My little Toyota Corona was an automatic. My parents
had a Holden station wagon that was a manual. I'd learned on it before buying
my car but I'd had problems. When I was nervous (especially when my dad yelled) my
leg shook and the clutch didn't release properly and I kangaroo jumped the car.
So, I moved to the country only able to drive an
automatic (this was in the old days when you just got a licence without
auto/manual being stated). The Dept Ag had a car pool and most were manuals.
But I had a lab job and didn't need to go anywhere, so it didn't matter.
I was staying on Mr and Mrs S's property and so I
offered to help out my first weekend. They had a lucerne farm and I went to
help pick up bales of hay. Mr S took it
upon himself to teach me things. Today I was going to learn to drive the old
farm truck, a manual. I'm 5 ft 3, pretty short. He was at least 6 ft. The seat
in the truck didn't move. 'No worries,' he said, 'sit on the edge of the seat.'
So we get the truck moving and I slowly let out the clutch and manage not to
stall it. We start moving down the road. He has me go faster, move through the
gears, then go slower and move down the gears. I figured he knew I was a novice
on manuals...but no, that wasn't his rationale at all.
We get into the paddock and I have to stop near the
elevator - this gadget that has to attach to the side of the truck and it picks
up the bales. As I go to stop, nothing happens. 'Oh, the brakes don't work,
didn't I tell you that?' he says, calm as anything while I panic.
He had me working the gears because he wanted me to be
used to them because they were the only way I could stop the truck...and we
were working in a paddock beside the Murrumbidgee River.
Anyway, I got the hang of this truck, and only smashed
a few of the hay bales when I missed lining up the elevator with the bale. I didn't end up in the river. I didn't throw anyone off the back of the truck as they stacked bales. And, most importantly, my labour
covered the cost of the ruined bales ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment