Truckfest rolls on from strength to strength!
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What can you say about Truckfest that hasn't been said before? It's the industry's leading showcase where everyone from owner-drivers to the biggest fleets in Britain compete for awards including Commercial Motor's Best Kept Working Truck—and, as the pictures with this report show, the standard was higher than ever. Unlike most other trucking events, Truckfest was also a chance for hauliers and their drivers to let their hair down with displays in the main arena, celebrities including East Enders stars Martine (Tiff) McCutcheon and Ross (Grant) Kemp, TV personality Bobby Davro, and a staggering range of trucks and equipment. A number of exhibitors and contestants were suggesting that a date slightly later in the year might improve the chance of fine weather (that was Sunday) but in the event no one seemed to mind too much, and on Monday we all enjoyed brilliant sunshine...roll on Truckfest '99!
• Truckfest judge Paul Tibbs casts an experienced eye over Keith Johnson's Armstrong Steel lorry. Johnson had persuaded his boss in Worcester to let him and colleague Tony Chance loose at the show. "He told us to go and have fun," he laughed, giving his mirror a final polish, "so we're here for the beer!" There were 14 judges at the show; most of them, like Tibbs, hold full HGV1 licences.
ip As Truckfest's sponsor, CM is always on hand to meet its readers and, like everyone else at the site, to enjoy the unique atmosphere of Europe's premier celebration of all things trucking. This year we were kept busy with a special deal on subscriptions; next door our colleagues on Truck & Driver attracted crowds with their popular range of regalia. • PTS runs 20 CVs and specialises in Scandinavian groupage work: managing director Rob Gaunt set up in business in 1980. This was his first Truckfest and he was impressed, but suggested that a date later in the summer might improve the chances of better weather! Pictured (from left) are drivers Paul, Tony, Bob, Pete and Kevin, with Rob on the right. • David Gill of EA Gill & Son is the third generation of the Offord Cluny, Huntingdon-based general haulier—and winner of Britain's Best Kept Working Truck competition, sponsored by Commercial Motor. Gill runs four artics on UK grain and fridge work. His 6x2 Foden 4350 was working up till 4 o'clock on the Friday afternoon before heading for Truckfest (see page 21).
• Back in the 1920s Donald Knight set up in the village of Old, near Northampton. There are now more than 50 wagons in the Knights of Old fleet, handling general haulage with a lot of international work. Pictured (from left) are Graeme Peddle, Graham Campbell, Paul Kernick, Keith Peddle and Dave Purden.
* Unsung heroes of Truckfest: How do you arrange more than 1,000 of Britain's finest wagons on a crowded site? Simple— you get organisers Live Promotions' crack team to do it for you. Kricket, Cowboy, Andy, The Coach and Lot were also kept busy moving 20 or so wagons stranded in the mud. • Steve Parrish was on hand to show off Mercedes-Benz' 1998 truck racing challenger with its new Atego-based cab design. The centrally mounted twin-turbo veesix engine uses 4.8 bar of boost to produce 1,250hp. Transmission is through a five-speed rear transaxle, although only three of the ratios are normally used in racing. The suspension now has coil springs all round. An electronically controlled anti-roll bar system has three preset position switches on the steering wheel which can be selected for different parts of a circuit. • Volvo generated some serious statistics with its VN770 US-spec bonneted tractor, the only one in Europe: this 425-horsepower 6x4 has a wheelbase of 5.1 metres, and weighs 9,580kg. It's 8.7m long overall, is 4.8m from the nose to the back of the cab, and has twin 570-litre tanks. The cab offers 2.49m of standing height, has a 19in television and accommodated up to 12 people at a time. Not surprisingly, it also drew the longest queues in the show.
• Volvo beat Foden and Iveco to an Army order for 121 of these 6x6 chassis, which are being built in Irvine. The FL12-380 chassis is an adaptation of a German-market heavy-duty construction vehicle, with T-ride high suspension. The 4.6m steel body is by Edbro, and there is a Hiab crane fitted with a Kinshofer bucket. The Swedish firm is celebrating its 70th anniversary with the XL-70, a limited edition of 800 high-spec FH tractors priced at around £85,000.
• Local trailer specialist Nene Trailers had this versatile Extenda-Deck low-loader on show. Aimed the agricultural haulage market, the trailer has length extension of up to two metres in three stages. There's variable width extension up to 600mm each side which can be carried out by one person with a standard wheelbrace. The trailer can carry 30 tonnes when closed up to 13.6m, with an unladen weight of 11.5 tonnes. Running gear is by Hendrickson. Iveco Ford was displaying this EuroTrakker 320E34 with demountable skip bodywork in the colours of CA Charles/Newmarket Skip Hire. The Oldham-built 8x4 is the light-duty version of the range, designed for on-highway use and is fitted with rubber suspension. Power is from the Iveco 340hp 9.5-litre straight-six. The Retech Skipmaster body is lifted with Multilift gear. • ERF unveiled its EC15, the 14.6-litre, 550hp Caterpillar 3406-powered tractive unit developed first as a Western Star model for export—CM will be test-driving this truck very soon. Cummins power still predominates, but the Caterpillar Cl2 and Detroit Diesel Series 60 also appeared in EC tractive units: ERF now claims to offer more engine variants than any other tractor maker in the world.
