Oswestry Truck Show 2009
18th May 2009
The Shropshire Truck Show takes place at the showground in Oswestry, just off the A5. The town is right on the border between England and Wales, so there’s a good selection of trucks from both countries. I never counted exactly how many trucks were on display. I’d guess around 300.
Despite the recession, haulage companies were exhibiting numerous trucks, all neatly lined up in rows and cleaned up to show them at their best. Windows would be spotless (rain notwithstanding), bodywork polished and tyres cleaned and graphics painted.
Some hauliers even had their vintage trucks on display, from the time when they were a small enterprise and trucks were much smaller and altogether more sedate. For example, Stan Robinson had a 28 horsepower pre-war lorry on show next to modern 500 horsepower tractor units and a US vehicle.
The majority of the trucks were painted in the colours of the companies that ran them, but there were a few trucks with really well done graphics. It’s worth keeping an eye out for these next time you’re in a traffic jam on the motorway.
The event is a good family day out too, with plenty of events taking place in the main arena. First up in the morning was a short display by Chris Doney of Zero Gravity cycle trials.
There were heavy rain showers at the time which prevented him doing some of the more extreme moves, but he entertained the crowd nonetheless. Next was the Matt Coulter aka the Kangaroo Kid on his first appearance in the UK for more than a year. Stunts were all performed on a quad bike and included a 360 degree roll over and riding around on two wheels with up to five people on board. He had a microphone on during the display and talked the crowd through his moves. The highlight of his display was jumping up a ramp and over an Audi RS4 and a smart car.
In the afternoon there were simulations of a truck and a tanker rescue. A truck, tanker and recovery vehicles were driven into the arena. The truck and tanker were lowered onto their sides and raised again to show how these vehicles can be recovered from an accident site. The fine control is amazing, especially when you remember we’re talking about vehicles weighing many tonnes.
Later on, but certainly not least, was the showdown between England and Wales in the shape of Podzilla driven by the European monster truck champion Drew Thornton and The Red Dragon driven by Rob Williams. The Red Dragon was driven by Jason Plato and tiff Needell in the last year’s series of Fifth Gear when they broke the crankshaft. Four old cars were lined up in the centre of the arena, and the drivers took it in turn to drive over them, launching themselves into the air as they did so and in spectacular fashion. At full throttle, the fuel consumption is 56 yards to the gallon. The crowd just preferred Podzilla, though really it was a creditable draw, as they both gave super displays.
Despite the recession, haulage companies were exhibiting numerous trucks, all neatly lined up in rows and cleaned up to show them at their best. Windows would be spotless (rain notwithstanding), bodywork polished and tyres cleaned and graphics painted.
Some hauliers even had their vintage trucks on display, from the time when they were a small enterprise and trucks were much smaller and altogether more sedate. For example, Stan Robinson had a 28 horsepower pre-war lorry on show next to modern 500 horsepower tractor units and a US vehicle.
The majority of the trucks were painted in the colours of the companies that ran them, but there were a few trucks with really well done graphics. It’s worth keeping an eye out for these next time you’re in a traffic jam on the motorway.
The event is a good family day out too, with plenty of events taking place in the main arena. First up in the morning was a short display by Chris Doney of Zero Gravity cycle trials.
There were heavy rain showers at the time which prevented him doing some of the more extreme moves, but he entertained the crowd nonetheless. Next was the Matt Coulter aka the Kangaroo Kid on his first appearance in the UK for more than a year. Stunts were all performed on a quad bike and included a 360 degree roll over and riding around on two wheels with up to five people on board. He had a microphone on during the display and talked the crowd through his moves. The highlight of his display was jumping up a ramp and over an Audi RS4 and a smart car.
In the afternoon there were simulations of a truck and a tanker rescue. A truck, tanker and recovery vehicles were driven into the arena. The truck and tanker were lowered onto their sides and raised again to show how these vehicles can be recovered from an accident site. The fine control is amazing, especially when you remember we’re talking about vehicles weighing many tonnes.
Later on, but certainly not least, was the showdown between England and Wales in the shape of Podzilla driven by the European monster truck champion Drew Thornton and The Red Dragon driven by Rob Williams. The Red Dragon was driven by Jason Plato and tiff Needell in the last year’s series of Fifth Gear when they broke the crankshaft. Four old cars were lined up in the centre of the arena, and the drivers took it in turn to drive over them, launching themselves into the air as they did so and in spectacular fashion. At full throttle, the fuel consumption is 56 yards to the gallon. The crowd just preferred Podzilla, though really it was a creditable draw, as they both gave super displays.
