Recently in Weather Conditions Category

It's that time of year when we can all play spot the lorry on the Finnish weather webcam website! http://www.tiehallinto.fi/alk/english/frames/kelikamerat-frame.html And here's a popular location that I'm sure you all recognise....taken at 17.43 when the road is just a bit icy..and then some...yes it's the old TIE 7 RAJALLE 5KM (ITÄÄN) location in the South of Finalnd---as if you needed telling eh? Now click through here for the same site a little bit later....

'NOT SO OLD' Road Rat (or at least that's what he says), tells Biglorryblog: "Hi Brian, I know that we should all be thinking of a nice beach somewhere, sipping a nice cold beer, watching some lovely, ahahmm. I nearly lost myself there. Anyway as I was driving through a blizzard the other day, Saturday to be precise. Yes it snows here in Canada on the 6th of June, apparently regularly!" Now click through here for more... And what happens when snow gets up your chassis... Ooh errr...

Well if you thought winter was over think again... Nick has kept his promise to send me some new shots and has come up with these terrific atmospheric shots of a snow-covered depot.

And he says: "Hi, I woke up and took these at silly o'clock in Grampians yard (Aberdeen) in a blizzard, I should have put my slippers on!

Regards, Nick." With that SMC cab the ERF should have kept the warmth in...!

And if that Kerbey Motors name (sorry I orginally wrote 'Kenny'... Don't know why... probably old-age) looks familiar we featured one of their Scania's as an Editor's Choice in the January edition of Truck & Driver...

And how about this for an immaculate Centurion? Now click through here for more snow-go shots!

Such is the power of Clutchslip that when he tells Biglorryblog to 'Go to Clackett Lane to photograph the holes!" I go. And for good reason too. For this small elephant trap is just as you pull out of the truck park...but that's not the best (or worst of it)  if you want to get fuel in a truck you're then confronted with this little one...

Take my word for it, that one one on the right is pretty deep! (The cone on its side shows you how long it is too!) I saw a Transit van go in and not come out....actually I lied about that last bit---but whether as a result of the bad weather or constant truck traffic (or both) this bit of asphalt is certainly 'well-worn'. And driving along the M20 this morning I noticed quite a few new pot holes too. I blame all those European 40-tonners with 11.5-tonne drive axles myself. Don't you think?

And BLB's apologies to those motorcyclists who quite rightly pointed out to me that the 'false' holes' I recently posted up and said were a good idea would in fact be dangerous as they would make bike riders swerve to avoid them--good point well made!

"Another snowy day, another Volvo FE", says Biglorryblog. And I'm indebted to Wayne Delve sales manager at Mansel Davies for sending me this story via 'Two-Stroke'. Indeed it's a rather special 6x4 that''s come to the rescue down in deepest Wales. Not least because, so I'm told by 'Two-Stroke', it's a combined gritter and tipper purchased by Ceredigion County Council with a slot-in Epoke Sirius SH3590 Gritter supplied by Bunce. And yes that's SALT behind it! Quick, grab it!

With that swap-body capability the six-wheeler can be utilised for the rest of the year on highway maintenance after the winter maintenance season. So there's obviously a lesson to be learnt here on vehicle utilisation for Boris Johnson Lord Mayor of London, who is of the opinion that London would need a dedicated snow plough fleet that it cannot afford? Ahhh but has he seen this beauty...eh?

Meanwhile, the Volvo FE, chosen to turn the mountains of Mid and West Wales into molehills, is equipped with a nine-speed manual stirrer and a medium cab, preferred by the drivers as the additional space becomes very useful for storage of heavy coats and winter boots.

Volvo dealer Mansel Davies (famous for its general haulage fleet and historic vehicle collection) finished  the truck off with additional lighting supplied by Volvo's Road Crew (tools, trailer & all makes parts, accessory) company to meet the demands and requirements presented during the Winter Months. This is an additional truck to an already strong dedicated winter maintenance fleet of 3 Volvo FM4X4's and a 6x6 too and you can see pictures of them by clicking through here....

I tell you what, that Agent Reg doesn't let the snow settle on him, especially if there's a chance to plug a Volvo! And talk about timing too: "Nottingham City Council has brought a Volvo FE into its fleet of gritters," he tells Biglorryblog adding, "It replaces another Volvo, a W-registration FL - with Nottingham City Council citing reliability in winter conditions as a major factor for purchasing the new Volvo."

Mind you, I think that even a Volvo would have struggled to clear this lot..

And BLB has James Keeler to thank for this early morning view of his road in Surrey today. Scaramouche, Scaramouche will you do the fandango! Is that a wolf in the distance?  Anyroadup click through here to read more about the Volvo and to see another picture from James..

Picture the scene if you will -- it's 8:00am and Biglorryblog has fired up the trusty Moggie snowplough and the white stuff is flying as he effortlessly cleaves a path through the drive in Kent to allow the Mighty Multipla to head off to work in Surrey ...mmmm...well it wasn't QUITE like that. Being connected to the CM office via broadband I thought it's probably not a good idea to waste three hours slogging my way in when I can start work at 7:30am in front of the computer which a nice cup of tea from Mrs Biglorryblog (well I made it, she was still in bed) . Just as well really.

Because this was the scene on the A217 this morning - jacknifed artic - picture courtesy of Clutchslip who, like Captain Oates, bravely slogged is way in. Mind you, as he told me over the phone...it's fine, as long as you've got a Land Rover...

