Lyle Hyland

Lyle Andrew Hyland was born in 1942 at Oonah, Tasmania. The first trucks he drove were an old Ford and an Austin on local farms, helping men to load and stack hay on the back of trucks. Lyle often wagged school to do this as he was only 12 years old at the time! From here, Lyle went on to enjoy a lifetime of operating and driving trucks. Eventually, he established a successful transport business with his wife, June. 

Over the years, the majority of Lyle’s work involved collecting milk from dairy farms and delivering it to either the Lactos cheese factory or milk processing plants. But like most truckies, Lyle turned his hand to whatever opportunity offered itself and carted loads of dolomite, logs and timber equipment as well as freight for Lou Holloway (inducted in 2002).

Lyle’s first truck was an International 180, followed by a MAN and then two Isuzus. Upon buying a Volvo F10, Lyle became a loyal aficionado for the Swedish brand which he maintained throughout his working life. At one time, Lyle owned the only Volvo F12 single axle truck in the country  but he had a soft spot for a tandem Volvo F12 that ran almost faultlessly for one million kilometers. When this particular workhorse was traded in, the sump and heads had never been pulled off and the original brake linings had plenty of “meat” still on them.  Volvo presented Lyle with a chromed shell, made out of a crankshaft bearing, as a token of their appreciation for Lyle’s loyalty and custom.

Some other impressive mileage statistics include Lyle’s first Volvo clocking up 530,000 kilometres in 25 months and a further 600,000 kilometres in a separate 28-month period while a two-up team in one truck were able to  service 35 dairies, covering 1,200 kilometres in a 24 hour period.

Lyle fondly remembers the friendships he developed over the years, including the youngsters who would run out to greet him when he pulled up at farmyards. Cold, wet weather and slow-driving tourists sum up the not so fond memories!

Now a widower, Lyle is a regular at the Ulverstone Men’s Shed and is the longstanding president of the local Young Anglers Incorporated, a group that encourages young people to try trout fishing. In 2015, Lyle joined some mates on a road trip along the rough 660 kilometre-long Gibb River Road in the Kimberleys - only a  dedicated truckie would regard that as an enjoyable and relaxing break!                                               

  Inducted in 2021