Well Ainacs, you certainly mentioned some good old mates and close buddies in there. Wally Hawkins, a great chap, “big” Jim Cokely, a legend, Pat Scorey, Bingo (whom we lost only a few weeks ago ) and many more. You must be of the same era as Charlie 1, Rexyu and myself by the sounds of it. Some of the old companies that you mention proves that. TTRH is one that I was thinking of just the other day, Transports Transit Robert Hue from Le Havre. He was a friend of Don Morris who used to run FCF Ltd, and that stood for Flowers (Kenny) Compton (Cecil) Furnell (?). Remember them?
And some of the drivers from Bournemouth region before the ferries from Poole. Arthur Bessant, Bill Bateman,Peter Gower, Barry Rice, Dave Moxey,Sean Moran and so many more. I’m sure that you could add quite a bit more to this thread and keep it alive as well as keep the memory going of characters that we have lost over the years. It’s good to hear all the anecdotes as well that can give us all a chuckle. Like Paddy “The sandles” cant remember his name now but drove for Phillips. When he came into Southampton on the ferry and the customs asked him if he’d anything to declare. “Only a bike that I bought for my son for Christmas” he said," it’s on the bunk". Thats OK said the customs officer we wont worry about that then.
The only thing was though he forgot to tell him that it was a 125cc and that wasn’t Paddy’s fault was it? By the way for those who don’t understand the sandles, because of foot aroma he would wear them snow or shine ( with socks ).
Hi TIR Original
Re: PBC and Frank Allen you said:
“At one time he worked very closely with a french company from Rouen called
SATCO”
Had a chat today with Scorey P today I showed him your post and he added this! The name of the french company was SNGT Societie Normandie Groupage Transport fun by an Englishman Mr Metcalfe who was married to a French woman Monique. Pat was driving a Foden a Taffy Thomas was driving a Berliet for PBC at that time.
Here are somemore Names to ponder over!
Steve Mathews, Polly, Tony Brady, Justin Kelly, Nick the Greek, Nigel Ainsworth, Mick Winterbourne, George the Bear Eames, Phil Grant, Brain Damage, Micky Olio Cairns, Sean the Captain Moran, Harry Day, Bob Cartwright, Little Matty (Callaghan), John Bingo Dollery, The Mackness’s Maurie and Trevor,
Finally Charlie was it Gary the Fuzz who was with you (for a while anyway lol) Jamesons
Regards Pat
Ainacs, my regards to both you and Pat. And yes Pat is absolutely correct about Metcalfe and SNGT but surely Pat remembers SATCO in Rouen where he would have filled up with deisel and if it were during the night he would write his reg no. in chalk on the board and the number of litres. ( and if an owner driver should slip in there and use one of their numbers by accident I’m sure you couldn’t blame him). What about Peter ( jellylegs) Stansbridge RIP., for it was him bless his heart that showed me the routine as he was getting fed up withe the taste of deisel. Also can Pat remember the agent in Paris, I think his name was Jean-Claude Max De La Porte. Known as Max.
Hi Pat. Welcome to this thread. Having some great fun remembering all those long gone but not forgotton names. Yes it was Gary the Fuzz who was with me at Concorrezo.Never forget him.He could not stop saying sorry.All water under the bridge.Dredge up some more names.Saw Polly a few weeks ago.On two sticks now.Looking old.
TIR
Sean Morran is still about (last seen by me when on STS ) Mick Furnell died in a house fire in Wareham just before Christmas and Kenny Flower (my wifes cousin ) is still about at Longham . After Cecil Compton died it was run by Mark Compton ( Sean worked there too ) ,but what happened to it I dont know ,but all their old yard has been re-developed.
TIR
Paddy was Paddy Keoghan still driving lives in Portsmouth him and his brother Phil both drove for me!
When we were taking TVs to Milan (Clear customs Rogerado tip Rho) the two of them would run together and enter both T forms on the same page of one of my EEC Books! they both saved a few Italian permit between them!! Then in December when we wanted them stamped they would use one on the way in and another on the way out! They were disapointed at that “took the fun out of the job” Phil told me!!
Talking of permits remember Lenny Carman? I’ll let you relate his escapades!
Paddy worked for Ken Lane too and phoned Ken up one day saying his clutch had gone at the French side of the Blanc after he had parked for the night, Ken never heard another word then Paddy arrives back to the yard! Turns out nothing wrong with the clutch he was parked on ice!!!
Good old days and we still always did a trip aweek!! Some managed 2 Italy’s aweek!!!
Regards Pat
Yes of course Pat I remember Paddys’ surname now but you really must allow me my senior moments. They seem to be more frequent nowadays. As for Ken Lane we were very good mates and I was even part of Springroad Transport at one time ‘cause if it hadn’t been for me it mightn’t have existed. But thats very ,very private and only explained personally. Do you remember Kens’ V 8 Mandator ? I bought it off him one night in a Southampton pub. We were both p**sed out of our heads and agreed £2,000 for it, the deal being done on the back of a B&H ■■■ packet. He rang me up the next day and said I didn’t need to stand to the deal because he had just heard it was on the way back from Milan on the back of a low loader, broken down. I stuck to the deal and he got it fixed and I then ran it for two years only replacing a fan belt !
