Copy Southbound Podcast

Every now and then we are contacted by someone with a story that is so moving that we act on it as soon as we can. This was one of those phone calls. Brett Harder owns a neat transport fleet on the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia and called Bruce to share his story. A passionate truck enthusiast which is obvious by the quality and presentation of his fleet yet this is about his early signs and s...

Doyley is a man known by many following well over 50 years behind the wheel. We got out to Trangie to finally interview Doyley and hear of his love of trucks, the industry and what it is that keeps him going as a driver in his mid-80's. He was part of the legendary Grey Ghost crew and a good mate of Gary Darlington who recently passed away. We'd like to thank Graham for his hospitality, honesty an...

Any truck enthusiast will be familiar with the legendary Freds of Shepparton fleet that grace our highways. With some customised and very individual designs, I think that most people would be proud to steer one. But with our recent catch up with Danny Borg, son of founder Fred Borg, we learnt about the non-traditional start to the company and a foundation that has ensured that Freds will be here t...

Bruce has known Brian Taylor through historic truck runs for many years and finally got to Yerong Creek in the NSW Riverina District to record the family history. Brian was joined by his father Geoff as the two of them recalled the early days of Taylor Brothers Transport and the trials that are faced by operators on a daily basis. Brian is still peddling up and down the highway and when he's not r...

Pattens Transport had humble beginnings in 1938 as the family moved into trucking following a career in farming. The company steadily grew thanks to the local cannery along with a contract with Ricegrowers which lasted for almost 50 years. This resulted in the end of the transport business but in their wake the Patten family left a legacy in the Leeton district that will remain for many years to c...

With many changes in transport we figured it was time to approach the NHVR for another interview and they happily obliged. Bruce and I see a lot of things happen in the industry and get asked many questions. The ramping up of things such as Enforceable Undertakings, Supervisory Intervention Orders and Prosecutions had us wanting to clear up a few stigmas surrounding them all. We were joined by out...

After Murray contacted Bruce about some Kenworth Klassic information, a lengthy discussion resulted in him being invited onto the show. Murray has had an extensive career in road transport including being a company driver, Coach Captain and then owner driver. What appealed to us was the humble nature of this passionate truckie especially his selfless dedication to assist people struggling with lif...

Bruce had a chance meeting with Evan Jones while recording up around the Toowoomba area and was so taken with his humour, memory and knowledge of the industry that he approached him for an interview before heading back to Sydney. Evan is now a publican in a little town called Nobby, between Warwick and Toowoomba. Evan kept saying to Bruce "I know you from somewhere" and true to his word, Bruce rem...

Ben was part of our compliance team in Sydney and he's been mentioned on the podcast plenty of times. Now residing back in Oakey out of Toowoomba, Ben looks after the compliance and training for Mort & Co and is an extremely talented operator. But his beginnings stem back to early days as a driver as he worked his way through the field. We have a lot of time for Ben as we learnt to respect his kno...

Checkout SYDNEY TRUCKFEST www.sydneytruckfest.com.au We were lucky enough to meet some great people at Casino Truck Show last year and amongst them was Barry and Maree Sjerp, a truly delightful couple from Limestone Ridges, South of Ipswich. We learnt of Barry's introduction to trucks as well as his childhood, being raised without a father after his beloved Dad was taken in a truck accident when B...

After conversing with Paul Biagini over social media for some time, Bruce realised how similar they were with their love of trucks, cars, writing. He approached Paul to tell the story and was invited up to Paul's place in Mulgowie in the high country south of Gatton in Queensland. With a childhood around trucks and a strong history as an owner operator, Paul openly discussed his highs and lows in...

Our first interview for 2024 sees Bruce interview recently retired Greg Williamson who spoke about his career in the livestock game that stemmed back to the late 50's. Driving an array of trucks – including Bruce's beloved Commer's – Greg became a long time operator of the Mercedes Benz brand and ran a small fleet of them for many years. He ended up driving for Mort & Co in Toowoomba and told a te...

