"Driver Training" in BAOR

The recent spell of “real” winter weather caused me to think back to the time when I was undergoing my “Driver Training” in BAOR, in the 50s.
I've witnessed some atrocious driving lately, and can only put it down to the fact that “real” winter weather has not been experienced by the younger generation in the same way that we of a “more mature” age experienced it.
Having said that, I must confess that in actual fact I never really took a test at all, as I'll explain now.
My “driver training” took place after duty hours in the LAD “Jeep” whilst serving in Münster (Buller Barracks).
Three or four of us would pile into the vehicle and off we would go for a couple of hours or so, taking it in turn to drive.
This continued for about a month, then, one fateful day, after marching from Muster Parade to the LAD W/shop one Monday morning my CO came up to me, “Check the oil and water in that Bedford, Rowe, and put the plates on, you're taking your test this morning.” Panic! (I had driven Bedford QL's round camp on brake tests, (which reminds me, sorry to digress, but I used to have a habit of leaving spanners on top of the leaf springs whilst down in the pit, and often forgot them. One morning I took a QL out and was belting round the perimeter road and slammed on the brakes, just as I had passed the CSM who was walking the other way, there was a sound as of a peal of bells as several large spanners dropped onto the road. The CSM stopped, looked at me as I scrambled to pick them up again, shook his head in disbelief and carried on. End of digression.)
I checked the vehicle and put the plates on and we booked out at the guard room, “Turn right, out the gate and keep driving” he said. (I didn't know at the time that he had been over-imbibing the night before in the Mess.)
After five minutes or so I glanced at him and saw that he was asleep. “What do I do now” I thought, so, following earlier advice I changed up and down once or twice (“It impresses them” I'd been told) and carried on.
After about twenty minutes I hit a rough bit of road and heard a groan, “ OK, Rowe, back to camp” he grunted.
I booked in and he said “park it up outside the LAD, take the plates off then come and see me in my office.”
By this time I was feeling a bit depressed and thought “I’ve failed and will have to go through it again, properly.”
I entered his office and he gave me a form and said “take this to the MT office and they'll sort your license out, dismiss.”
I floated out, nearly forgetting to salute.
So, you see, I've never really passed my driving test, have I?

i got my motor bike licence in a rather dubious way while in germany. i had been riding trials on TRW 500's and BSA 350's in Germany for ages. in UK i only had a provissional motor bike licence and so was restricted to 250cc.

i then got selecetd to go to bordon for a trials meeting, and had to take my BSA 350 with me. (on Sir Tristram, but thats another story). anyway we realised that i didnt have a suitable UK licence, so I got issued a BFG licence which had motor bikes on it, with no restrictions.

when i next renewed my UK licence i used my BFG one as proof of entitlement and got a full UK bike licence without having ever sat a test in either country.

Any one still got a copy of the 'BFG Highway Code?'

I remember having to pass the 'tick test' bit to pass the theory first.

I passed my test in the UK after basic training, did the tick test in Germany and that was it.

Driver training was a course I did in Leconsfield at the Army School of Mechanical Transport. I was trained as an HGV 2 driver and took the M/Bike test a week or two later after my combat drivers course (up hills and X country. When posted back to Germany I did the tick test, the MTWO telling me which boxes to tick!

That was that!

Yes, I did mine at Leconsfield as well Martin, I think most of us RAOC probably did.

Hi, new member so be gentle with me!!!! I discovered when teaching new drivers that there would appear to be some marvelous invisible mechanism that connects a learner drivers eyeballs to the steering wheel, if you say watch that, they drive straight at whatever it is.
Somehow we all survived...
Dave

I was once told that I was the worst driver he had ever seen. He was an RCT SSgt so what did he know? Thankfully a very nice officer took me and said I was okay. Bless him!


Just to add that I have been driving for 43 years and had been driving for over four when I joined up. Never had an accident but probably caused loads!

Emergency stop in a 432. How many jammed the accelerator down whilst pulling on the levers? I did before getting it right. Not my fault the bloody pedal was massive.

I took my driving test just before mustering from Boys Service. This was carried out around the Kilmarnock and Irvine area, there were three of us in a Champ and the QTO, a Gnr Captain. The first guy in the drivers seat was a young (we were all young) lad in the Royal Fusiliers who was of a very nervous disposition, he reminded me of Alf Titimus in the "Carry On" films. When we approached the first junction, which was a large roundabout, the QTO instructed him to go straight across - which he did!! I do believe he failed.