(Oh, and a battery 'cause the driver forgot to disconnect it before tilting the cab).
You mentioned telly’s to Milan but did you ever do the telly’s to Domodossola ? Me and Bingo went over the Simplon in the middle of winter doing those bloody telly’s but thats a story for another occasion. They keep on about the books written on the Middle East but I bet if we wrote a book on the pranks we got up to it would be a best seller. I’m doing a thread soon about Cluses and the famous “red stamp”.
Yes TIR
We did loads and loads of tellys Domadossola, Pat Scorey really loved Swiss so I would send him there as often as I could. The good thing about Tvs were you could go Cenis as they only weighed about 7 tons. I remember going that way with Sean (Captain) Moran and Mick (Olio) Cairns on probably one of the last times they allowed artics fairly late in the summer, I think they were both on for Mark Compton Sean had Ian Elkins’ old sandy coloured F89 and Mick an ex Rawlings F12.
Although Paddy and Phil used to take 27 tons of steel over Cenis in tilts with Springroad Marathons!! Of course you would know that!LOL
Regards Pat
Good old Mont Cenis, just about my favourite route. Must be some of the best scenery on that route and bags of history. From the journey of Haniball and his elephants right up to the flooding of the village to make the reservoir. You can still see the church spire at low water. Remember when John (farmer) Smith went that way with I think Mickey Leach and they swapped trailers cause Smithy was subbying for Skillbeech and Mickey ( or was it Johnny Lee ) was actually driving for them. Smithy had a load of carbon black and the other a light load. Smithy changed trailers for the ecconomy and they arranged to swap back again just after Turin. Trouble was when Smithy reached the Turin tangenziale the traffic came to a stop 'cause there was his trailer parked on its side and his load of carbon black all over the road. Try talking your way out of that ! ! Like I’ve said to Charlie, great times, great blokes and great stories. You really couldn’t make it up could you ?
Hi TO
It was probably John Lee ( I saw him last week works for a plant hire company) don’t think Mick Leech drove for Skillbeech, he now has his own lowloader a Bright Yellow 4 series Scania still racking up the miles.
Other names to ponder ‘Eurokay’ didn’t last long I think, HEL International TonyHilton, Les Emery, and Ken Lane. Also Green Sash?
Anyone remember Winky? Was driving for an Italian firm (Detra I think) last time I saw him.
John Pike ex Transport Services, Jim Chandler. Is living in Italy and has finally stopped driving has many many photos and kept a comprehensive diary and can account for all the many miles that he has driven! Will ask Pat Scorey if he has a pc and try to get him online!!
TIR how can I upload pics is there a secret? All I get when I press Img button is this [/img]!!!
Regards Pat
Hi TIR
ainacs:
Photo Storage
It’s been about 35 years now, but is that truck standing opposite the old Dogana in Turin? .
Hi Rexyu
I believe it was in Novara the driver is Jim Tomasjeski (Ski) and would have been taken around 1983/4.
I dare say some of our more learned members will be able to confirm this!
Regards Pat
Hi again Ainacs, and I reckon you are about spot on with the photo. Yes of course it was John Lee in the tangenziale incident but thats just me and another of my senior moments. Blimey mate you certainly are jogging my memory with a few things just the same as Charlie and Rexyu have done. It wasn’t until my son put me on to this site that I needed to bring things to mind that had been long forgotten. And theres plenty more that the young’uns never had the pleasure of knowing about, such as when we got to Italy we had to pay a fine for being single manned. Every Italian truck back then was right hand drive the same as us and had by law to be double manned. As long as we kept our reciept for the fine it would normally last for the duration of the trip days in Italy. I dont remember when it was abolished but must have been 1969 or so. Can anyone help me there? I know there was a few crackpots who tried the blow up doll and the old tailors dummy in the passenger seat but I bet it didnt work really.
By the way you mentioned Winky. The last time I saw him was at Domodossola he was pulling for STS. Also there was Bingo, Johnny Lee and again quite a few more that I cant call to mind at the moment but just before he shipped out he had fallen between two trailers in the yard and looked as if he’d gone 25 rounds with Mike Tyeson. Not a pretty sight !!!
Ask Johnny Lee about this trip when you see him 'cause he started a fight in the bar and in the finnish a big ginger Italian driver left in a huff and reckoned he would run us all off the road one by one in his truck. He then jumped into his car and done a wheelspin reverse straight into the side of my underrun bar on the back of my trailer !! Now I can promise you this ain’t a good Idea in a little Fiat with a rear mounted engine. Ask John for the result.
