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First drive

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12 years 1 month ago #74245 by ronhorse
First drive was created by ronhorse

Most guys I expect, remember the first truck which they drove, along with other first time experiences!! This Chev blitz was the first truck I learned to drive on, our workshop was 2 miles north of the township of Alice Springs, an old army staging area with large building on it. I would practice around the yard in it and one of my jobs was to take the rubbish out into the hills and dump it in a gully.
The picture of it is when we took an expedition out to Ayers Rock in September 1950. The dog scalps on the bumper I caught by going out at night and nailing an open tin of sardines to a log, so the dog wouldn't run with it, put poison in it and the dog would die within 50 yards, I would skin under the nose, along the back including the tail. I would get 2 quid at any Police station which was a weeks wage for me.

anything above the reasoning of a mongrel dog is a waste of time

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12 years 1 month ago #74246 by ronhorse
Replied by ronhorse on topic Re: First drive

Ironically, the first bus I drove with tourists was also a Chev blitz, 4x4, water tanks on the front for supply and traction.

anything above the reasoning of a mongrel dog is a waste of time

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12 years 1 month ago #74247 by prodrive
Replied by prodrive on topic Re: First drive
Ronhorse your pics and stories are always a classic...
More please!
cheers
Richard

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12 years 1 month ago #74248 by BK
Replied by BK on topic Re: First drive
That make 3 of us who learnt to drive in a Chev blitz, our neighbour had an old Thames trader as a school bus, many a cold morning I tow started him down the road with the blitz, then came home and rode my bike to primary school. ::)

Trust me

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12 years 1 month ago #74249 by olddon
Replied by olddon on topic Re: First drive
I also learnt to drive in a blitz,it was a Chev 2 tonner long wheelbase in New Guinea. I was 12 years old then and my old man said that it was about time I started earning my keep.

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12 years 1 month ago #74250 by BK
Replied by BK on topic Re: First drive

I also learnt to drive in a blitz,it was a Chev 2 tonner long wheelbase in New Guinea. I was 12 years old then and my old man said that it was about time I started earning my keep.


About the same age here, couldn't reach the pedals, start it in gear, use the throttle to go and hand brake and key to stop. No gear changing that year, just moved it around the paddocks and used the winch to load the logs.

Trust me

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12 years 1 month ago #74251 by Bruce99
Replied by Bruce99 on topic Re: First drive
Chev Blitz as well in around '58. Farm use only at that stage. Had a PTO that drove a bag loader attached to the side for loading bags of grain. Summertime saw it act as the 'area' firetruck with a Villiers firepump.

***********&&---Bruce99---&&***********

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12 years 1 month ago - 12 years 1 month ago #74252 by Lang
Replied by Lang on topic Re: First drive
This is the first truck I owned. 1939 British Army Morris "Desert Buggy". Pictures of me aged 14 with my sister.

The old man had the Holden dealership at Southport and traded this on something. He let me have it in exchange for a month's pocket money.

A mate and I built a raft out of 44 gallon drums and towed it two miles across the Broadwater to South Stradbroke Island with our little 16 foot putt-putt boat. A mob of us would go over with a couple of drums of fuel and a battery, recover it from its bush hideout and spend 3 hours getting it through a couple of hundred metres of sandhills (only 2WD).

We then spent the whole weekend or school holiday tearing - in a 1939 Morris? - up and down the deserted 20 mile beach. A great life, 4 fifteen year olds with a big fire and just a blanket each sleeping under the stars. Our parents had absolutely no idea where we were or what we were up to until we arrived home in the boat, often after dark on Sunday night.

Last edit: 12 years 1 month ago by Lang.

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12 years 1 month ago #74253 by Lang
Replied by Lang on topic Re: First drive
Just found a photo of the great amphibious expedition in 1962. As you can see I was not a perfect naval architect and when we were loading the truck onto the raft it gave way. Anyhow we took drums off the front and tied them to the back of the truck and towed her half submerged. Drained all the salt water out of the diff on arrival (just waited for the raft to bottom on the falling tide and drove off across the sand).

I got a contract with a school mate's dad who had a tourist boat which went to Tipplers Passage from Surfers Paradise (it is now a fancy resort). Absolutely nothing there but a black sand mangrove beach and they would walk through the bush to the beautiful surf beach about a mile across the island.

I would take as many mates as I wanted over and we would work 10 hours a day. I made a track through the bush and we would back into a sandhill on the beach side, shovel 3 tons (on a 15cwt truck) of white sand on then drive to the Broadwater side and shovel off. We did 410 loads in a 9 month period on weekends and holidays.

The other guys did it for the fun and the chance to drive the truck, I did also but got (secretly) paid 10 shillings a load which bought me a nice early Landrover.

The old Morris was left on the island when life moved on, wonder if the remains can be found?

Visitors think Tipplers has white sand naturally but not long ago I flew a light aircraft over our work site and you can still see an entire sand hill missing which we dug out. If we did it today I think they would bring back public executions!

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12 years 1 month ago #74254 by bigcam
Replied by bigcam on topic Re: First drive
Great stories and pictures, thanks Lang.

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