Single-track roads.......

[Migmac]

Indeed they are, but some of the big telehandlers have 4 wheel steer, which is quite impressive.

It always makes me smile when we’re running long loads with an extended fully steering trailer, and the steersman is at the back remotely operating the steering. To see an artic lorry stretched open and crabbing sideways still impresses me, like so:

This looks to me like the turn on the A87 just east of Loch Cluanie, on the road to Skye, up the road to the wind farm overlooking Glen Garry. On days like that, you have to have complete faith in your steersman, it’s definitely not for the faint hearted .

Local to me that firm. Son works for them

 

[4String.]

Brave man taking an artic down that road. I hate it, views are stunning though. Folk from C’town go up the main road and cut across to get the Arran ferry rather than go up the single track road

The sheer “joie de vivre” that I get from driving these roads more than outweighs the bad parts.

Okay, there’s plenty of errant motorists who shouldn’t really be allowed out on their own and a lot of the time is spent crawling along in the bottom half of the gearbox wondering what’s round the next blind bend, but who cares!! For me, it really doesn’t get any better than driving around the Scottish Highlands and Islands. Absolutely stunning scenery, friendly locals who are happy to yield the road to me and always respond with a smile and a wave, wildlife encounters at every turn, and seafood to die for.

People think I’m joking when I tell them that there’s many a day when I’d quite happily do my job for nothing. Secretly, I’m not .

 

[cheb]

Quite a lot of that^. And I'm only driving a big Transit.

 

[Gareth J]

,
Truck driver ends up reversing it out of the way , he'd prob still be there otherwise .

My old man used to delight in telling the story of when shifting cattle he once had to reverse a caravan out if the way for the driver through the window, while walking alongside.

 

[Robbie260]

You’d be surprised how many expect me to do the same with 18 metres of lorry and trailer that’s cost well over 250K .

This was on one of the most memorable journeys I’ve had the immense pleasure and privilege to make, on the single tracker that leads out to the Ardnamurchan Point, most westerly point on the UK mainland

View attachment 193697

Not much wider than the truck at 2.5 metres, less in places, the last 5 miles up to just past the road to the lighthouse took me almost half an hour . Thankfully I had a 34’ trailer with rear steer that day, God forbid running that road with a normal 45’ trailer, although me and the previous Mrs 4String regularly stayed at the campsite near Resipole, on the road from the Corran Ferry, and quite often I’d see the caravan boys delivering wide static caravans along that road .

Death defying is the speed the ferguson transport local boys can manage up that road at.

 

[ajlelectronics]

. If Mr, Mrs, or Miss Muppet take that gap, which is in effect my braking distance, I automatically back off to maintain the gap.

Fully agree. It does get very wearing though when car after car does it! Had a driver in a small vehicle do it to me just as I was turning off the road onto a slip. She came from behind me, so must have known I was there but pulled in front of me with about 12" to spare. Bless (and other words) I thought.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

My old man used to delight in telling the story of when shifting cattle he once had to reverse a caravan out if the way for the driver through the window, while walking alongside.

That paints a lovely picture.

 

[sako243]

Some locals do go at silly speeds down them ,had a few close calls and had to anchor up sharpish on.

Around here - particularly if it's sunny during the summer you're more likely to meet a local contractor with several tonnes on the front of the tractor, let alone what's behind it.

One of the worst crashes I've seen was a young boy racer in a Corsa who met a contractor head on at silly speeds at night. Engine was in the back seat and the rear of the car was underneath the weights, the front was under the axle


One benefit is that they mostly go around in laps because they can't pass each other on the roads so do circuits on the local roads. Once you know the routes you go the same way as them and at least you don't meet them head on.

 

[TechnicAl]

My old man used to delight in telling the story of when shifting cattle he once had to reverse a caravan out if the way for the driver through the window, while walking alongside.

Ive been towing a caravan for over 30 years and Im still crap at reversing....straight lines are OK but bends....oh dear..........Ive had a few incidents, one where I was travelling along a big wide road when a Police Car, coming in the opposite direction, stopped me and told me to run around as there was a wide load coming through.......I gave him my keys and told him to turn it round......he tried but he couldnt......whilst watching him perform I noticed a gate into a field so i said I would pull in the field and wait for it to pass.....a bit bumpy and ended up with a tin of beams embedded in the worktop,,,,,not pleased.

Another incident was travelling along a narrow lane that led to the campsite.....a VW Golf appeared in the opposite direction, drove right up to me and stopped....I got out and he was adamant he wasnt reversing........there was no way past...a ditch either side......so I told him that I could sleep in the van and was happy to stay there.....he moved after a while.

 

[Mikey D]

Should of unhitched the wobblebox and used the motor mover to reverse .

I used to tow a caravan it came with a motor mover but having a cat C+E licence I'd be embarrassed to use it

 

[Nick67GT]

Another incident was travelling along a narrow lane that led to the campsite.....a VW Golf appeared in the opposite direction, drove right up to me and stopped....I got out and he was adamant he wasnt reversing........there was no way past...a ditch either side......so I told him that I could sleep in the van and was happy to stay there.....he moved after a while.

I had a very similar incident one lunchtime when we were en route to a campsite and planned to pull in at the next convenient point, about 2 miles further on, for a bite to eat in the van.

A school kid in a Corsa with 3 of his mates did the same as your VW driver and insisted that it was his right of way and wasn’t going to back up.

After a few minutes stand off, we get out and sit in the van with our sarnies.

After much cursing and jeering from his mates, he concedes and reverses back about 50 yds so I could pass.

Had a few choice words with him about road etiquette as we go by......

 

[addjunkie]

I had an incident today, single track, ditch both sides, me in a pick up with stock trailer on...muppet in a micra, bike rack on the back, didnt want to revesrse in case he caught a wheel on his 5 k carbon bla blah pedal bike on the bushes.

After a 5 minute stale mate, my Mrs told him to shift his sweaty lycra clad bottom out of his girls car and shed shift it for him. Took him forever to revesrse 50 yards to a gate way.

 

[Mikey D]

 

[RWD3M]

Ive been towing a caravan for over 30 years and Im still Jabberwocky at reversing....straight lines are OK but bends....oh dear..........

Takes a big man to admit that!

I too have been towing, wobble boxes (love that term by the way, not heard it before) and car trailers, the length of the UK including the Scottish Highlands and Islands and pride myself on being able to deal with every eventuality (touch wood!), but as many of you have witnessed, it's quite shocking to see the lack of towing skills out there (present company excepted!).

I hear new drivers now have to do a test to be able to tow and I think that's a good idea. I also think perhaps we should all have to?!

Hope you're all having a good day!

Richard.

 

[4String.]

Takes a big man to admit that!

wobble boxes (love that term by the way, not heard it before)

Obviously never been on the M5/M6 during the school holidays .

 

[Bill Edwards]

Takes a big man to admit that!

I too have been towing, wobble boxes (love that term by the way, not heard it before) and car trailers, the length of the UK including the Scottish Highlands and Islands and pride myself on being able to deal with every eventuality (touch wood!), but as many of you have witnessed, it's quite shocking to see the lack of towing skills out there (present company excepted!).

I hear new drivers now have to do a test to be able to tow and I think that's a good idea. I also think perhaps we should all have to?!

Hope you're all having a good day!

Richard.

Sadly the trailer test is beyond a joke. It’s set so most caravans shouldn’t fall within the requirements - despite the fact that it’s those that you see on the mororways, parked on their roof, and that they are also the ones that usually can’t reverse!

Also, the reversing test bears little relation to real life reversing and instructors teach you how to pass the test, not reverse.

 

[4String.]

Sadly the trailer test is beyond a joke. It’s set so most caravans shouldn’t fall within the requirements - despite the fact that it’s those that you see on the mororways, parked on their roof, and that they are also the ones that usually can’t reverse!

Also, the reversing test bears little relation to real life reversing and instructors teach you how to pass the test, not reverse.

When I took my class 1 Hgv test, it was in a tiny Bedford unit coupled to a single axle 30’ unladen trailer. The day after I passed I went out in a 7 axled lowloader grossing 80 tons .

Passing a driving test doesn’t prepare you for driving, IMO. With the amount of traffic on the roads these days, I honestly think that a radical overhaul of driving tests, driving standards, and the abysmally ludicrous penalties for breaking the law is long overdue.

 

[qwakers]

the hgv test is a lot harder than it usd to be, but in general, i agree about it not preparing you for real life...

 

[minimutly]

the hgv test is a lot harder than it usd to be, but in general, i agree about it not preparing you for real life...

Hgv test be boogared, the kids passing plg tests aten't being tested on reversing...

 

[Mikey D]

I remember reversing around a corner when I did my car test at 17 , 34 years ago