Hi TIR
I will ask Johnny Lee I was only talking to him less than an hour ago and happened to mention that his name had come up on here he is going to come in the yard and have a cuppa and I will show him the forum I bet he will bring back some memories!
Don’t remember the 2 man thing (before my day) but I remember on one trip someone had seen a 1/2 cab Foden (Sealand I think) coming down the Blanc into Aosta and allegedly he had been fined for only having 1/2 a cab LOL How true that is I don’t know, I do remember seeing MAT day cab scania 110’s in Italy though.
My first trip was in a ‘K’ reg Scania 110 short wheelbase sleeper with an Extra Kangaroo trailer for Searoute Ferry i 79 with a huge wooden crate (It couldn’t go on the train) got stopped at the tunnel apparently I’d rang a bell and had to be measured for hieght was ok though but didn’t have a clue what they were on about! Tipped Rho and loaded cured skins at Arzignano grossed 37tons (32 was limit then!) when I complained that the limit should be 32 was told by the agent to find my own if I didn’t like it!!!
I was wrongly worried at getting up the Blanc but on speaking to a driver at Transitalia in Milan while waiting to clear, he told me not to worry about going up it was the going down I should worry about. But all was well as the old Scanias always had good exhaust brakes! The olny problem with the old Scanias though was that the exhauster cut the engine wich I’ve heard caused a few accidents going down twisty inclines as they had habit of jumping out of gear with then meant no power streeing!!!
Around that time do you remember Cardin from Whitchurch Hants had a White Road Commander did Italy for Searoute?
Regards Pat
I remember Cardin Wyndham very well. A real gentleman.Last saw him in the mid eighties.AT that time he was running a tyre company in Andover.Another name from the past.Do you remember Stan Long Terry Sparrow( Well hard man.Ex 2 Para) Had a few scuffles with nim by my side.Jim Street (Rainbow Transport) Another gent. Ian Hellawell.Worked with him on Mays Motors in the early sixties.And not forgetting the famous Stratton Bros.
There you are Pat, you’ve got Charlie interested. I do wish though that I had been one for taking photos 'cause the only pictures I have are all in the old memory box and you cant share them with others. When John comes in then you have to ask him how ,when stoned out of his mind that he explained to the Italian population in Domodossola that he was Scottish.
His answer was to take off his trousers, wrap a towel round his waist for a kilt and hang a girlie washbag off his waist as a sporran ! ! I think thats what got old ginger going and the next thing caribaneri everywhere. (and bits of Fiat engine and oil all down the road)
Hi Carlie and TIR
Yes Cardin was areal gent didn’t his dad have something to do with Uniroyal Tyres?
Yes I remember Terry and Stan A right cockney if I remember rightly.
Jim Street came to my house last year to look a an American RV I was selling had agood chat he was still going to France occasionally for Ron Grffiths(STS)’ son Stuart.
Horace Ransome ran Scanias firstly for Searoute the mainly Southern Transport
Albert stratton I had dealings with him as Crusader Industries which he ran with Dave East RIP from a unit in Empress Road.
Andy Anzaluka
Mark Venus
Ron Blackman RIP ran acouple of Leylands on Rawlings a likeable rogue if ever there were one!
Terry and Tony Gover (Roy’s sons) who ran Gotrans for awhile.
Chris Offert (the Kuba Libra Kid) Allegedly in a dispute put one of Gotrans 88’s on the slipway at Lee on Solent pulled out the hand throttle let it run into the sea! How true that is I don’t know!
Seeing Jonny Lee on Monday morning so will daresay have a few more tales and names for you all to remember.
I’n a bit surprized that no one has mentioned my name yet!!! 
Yes the “Cuba Libre Kid”. Sounds like a western don’t it, only if you know him more like a comedy. Had some laughs in his company and I believe even one time seeing him almost sober. That must have been at Irun before he polished of the trayfull of Cuba Libras whilst sitting on my deisel tank at 07.30 in the morning. So you did some work for Albert Stratton then ? I bet you are still waiting for the cheque ! But dont worry I’m sure its in the post with the others. It’s a great pity though when you think of what he had at one stage. to be the 2nd biggest haulier in the town, a 40’ yacht and Rolls Royce to next to nothing. ■■■■ happens though even I had a few bob once but went back into transport. Will we ever learn ?
Small language edit 
D.
Hi TIR
When I say I had dealings with him I meant I sold him a couple of Scania Tractors got paid eventually! Then had to quickly go down to Empress Rd to collect one and a Volvo back off him as a fitter that he or Dave East had, Terry I think his name was smashed up 3 cars in Empress Rd whilst out in it testing he wasn’t used to LHD! 
Suppose the insurance was in the post with the Tax
Dave Coombes the Volvo breaker came down there with me.
After that I bought an old DAF Rigid I think it was off him when he was running a company from Harlines old yard by Lorraines/ Itchen Bridge in town.
Last time I saw Albert was in hospital at an outpatients clinic he didn’t look at all well
Regards Pat