And here's his old Disco making light work of the tricky little ramp that leads up into our visitors' carpark---well it's about the only time we can use it! I should also say that the snow-gritting team around Ashford did a pretty good job. Although it remains to be seen whether the same can be said for the mob in Sutton next to QH's offices---although they probably had more snow to deal with. Anyroadup click on this link to see a real 'live' Sutton gritter in action...

http://www.yournews.itvlocal.com/Clip.aspx?key=33ED2B00A4EFEE75

Now click through here to see the chaos that has hit the Cumbria region--with exclusive pictures from 'The Boy Swallow' in Penrith...

Regular Biglorryblog readers will remember me mentioning recently that I did a job as the 'junior photographer' on Commercial Motor (junior to the late legendary Dick Ross) in which the then CM news editor Steve Geary and I visited RJ Norman, the Barnsley-based tipper operated who ran bonneted Macks. In 1979 this was something of a rare beast in the UK. The trip was in the winter and this was what I had to contend with weather wise!  And a deep-frozen pie for anyone who can tell me a) What the model was and b) what it was called---as all Norman's trucks had individual names!

Sometime after the picture was syndicated out by IPC Business Publishing (CM's owners) and was used in an advert for a CV paint company---now click through here to see how it appeared!

I've tried, God knows I've tried...but I just can't stay away from the fabulous Finnish Weather webcams..and here's just a quick selection for all you avid weather webcam watchers on Biglorryblog...staring with the Hanku site at 17:23 this afternoon..and for a pie what's the truck?

Better conditions...at the Pomarku site at 15:40.

And if you're really good tell me what this is--naturally it's from the Vartiela webcam at a frosty 13.41...don;t brake too hard on this stuff....

Now I think it's fair to say that Biglorryblog has never made a secret of the fact that I'm not a big fan of truck racing...OR Formula 1 racing for that matter. but this is something that I would definitely pay good money to watch...so how come I haven't noticed it before? I must get SkySports (or out more often)..and I have Central Weighing to thank for the image (Why? Because they sent it to me along with a press release which says they're bucking the current economic trend...or as they put it 'What Credit Crunch?).

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Meanwhile, back to snow ploughs...like this latest addition to the Highways Agency fleet, which looks just right for sweeping all those noisy,decal-covered space wasters out the way.... don't you think? Or is BLB alone in holding the view that Formula 1 racing happily could sink beneath the waves without a murmur of protest from the majority of the population?

And click through here for some more new HA winter warmers....

Who is this lady---And why does she look so confident? Because her Eagle Courier van has special road safety 'snow socks' on it, so Scotland's leading independent courier firm will be able to able to deliver the goods no matter what treacherous winter road conditions its drivers encounter in Aberdeenshire and the Highlands.

Having to make regular deliveries in the North of Scotland, Eagle normally fits tyre chains to its vans when they need to drive through heavy blizzards and snow drifts. However, thanks to the "tyre sock", which was devised in Norway, they hope to improve their vehicles' grip on the road when faced with less extreme weather conditions such as sleet and ice - where snow chains are less suitable.

A recent new alternative to snow chains, or studded tyres, the temporary tyres socks are basically textile wheel covers with an elasticated edge that can be slipped over the driving wheels when extra grip is required... Eagle's drivers will be trialling them on those vehicles delivering medical equipment and sensitive data to make sure it gets delivered. However,if it proves successful, Eagle says it will roll out the socks across its entire fleet.

After a bit of judicious googling Biglorryblog can also tell you that there are even tyre socks for trucks too and you can find out all about them by clicking on this link. This mob has them for vans as well as HGVs.

Now read on...

OK guys that's about it for the night on Biglorryblog but before I go up the wooden hill to Bedfordshire (with a bottle of single malt) I thought you'd like to see this marvellous collection from the world-famous Road 26 Ruissalo Finnish weather webcam starting with this shot taken at 20:15 this evening. And you can see ALL the fabulous Finnish weather webcams by visiting this link! And why wouldn't you?

Be fair, it's been snowing a bit up there too AND it's cold--how does minus six celsius grab you? This was taken at 19:05.

At 18:55 it's the truck rush-hour now---and if you've ever wondered if there's a place that can justify a top light bar, Finland is it!

More impromptu scenes from 'They drive at Night' at 18.35. And for a pie (or two) who starred in the film of the same name? And I want both male stars AND the female lead... I bet Vic knows this!

All on their own at 18:05 in a Winter wonderland... Now click through here for one more...

Slim pickings on the old beloved Finnish Weather Webcams right now...I wonder if trucks are banned at weekends? Got a handle on that MP? Anyroad up this is from the favourite web camera at the Kuivaniemi site (one I know you all love) and the only thing I spotted was this solitary Iveco. Anyroadup it's quite snowy over there at the moment.

Fortunately Martin P has saved the day with this shot of a rather nice Sisu. He tells me: "Just to maitain the theme here's a shot of a Sisu 8x4 powered by an 18-l;itre Cat 630. Of course, being a Sisu, the truck features double drive AND a lifting rear axle and the RKP swap body 'cassette' system.whcih is operated from inside the cab. The only time the driver needs to get out in the cold is to hook up the air and electrical susies after he's tipped. Grossing around 60-tonnes it works out of the Oulu region in Finland. Nice eh? Well one good turns deserves another so click through here for some Ice Road Truckers....in errr...Scotland?

I knew it was raining heavily on Monday night when I drove down to Wales...but I didn't know it was bad enough to launch the Mumbles lifeboat...! Which is exactly what it said on the back of the boat....Shackles away Shamuel!