Shelldrake wrote:

I took my driving test just before mustering from Boys Service. This was carried out around the Kilmarnock and Irvine area, there were three of us in a Champ and the QTO, a Gnr Captain. The first guy in the drivers seat was a young (we were all young) lad in the Royal Fusiliers who was of a very nervous disposition, he reminded me of Alf Titimus in the "Carry On" films. When we approached the first junction, which was a large roundabout, the QTO instructed him to go straight across - which he did!! I do believe he failed.

He was only obeying orders after all. Not fair that!

Hear, hear ! I absolutely agree !

Absolutely outrageous injustice.

That bloody QTO should've been horsewhipped to within an inch of his life !

HARRUMPH !

You're getting mixed up between todays Army and the proper Army!!

Took my driver training in a Bedford QL, great vehicle for its day back in 1952 with 20 Armoured Brigade (6 Armd Div) .. unfortunately failed my first test which was taken in a 15 cwt (Canadian version) with the bloody accelerator in the middle. (Clutch, Accelerator, Brake).
On my repeat test while attempting a three point turn, the bloody road subsided and we landed ass up in a dyke. MTO said 'give him his license before he wrecks everything on wheels'.

Len (Ciphers)

Like you, brrowe, I was at Buller Barracks in the late "60's,and one morning in the bleak mid winter I was called upon to take my 432 driving test. There were two of us, and I was scheduled to drive to Hilltrup,and he back to Buller. I set off from Buller Barracks ,and it was snowing so heavily that push bikes were overtaking us. When we got to York Barracks, the examiner,a Guards Sgt, stopped outside the TocH to warm his hands on the exhaust pipe. Then he said **** this, and asked my mate to jump behind the controls and driver back to Buller with the warning that if asked, we were to say that we did the regulation distance to Hilltrup and back. Anyhow , he said , I have seen you b****** driving all over camp road testing these.

Hi all,

Bedford QL was a great vehicle, we had these plus some of the older "traditional" Bedfords in 1951-1952. Noisy, at night could be heard a long time before they arrived

Water trailers; from memory there were two sizes; and there was "talk" that a driver with a Bedford 15 cwt picked up the larger size for the 3 tonners; filled with water; then at a fair speed the trailer spun and dragged him into a tree; reported he was killed
Is this true or just to scare new squaddies?

Only 20 degrees C, and cloudy here; but glad I am not in Europe
I dont remember German winters being too bad, maybe a dryer cold
Cheers
Tony

Do you remember putting the tilley lamp inside the access doors of the water trailer to prevent freezing in winter when on exercise?

burgess720 wrote:

Hi all,

Bedford QL was a great vehicle, we had these plus some of the older "traditional" Bedfords in 1951-1952. Noisy, at night could be heard a long time before they arrived

Water trailers; from memory there were two sizes; and there was "talk" that a driver with a Bedford 15 cwt picked up the larger size for the 3 tonners; filled with water; then at a fair speed the trailer spun and dragged him into a tree; reported he was killed
Is this true or just to scare new squaddies?

Only 20 degrees C, and cloudy here; but glad I am not in Europe
I dont remember German winters being too bad, maybe a dryer cold
Cheers
Tony

I remember a Bedford RL being turned over by a water trailer.

We were told that they were unstable when part empty and drivers pulling them were reminded not to drive like maniacs.

(Some hope !)

I can't remember if they were fitted with "Baffles" or not, we had a little guy in 51 Bty who could climb inside and paint them white.

. . . . and that is why it was called 51 (Kabulshit) Battery folks !

That's about right!

Some of the young RCT lads were trained back in the UK on Series 3 Land Rovers, with nice power brakes. When they came over to BAOR assigned to RAMC units they could not understand why the brakes on the old Mk 9 Land Rover Ambulances were not responding. One lad brought his ambulance to me with "defective brakes" as he could not get it to stop. I took him on a drive across the square with him behind the wheel and a portable Brake Tester on the floor. Not expecting it, I suddenly shouted to him to stop. He did and I showed him the reading on the meter .....90%. But it is always said that Panic is best best known Brake Servo.

I loved 432's and '4s, they were my favorite vehicle. loved working on them and driving them. Doing emergency stops were brilliant fun.

Quote :

Emergency stop in a 432. How many jammed the accelerator down whilst pulling on the levers? I did before getting it right. Not my fault the bloody pedal was massive

LOL, Yes, been there done that.

Why the 432 didn't have a proper braking system I'll never know.

An emergency stop at "high" speed, (35 was fast for one of them, and dodgy !) needed a lot of concentration to stop them weaving all over the road.

In a similar vein. Remember the long X-country moves when the crew in the back were seasick ?

Didn't do much actual cross country work when I drove one Brum, maybe because we were Bde HQ and seemed to spend most of our ex's in barns and stuff.