notice at the begining of the thread, there was a post saying that RD was still doing spain when others were doin Moscow & beyond, simple reason for that is noone had offered him work that way that paid enough money, contuary to popular belief Mr R, wouldnt work for nothing, always got paid to destination that way & back into 1st Western country.
that’d be me, albeit lightheartedly, just pointing out that RD weren’t “pioneers” of that work, only getting in on it late.
I’d strongly disagree about the rates not being enough early on bit; after 2/3 years the rates had fallen by a good 40% which wasn’t realistic even though the job had by then been sussed out to a certain extent. i didn’t/wouldn’t say that he worked for nothing though
Is this the gilder groveling society have I missed some thing did Peter say he was going to mention you in his will. The only man on peters that done a lot of tramping and not a lot of chopsing was Mr Mark Self I went with him to Russia in 1986 yes 1986. Mark used to go to a lot of tasty places and you never heard any of this sh’''t. You boys keep er chopping the trophy cabinate is empty
The real Basher:
Is this the gilder groveling society have I missed some thing did Peter say he was going to mention you in his will. The only man on peters that done a lot of tramping and not a lot of chopsing was Mr Mark Self I went with him to Russia in 1986 yes 1986. Mark used to go to a lot of tasty places and you never heard any of this sh’''t. You boys keep er chopping the trophy cabinate is empty
Welcome along basher. You will find nobody is looking for trophies but we would like to hear about your trip in 86 and any others you may wish to share!! And even better if you have some nice photos aswell
The real Basher:
Is this the gilder groveling society have I missed some thing did Peter say he was going to mention you in his will. The only man on peters that done a lot of tramping and not a lot of chopsing was Mr Mark Self I went with him to Russia in 1986 yes 1986. Mark used to go to a lot of tasty places and you never heard any of this sh’''t. You boys keep er chopping the trophy cabinate is empty
My old guv’nor was running to Russia/Ukraine in the mid-80’s and was in Kiev when Chernoble went up in nuclear smoke. They were met by the British Consulate officials to be geiger (sp) counted, including the aluminium step-frame box trailers, although the officials were’nt interested in the welfare of the drivers, only the condition of the Bolshoi Ballet dancers costumes inside the box’s. Drivers were expendable, dancers not!! That was also 1986.
There is no pictures It was a mission that was done then move on to the next project.Back then men didnt keep talking a good job. Not wishing to sound like a grumpy old man ,but you will never get the drivers rates up to somewhere near where they should be untill you get some steal and stand your ground. You cannot go to the supermarket and say any chance on a reduction on my groceries I drive a Scania. At the moment I am driving a 04 Foden up an down Ireland and the reward is more than some clown blowing is brains out up and down the continent. And Im home every night in my own cot so I remember I used to take 4 decks of lambs from calaie to rodez round trip 2450km I used to do three loads a week and one to paris on sat morning.
This was in 1989 an I was paid a lot of rivetts I had the job was took of me by a driver for half what I was boing it for.The moral of this story is as long as you look at the lorry as an extention of your ■■■■■ you will never be rich. The haulage contractors worked this out a long time ago. Good luck so Keep er lit
Grumpy old man? Anyone can talk a good job but most on here are talking about what happened and not some made up stories in cafes and ferries for an audience. Personally i have nothing to prove as yes i have some photos but my biggest regret was working more than relaxing and not taking more photos as the job seen to it you couldnt relax after moscow because of the lack of safe parking. After samara going to chymkent or to turkmenistan or tenghiz this photo is the parking you can expect
Anyway wasnt it easier going east in the 80s? Thats the opinion of guys i know who have done 80s, 90s and 2000
colin.f.whitetrans:
Anyway wasnt it easier going east in the 80s? Thats the opinion of guys i know who have done 80s, 90s and 2000
s’about right i reckon - while you’re a novelty you are welcomed and treat better, before every petty official and small time local crook realises you’re actually a big moneybox on wheels. if there’s a who got there first arguement brewing, one of gordon (G.C) morley’s went in 1964
good to have another grumpy chip-on-shoulder contributor anyway basher, we’re ALWAYS short of them
The real Basher:
Is this the gilder groveling society have I missed some thing did Peter say he was going to mention you in his will. The only man on peters that done a lot of tramping and not a lot of chopsing was Mr Mark Self I went with him to Russia in 1986 yes 1986. Mark used to go to a lot of tasty places and you never heard any of this sh’''t. You boys keep er chopping the trophy cabinate is empty
My old guv’nor was running to Russia/Ukraine in the mid-80’s and was in Kiev when Chernoble went up in nuclear smoke. They were met by the British Consulate officials to be geiger (sp) counted, including the aluminium step-frame box trailers, although the officials were’nt interested in the welfare of the drivers, only the condition of the Bolshoi Ballet dancers costumes inside the box’s. Drivers were expendable, dancers not!! That was also 1986.
Regards,
Mark.
That reminded me of a story one taxi driver from Tyumen, Siberia, told me once when I was there on a project.
He and his mate went to Kiev on the train to drive cars back to Siberia, upshot of it was his mate stayed on to see family & thehe went on…right at the time it went off. He got shanghai’d in to going up to clean it up…and never came back
I always tried to eat at the side of the road as much as possible and keep the food in my trailer side box for when i couldnt get anywhere.
This was a place just outside samarkand where there was a few kebab houses looking to please you. Maybe not to everyones taste but i used to enjoy the food they dished out. Some you could sit inside and get away from the intense heat. The locals always did all they could to make you welcome
The video above has been taking at the same place as these photos on the way to turkmenistan. These photos are at the bottom of the hill when the road levelled out
Anybody remember a story coming out late 90s about a roadside kebap shop somewhere like Ufa being closed down for selling human meat? Google only throws up a more recent story from 2009 in Perm of same thing
There was a pair in Bukhara who were selling organs…I’ve an idea they were offering students the chance to travel abroad, inviting them around to have their innoculations only to put them “under” and start stripping the bits off.
I suppose nothing ventured nothing gained!!! Seriously though i suppose you never know what you are eating when you are travelling and its maybe a good job aswell. The night i went out in nukus with an egyption i was staying with we went to a place who were trying to give us dog soup. The lad i was with didnt know the russian word for dog so i declined for us both and we had the kebabs!!! Maybe they were dog kebabs
I used to know a Paul Danter(from the Midlands) quite well -is this the same man you’re talking about?Lost touch a good few years ago.He was running to the Ford plant in Spain then.Is he still doing OK?
