Page 219 - It's a Rum Life Book 3 "Ivy House Tales 1970 to 1984"

CHAPTER 42

Excerpts from “It’s a Rum Life Book Four” Vol.2

The actual Lorry with THE trailer in use shortly afterwards at the Novartis event.

WE BOUGHT A LORRY TODAY!

We bought a lorry today!
Terena and John had been on at me for some time!
“When are we going to get something to pull that trailer?”
The trailer is not exactly a normal horse box. It is 20 feet long and 8 feet wide. Inside it is 8
feet high and must weigh over a ton.
Previously it was used to carry the wedding carriage and one horse. It will also take about
120 bales of hay (3.5 tons). The trailer was basically all we had at the Northcote Heavy
Horse Centre to cart anything about. It was being used only very locally at present pulled
by the centre’s agricultural tractor.
The long wheelbase “safari” Land Rover that used to tow it had been specially converted.
It had a 3 litre Ford Essex v6 petrol engine that did 28mpg running without a trailer and
9mpg with THE trailer and full load. BUT it would pull it! In top gear too.
The land rover died of rust worm several years ago and we just did not have any funds to
replace it.

WHY A LORRY
After a Land Rover and trailer hit the national headlines earlier this year by running off the
road near Doncaster and derailed an express train killing a large number of folk, we have
been thinking again!
A lorry was what we really needed. Something with a large capacity engine and not
expensive.
I had seen one advertised in the Farmers Guardian Weekly newspaper, but it was in
Lancashire.
Foot and Mouth was all over the West Country and North West at this time, but not in
Lancashire!
If we were going to do anything it had to be quick.

A week or so passed and I said nothing, could we really afford £500?
Friday arrived and John was day off. They both tackled me again so I told them about this
lorry.
Within the hour we had phoned and it was still there. We are very democratic here at
Northcote! The majority decision was go for it, if it is any good at all!

WE’RE OFF
We took the little red Subaru truck and by 2pm we had arrived at Garstang, Lancashire. By
gum it is hilly up there.
Right on the edge of the Moors almost on the way back into Yorkshire we found the mill.
The Lorry had been used for local deliveries but recently they had been encouraging
farmers to collect for themselves more and more. It was a curtainsider, 16-foot body but
the cab was filthy. Inside that is.
The lorry ran well, big 6-cylinder engine and its maintenance record was up to date despite
not being taxed for six months. It was out of test too, but I suppose you can’t have

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