 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||
WEEK ONE
Wednesday 20th November 2002
We go to a town in Leicestershire and collect 1 standard road going ERF 32 ton tractor unit, 4 years old kindly donated to us by a truck dealer company whose name will have to be kept secret at this time.
We also negotiated with this company to have a complete spare chassis and cab, FOC as well, for spares in case of 1 or 2 heavy crashes in 2003. In return for carrying their name on our trucks. Thanks Nick - the value of this will only be a fraction of the project's total cost, but every little helps! She's already done 500,000kms on the road and is due for retirement, but we aim to make her the fastest, best looking ERF in the world, with our Detroit 60 series engine from the Volvo White to power her!
Thursday, 21st November 2002
We have to tow her off the trailer and push her into the workshop area because she won't start! Homesick I suppose!!
Before I can blink it's dinner time when I took these first photos, Ben's had the gas cutter out already and cut off the front bumper, wings and various air tanks etc., etc., to begin undressing her to see what's underneath.
We begin to visualise where the engine has to go - how to lower the cab and chassis ride height.
Saturday 23rd November
Saturday's are always fully taken with our fleet vehicles maintenance. It was also our annual British Truck Racing Association dinner and dance in Derbyshire, with the championship awards for the year. I picked up my 3rd place trophy with a glint in my eye, thinking about what next year could bring……….
A surprise award came Ben's way for the Mechanic of the Year. He was over the moon! Now he has started collecting trophies as well! But his has got a big spanner bolted to the top of it - he deserved it - he's prepared my truck single handed this year and kept me able to go on the track each day, sometimes having to work right through the night replacing brakes, repairing accident damage etc plus keeping it clean and tidy at all times at the meetings. Not forgetting the complete engine change he did after Germany in July, which saw me out on the track in August in Ireland - quite some achievement for a 19 year old lad.
I must just mention that Jessica was photographed on an air wheel nut gun, changing a wheel in Belgium, and Ben's girlfriend Kylie was caught on video on a torque wrench in the early hours of Sunday morning in Germany.
And of course, as always, Jane was there for us everywhere we went all year. Packing and unpacking suitcases, keeping us all fed and clothed and tidying up after us! A complete family affair! Thanks to all of them for supporting me in my hobby!!!
The party was a really good night and to cap it all off, a certain young, cocky, cheating race truck driver, with a silver and black truck got beaten up in the bar by a big fella from Burton-on-Trent, who didn't like what he said, or did to his wife earlier on the dance floor! This happened right in front of our guest French racers we had invited over for our party!
I wonder now, how they perceive the British Truck Race fraternity after seeing the Brits first hand both on and off the track!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|||||||||||||||