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Rick Kosterman

Rick Kosterman, on his half-hour break, had just grabbed a coffee and pie in Sanson when Alison Verran drove past and noticed the unusual load he had in tow.

Rick enjoys driving for Hawke’s Baybased company Whitfield Transport. “They’re an awesome company to work for,” he says. He is Taupo-based, driving a Kenworth K200, powered by a 600hp Cummins engine. He travels throughout the North Island, carting general freight. “You name it, we carry it.”

The load that caught Alison’s eye was part of a crane destined to help create a wind farm at Raglan. Rick was heading to Taupo for the night, then on to Raglan the following morning.

A 40-year driving veteran, Rick was originally a storeman, driving forklifts at the NZ Apple and Pear Board. “The guys let me drive the old TK Bedfords around the yard. I loved it and decided to do it as a career… and I’m still doing it!

“The two things I like most about driving are having the variety in the job and being able to take in the amazing

Andrew Geuze

New Zealand scenery every day.” Rick considers one of the main issues within the industry is the calibre of many of the truck drivers on the road, with such a major driver shortage.

Andrew Geuze was fuelling up at the Caltex Truck Stop at Sulphur Point, Tauranga, when Alison Verran stopped to have a chat. Based in Mt Maunganui, Andrew carts two loads of milk powder a day from Fonterra Reporoa to Sulphur Point in a Volvo FM540 for Booth’s Transport.

“I used to be a kiwifruit grower in Gisborne,” says Andrew. “I’ve wanted to drive trucks since I was five. I loved the sound of a V8 Scania. I used to cart kiwifruit for my dad in an old TK Bedford when I was 15. After the kiwifruit, I just wanted a job I would stick with. I’ve been driving for 11 years so far and prefer it when I can cart up to 58 tonne, making the loads more efficient. I like making that truck work!

“One of the issues with the industry these days is the lack of reimbursement to the drivers… I’m talking industry-wide. With some companies, you work your guts out and get no thanks for multiple years of service. My current employer is great. I have no issues there at all.”

When presented with the vexing question, ‘Rugby or soccer?’, Andrew’s response was, “Definitely rugby, it’s got more punch to it. It’s more testing on the players.”

When presented with vexing question No.62: ‘Pyjamas or the full monty?’, Rick laughed and said, “Not either –somewhere in between.”

JUST TRUCKING AROUND www.trt.co.nz OVERSEAS

Mariusz Selke

The A15 is the main motorway running east from Rotterdam, serving as a transit route for trucks heading into Germany and further north. Scandinavian-registered trucks have largely been replaced by Eastern European trucks on international transport, so it is always nice to see a Norwegian, Swedish or Danish truck further south.

Paul O’Callaghan met Mariusz Selke, a Polish-born trucker driving for Sehested Transport, which has two bases in Denmark – Fredericia and Herning – offering a wide variety of transport services from local distribution with vans to specialist movements utilising low-bed trailers for oversize loads.

Mariusz, who has been a driver for most of his life, was born in the south of Poland but now lives further north in the country with his wife and two teenage sons. The former bodybuilder says he still loves his job and is grateful to have an understanding wife who allows him to follow his passion. He was full of praise for his new Volvo FH460 with its low-ride chassis, matched to a skeletal trailer that keeps the overall height at 4m, essential for low bridges in Holland. His destination was Denmark, with two 20ft containers he had collected in Europoort, Rotterdam. Apart from heavy traffic, the beaming Mariusz said there was nothing he disliked about his job.