Robert Thompson
Robert Thompson also known as Bob or Rob was born on the 11 June 1945 at Katoomba. He was the youngest of seven and the only one of his family to have the love of trucks.
He learnt to drive when he was nine in a 1940 Desoto taxi that belonged to a boyfriend of one of his sisters Col Gracey. At the same time Col took him with him to do tows in a Chev Blitz. Rob would stand up in the passenger side and lean against the engine cover Col taught him to drive the Blitz as well.
Rob began working on weekends and after school at the garage on top of Mt Victoria Pass, (he would later own this garage until he sold it in 2003) in 1960. This is where his passion for trucks began. He was working on vehicles that had come to the mountains to put in the main power line from Wallerawang Power Station. The trucks were GMC 6 x 6's, Diamond T's, Blitz's and a couple of FWD Waukesha's
At the end of 1960 and before he had completed school he got an apprenticeship at this garage. His mother and father insisted that he remained at school to complete his Intermediate Certificate which he did under sufferance.
When Rob began full time work he was only 15 and had no licence and his boss liked a drink or two and was not capable of driving, so when a tow came in the local policeman would ride with Rob so as he could drive the truck and carry out the tow.
His father was concerned that Rob was running the garage on his own, his boss was always drunk and when he was 17 he got his apprenticeship transferred to a BMC dealership in Katoomba.
In 1964 when Rob was 19 his brother-in-law bought a AT4 575H Dodge Car Freighter and Rob was eager to drive this rig but he didn't have a truck licence and he wanted to do night loads and weekend loads for his brother-in-law so he got his truck licence outside Katoomba Police Station at 11 pm in his Mini Minor.
It was not long after that he left the BMC Dealership and drove full time for his brother-in-law and did 300,000 miles in that Dodge in three years. He married Marion in 1966 and at the time he was earning top money $90.00 per week.
Rob started working for himself in 1968 and he and Marion bought the garage on top of Mt Victoria in 1977. He built himself a tow truck out of a burnt out fire engine and that Blitz towed many trucks over the pass.
They had two children a son Jody who followed his father into the trucking world and a daughter Cathy.
Rob is still working and will be 70 in June 2015. His favorite truck is a Mack and he has owned over 40 of them in the 36 years he has been in business.