Dustin’s up bright and early around Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand, spending a day in a log truck with Canterbury-based transport operator Steve Murphy Limited.

Hey there Little Truckers, how are we getting on? While you were sleeping the other morning I was up bright and early, trucking along in a Mack Granite with a load of logs, heading to Rolleston.

Once we got there, we were a bit early for the loader driver so our driver Jimmy unloaded. When he finished I was allowed to jump out, and Jimmy handed me the broom and got me to sweep down the chassis. Then we went off to a crane called a gantry and put the trailer up on the back of the truck.

We jumped back in the truck and headed for a small North Canterbury town called Greta Valley where our first load was. When we got there, there was another trucker there that had just got loaded so he pulled forward and we backed in. Then the digger took the trailer off the back of the truck, and we went and helped the other truck chain down. When we were getting loaded I was lucky enough to get out and take some photos.

Once we were loaded we pulled forward and chained down. This is when you throw the chains over the logs, and then pull them down tight to make sure they are secure.

Jimmy and I got on the road back to town heading for Rolleston again for round two. Once we got there the loader driver was moving some logs around so we took off our chains and moved forward for him to unload us. Then we headed back north once more to get loaded at the same place. We got loaded, chained down again and this time we were going to a place in Rangiora called McAlpines, where we unloaded the third load of the day.

After that, we headed home as Jimmy and I live just down the road from each other. Once he dropped me off I just stood there as the big Mack gave a grunt and took off and I got the big toot.

Now a bit about Jimmy. Jimmy has loved trucks ever since he was a little boy. He got his licences on his 18th birthday. Jimmy’s favourite truck was a DAF 430hp until he got the Mack Granite 500hp. Some of the questions I put to Jimmy were if you were to go to the Australian Outback, what truck would you have? How much horsepower, what motor? And who would be his passenger? Jimmy said he would drive a Scania V8 770 and his passenger would be his late Dad.

Thanks to Chris Murphy (as always) the boss, Burt the dispatcher who pulled the strings to get me into the private job, Jimmy the driver, and Will Cowens for getting my hard hat and some merchandise.