• Biggest (in every sense) attraction on Leyland Daf's stand was this Model 379 from fellow Paccar company Peterbilt. The truck is an intriguing mixture of nineties technology and forties styling. Its 525hp is provided by a 14-litre Cummins driving through an Eaton Fuller transmission with no less than 18 forward ratios. Inside, the driver sits on a leather-trimmed Recaro seat with electric everything, stir -34 ring a metre-long gearstick festooned with loose control wires. The dash is a mixture of traditional chrome-bezelled instruments and real wood veneer, with hi-tech electronics. Window lifts are air powered. The accomodation area uses the Jnibilt system, which allows the "living room" to be transferred to a new cab unit. The area has a halfmetre space between the seats and the bed, tall enough for a six-footer to stand up, and comes complete with walk-in wardrobes. • Foden was another manufacturer with a healthy mix of engines: Cummins and Caterpillar power was shared among the latest Alpha 2000 and 3000 models, while the vehicle everybody wanted to climb over was the Cat C12powered 4000 XL 6x4 tractor. Another Caterpillar Foden was this Alpha 3000 8x4 tipper chassis, with a 380 horsepower C10. Equipped with a Foden FF20 rubber-suspended rear bogie and lightweight alloy wheels, this robust-looking 5.75m-wheelbase model weighs in at around 8.3 tonnes. • Eddie Stobart spotters were able to tick off more than 60 of the Carlisle-based firm's vehicles at one of the most popular stands at the show. Forty Stobart drivers from all over the country accompanied several senior managers, including Edward Stobart himself, for the company's first serious appearance at Truckfest. There were 58 Volvo FH tractor units and two units and trailers including a recently purchased drawbar. Stobart fans were able to buy the hugely popular merchandise and talk to the drivers. Stobart manager Eddie Riddle told CM the company decided to attend to show how proud it is to be a part of the haulage industry and give the public a chance to examine the vehicles at close quarters.
• The Road Haulage Association made its Truckfest debut with the recently acquired office which doubles as a Crane Fruehauf bulk trailer. RHA director John Chapman and president Bob McKinnon were on hand to talk to existing members and show potential ones the RHA's range of services and show off its new internet sites. • Two new exhibitors at the show were Mark Walmsley and Mark Smith of Immingham-based Exxtor Haulage who brought these two Renault Premium 210s down from North Lincs. The company runs more than 20 vehicles on domestic and international work—the two were very complimentary about the new Renaults in which they spend most nights out each week. • David Bateman, the son of owner-driver JJ, explained that his Happy Wanderer nickname has been passed down through his family for 40 years. This is the 10th time David has been to Truckfest; Happy Wanderer is also his CB handle. David added that his father owns two trucks—the other one is called the Solway Roamer—and the company transports animal feed, raw materials and coal throughout the country.
• Murray Grant from Buckie has owned his Braveheart truck for three years now. He commissioned the paintings of Rob Roy and a Highland lady from a painter in Dundee. The nickname Braveheart came about after a Dutchman in a truck display in Holland kept saying the word to Grant whenever he passed the truck. "It's the only word he said to me," said Grant. He transports paper to the Continent and finds his wagon is always the centre of attention. • The monkey on the front of Bruce Winton's truck has no name but he is confident it will have by the end of the weekend! The monkey is appropriate, as Winton transports bananas up and down the UK for Geest of Stansted in Essex. This was Winton's first visit to Truckfest since 1992; and he's impressed by the way the show has developed in the past six years: "It's so much bigger than it ever was before," he says.