The Wickham fleet is well known on our roads and Graham Keogh has been on our radar since Copy Southbound's inception to sit with and hear the story. We finally managed to create a time and were not disappointed. The operation in Warwick is a standout with state of the art facilities, servicing and equipment that identifies them as leaders in their field. Yet, the humble beginnings of the company...

Jim and Helen Savage sat with Bruce on his recent trip up the New England to capture some of our industries standout operators. After working as independent livestock haulers for some years, Jim and Helen formed Stockmaster, a name well known in Tamworth and surrounding areas. They were both instrumental in improvements and safety standards in transport and initiated a number of firsts in their ar...

This bloke needs little to no introduction due to his enormous popularity following his stint on the Outback Truckers program, a show that takes Australian trucking to the rest of the world.  Glenn Kendall, affectionately known as Yogi, is a larger than life character who was shoved into the limelight via the show and gained a following due to his humor and infectious personality.  Even though he...

We've had Gary's name on our list of people we've wanted to interview for the past three years and finally, the opportunity presented itself and it was worth the wait. From paper trucks to one of the earliest Grey Ghost drivers, Darlo made a name for himself driving these legendary machines for a few fast years before becoming Linehaul Manager for TNT and then branching out on his own. He's also t...

In this episode, Bruce sits with Glen Lewis who recently gained some recognition after driving his pristine T950 around Australia to celebrate his 60 th birthday. A trucking tragic from an early age, Glen has dabbled in transport through the years and is a huge advocate for charity work and helping a mate. Also, He's been a massive fan of Copy Southbound since we started so we thought we would hel...

Patty Morris has been a mate of Bruces for many years and shares his love for trucks, transport and history. He's widely known amongst the historic truck movement for his great collection of old trucks and tractors and, like Bruce, enjoys a yarn as you'll find out. Kick back as we hear about his introduction to transport, life on the road and ambition to restore as many pieces of history as possib...

On a recent trip to Western Australia, Bruce had the pleasure of catching up with Dennis Thorburn to discuss his career in the heavy haulage industry. Well known throughout the industry as Darkie, Dennis made a name for himself doing what they do best in the west, hauling some mammoth loads with some impressive equipment through some of our toughest country. He even featured in Truckin' Life back...

Tony Savage was a neighbour of Bruce's and he still recalls Tony's brand new LNT 9000 Louisville parked on his front lawn sporting Kingston colours as a young Tony embarked on a career in heavy haulage. Recently retired, Bruce caught up with Tony, someone he's admired for many years, and sat to discuss his life in transport. Have you joined BANGERZ yet? www.copysouthbound.com.au  

We were invited to speak with the amazing Keith Anderson in Toowoomba to hear the incredible life story of this 99 year olds association with the iconic Western Transport. It was well worth the trip as Keith is as sharp as a tac and his recollection of his years working with them was something to behold. We'd like to thank David Anderson for making this happen as we consider the opportunity to spe...

Bruce has often mentioned his luck in being invited to the States to drive historic trucks for the Klenske family and on his recent trip across, took the time to sit with Dalton Trucking's Josh, son of owner Terry Klenske. A similar history to any transport company in Australia with highs and lows, good luck and good management and with a collection of old vehicles that has Bruce needing a cold sh...

As the long term Executive Officer of the South Australian Road Transport Association (SARTA), Steve Shearer has been instrumental in his support of the Transport Industry and lobbying Government for change. Steve is one of the few people who front the media as a spokesperson for all Road Transport issues and we could all take a leaf out of his book to back the industry that the majority of us sti...

A recent trip to the USA saw Bruce sit down with his mate and idol Paul Cox. Bruce has been in awe of Paul's perfect Kenworth Aerodyne for years and both Paul and his truck were a huge influence when he restored his cabover. Bruce has been around restoration for many years so when he refers to Paul's Aerodyne as 'one of the worlds best vehicle restorations' it really must be something special. And...

Alan Ross has been around for many years and with the help of family, friends and loyal staff, has built a transport company and solid reputation for service and reliability. With a current fleet exceeding 60 vehicles, Alan has dedicated himself to giving back and supports charity events and personal needs of many like many on the South Coast. And, he's hilarious! Bruce was in stitches listening t...