Robert Stevenson
ROBERT STEVENSON (Bob) was born in Roslyn, Dunedin, New Zealand in January 1929 and grew up working on the family farm where he developed an interest in all things mechanical. By the time he was 17 Bob was working on the Mt Cook Hydroelectric Power Scheme operating bulldozers for five years. He then spent another three years with them driving an OLB Bedford five tonne tipper.
Looking for a new direction of life Robert decided to move to Australia. He joined the Australian Navy in 1950 as a stoker and also worked as a "driver for Navy brass" while his ship was in port. While on discharge Bob met the love of his life, Wendy and promptly married her. They headed back to New Zealand for a two year period before heading back to Australia. They purchased a Thames Trader 74DS and took a job subcontracting to Pioneer Concrete for three years.
Looking for a change of scenery and a bit of a challenge Bob moved on to a Foden and worked for Mayne Nickless hauling fuel tankers around the country. After that he upgraded to a B Model Mack. Bob then got a gig with Brambles Tankers where he spent the next 15 years driving a multitude of trucks including Mercedes Benz and Mack. After that Bob went to Australian Cement where he drove a Cummins 903 powered Ford which he later traded for a Mitsubishi. Bob stayed there for eight years until the company bought out all the owner drivers.
Bob retired for a few months but the truck itch got to him so he bought a tipper and started work for Kingston Plant Hire. After that he bought a Louisville and carted gas and bitumen for Stevenson Tankers for another three years. After this he did a four year stint with Bark King driving a Mack semi-tipper hauling wood chips from Myrtleford to Mt Gamber. He is currently working for Ten Tippers where he drives a Mercedes and sometimes a UD.
During his time on the road Bob has witnessed many changes in rules and regulations and truck technology. He has witnessed a few accidents and struggled through a few hard times but he chooses to reflect on the good old days of the road; the times you always gave a fellow truckie a hand and everyone was mates.