*The Western Crusader is one of 22 trucks owned by W Sweeting and Sons of Sandford near Bristol with Western in the title. Driver Mark Parsons, who transports bricks and blocks to building sites for Sweeting, explained the trucks, including the Crusader and Western Venturer, are named after old steam trains. "We are getting like Stobart aren't we?" he said. Parsons was unhappy with the large presence of Eddie Stobart trucks at this year's show. "There are too many of his trucks here," he said. "They are dominating the show—showing off." However Truckfest for Parsons remains the event that keeps him going throughout the summer. • Shanks Driver William Dow has entered his new 1931 AEC Mammoth in to the Vintage Truck competition and spent Truckfest's Sunday morning busily polishing. William bought it from Tom Shanks Haulage from Bo'Ness only five weeks ago after he was made redundant from his last job. Now working with Woodwaste of Bo'Ness Dow transporting recycled goods, he takes the old truck on road runs and to vintage rallies. Dow says he had his eye on the AEC Mammoth for months but only decided to make his bid for it after the disappointment of losing his job. • Livestock hauliers have long been under-represented at Truckfest but family firm Alf Arrowsmith & Son sent down this selection of vehicles from Market Drayton. The firm was set up in 1928 and the grandson of Alf now drives a Daf 85 unit in the company's distinctive livery. According to Dave Arrowsmith, it has survived the beef crisis by hauling pigs and bulk feeds. Arrowsmith runs nine vehicles in total; this is its fourth year at Truckfest. • It's good to see there are some new firms starting in haulage despite the constant struggle against costs. Paultanya bought its first truck from Hayton Coulthard, grand prix driver David Coulthard's father, about 18 months ago; hence the Scottish livery and decoration. All profits from its 15-hour days are being reinvested to buy new trucks which spend five-and-a-half days on the road and a day being cleaned. They're also serviced every four weeks before going back on long-haul duties.
• This truck should win a prize for character if nothing else. You can see the purple and blue from the outside but what is not immediately apparent is what's inside. The seats are decked out in leopard skin, the curtains are red velour with yellow tassels and there's an extra curtain dividing the bunk from the cab proper. Kay's Scania is a 142M vee-eight with added airhorns and beacons; for a final touch there's a pink trim to the wheels! • There are a fair few airbrushed trucks at Truckfest but a fleet of them is somewhat of a rarity. This collection belongs to RD Gill who hopes to have as many as 12 in this livery by the end of the year. The picture on the back of the cab comes from the same person who helped on the design for the Alien films. Most of Roy's trucks are Scanias but he's also bought the latest Daf 95XF. Based in Buxton, Derbyshire, his main business is hauling plasterboard to Scotland. His best at Truckfest so far is second in the People's Choice but he's hoping to beat that this year.
• This old T-cabbed Scania was bought to celebrate 80 years of Dutch company Jan Dohmen. It was then bought by Frost Transport and is now driven by Tim Doel. This was his first Truckfest but he's used to people looking at his truck: "They're usually envious of the driver's room," he says. The only downside is that it's geared for Holland's roads so it does 1,800rpm at 56mph when he's hauling hazardous chemicals from Immingham. He'd like to move up to the latest 1-cab (if his boss is listening) but above all wants to stay with bonneted trucks. As it says on the back of Tim's wagon: Life's too short to drive an ugly truck! • At its fourth consecutive Truckfest, this Foden 4320 6x2 with mid-lift axle belongs to EA Gill & Son, based in Huntingdon. Fitted with a 350hp Cummins engine and bullbars, it's done more than 500,000 miles in five years and is the company's fifth Foden since 1978. David Gill, grandson of the founder, expects at least a 10-year life from the truck, which is mainly used for bulk grain transport. • Normally used to haul turf and potatoes, this attratively decorated Volvo FH12 4x2 420hp tractor owned by Gilbert Richardson of Barnby Moor, York, will be carrying a much more important load in a couple of weeks' time, when James Richardson, son of the founder, gets married. It will take him and bride Lisa from the church to their reception. At Truckfest James had it entered in Best Kept Owner-Driver and Working Custom Truck categories. • The first British entrant in the Europa Truck Trials being held across Europe and televised by Eurosport, Extreme Machines had its Czech-built competition Tatra 813 vee12, 18-litre 8x8 on display, which will compete in the heavyweight category. The vehicle is an ex-Russian army vehicle with 20 forward and four reverse gears, designed to tow 100 tonnes and fitted with a dropside cargo body. A special roll cage retrofitted to it weighs just under 500kg. Drivers John Dunford and Neil Dineen are still looking for sponsorship, particularly for sea crossings and general travel expenses. Anyone who can help should contact Neil on 01722 323182.
• On his first visit to Truckfest, David Giles of St Mary's Transport was showing this Volvo FH380 6x2 livestock rigid with Parkhouse lifting floor and the motif "Bullocks to the EU" on the front. Whether this refers to Giles' political beliefs or typical load is unclear but all his work takes place within the UK.
• This ex-US Army International 6x4 bomb carrier with a six-tonne Atlas crane, entered in the Best Classic and Restored category, was found scrapped by Chris Brailsford of CH Brailsford in April 1993 and just one month later appeared, completely restored including its original 14-litre Cummins engine, at Truckfest '93. He bought the bonneted truck for £4,000, restored it himself for another £1,500 and now uses it for low-loader work. "I wanted something interesting and eyecatching," explained Chris. The high-roof cab isn't a standard feature—Chris took it off a Ford Transit and grafted it on himself.