Mack Trucks celebrates 50 years
Manfield Park in Feilding hosted the Mack Trucks 50 Year Anniversary Truck Show on Saturday 22 October as part of events held over Labour Weekend celebrating 50 years since Mack Trucks arrived in New Zealand. We headed along to take a look and join in the celebrations.
Proud owners of Mack Trucks new and old travelled from all over the country to take part in the show. Some of these Macks are working trucks, while others are kept in storage and are only brought out for special occasions like this one!
The show was a huge success with Manfeild reporting that they had the most people through the gates in 20 years!
I went to the show with my parents who were over on holiday from Australia and my children. We packed a picnic, it was gorgeous weather and there was plenty to see and do including some race cars going around the track. It wasn’t only cars that raced around the track though – yes, you guessed – some trucks did too, and boy are they fast! It was an awesome family day out. The day started off with a convoy at 7.30am where all the trucks met up to then travel to the park together.
The day ended with most of the trucks doing a lap around the track tooting their horns before they exited the park after an amazing show day! There was a voting booth and the public got to vote for which Mack Truck they liked the most, and Truck of the Show went to Glen Allingham from JAKS Trucks Auckland.
Give us a wave!
Our mate Sally, who runs Tippings Transport in New South Wales, tells us all about her special campaign, Wave to a Truckie, which shines a spotlight on the amazing work our truckies do.
Who doesn’t love waving at truckies going past – even better when they sound their horn! YES! Truckies love being acknowledged for the important work they do and waving is a great way to say thank you.
A few years back, I founded a campaign called “Wave to a Truckie” to highlight and promote our dedicated truck drivers and the amazing work of all the people involved within the transport industry.
Everything we have in our homes, schools, hospitals – in fact everywhere – is delivered at some stage by a truckie and sometimes people take that for granted.
During Covid-19 lockdowns, people started to really understand the importance of the transport industry and the key role truckies played in delivering essential items to everyone’s home and office.
It takes lots of hard work and skill to become a professional truckie. It isn’t an easy job and is not suitable for everyone, however the rewards are endless.
Out on the open road, seeing the changing landscape, witnessing amazing sunrises and incredible sunsets are all so much more enticing than a small crowded office space. It really is like being your own boss.
Next time you see a truckie on the road, think about what is on their load and where it is going. Are they very far from home or will they be home for dinner?
Most importantly, when you can, make sure you Wave to a Truckie!