THE COVENANTER
the lamp and lie to each other about how floored the throttle. The Champ( God bless
clever, brave and tough we were during our her) responded instantly gripped the ground
time. Then there are the stories we recount and roared up the hill like the thoroughbred
when your granddaughter asks “What did she was. That’s when I learned that getting
You do in the War Grandpa?”. up steep hills requires lower gears.
Since this is to be the final publication of After a couple of days rushing about delivering
the Covenanter I thought I might put down batteries and line laying around the training
a few of my own memory snapshots of some area I was getting pretty confident about my
of the lighter moments (and some of the driving but early onemorning the Signals
more embarrassing ones). Officer required to go to an O Group. He
and two signallers jumped into the truck, I
In Buxtehude after completing basic switched on, pulled out the choke and fired
training, I did a driving cadre on the good her up.
old Austin Champ and was able to drive it The starter ground away but the engine
quite well after about four days, much to would not start. I kept trying and soon the
my surprise since I’d never even been in a batteries began to lose power and the starter
motor car before. The Battalion was short motor to slow right down.
of drivers for an up coming exercise and so I
found myself scheduled to drive the Battery The Signals Officer says “Right Lads, Out
Delivery and Line Section of the Signals the back and We’ll give him a push to get
Platoon even though I didn’t yet have a it going”. So they get round the back and
drivinglicence. start pushing me along this track eventually
getting fast enough to break into a run.
When we left camp to move to Soltau Meanwhile I am sat behind the wheel ( with
training area I was as nervous as a nun at a the ignition switched off) wondering how
NAAFI dance. I’d never been in charge of a the hell pushing the truck along this track
truck on my own but I concentrated grimly was going to make it start. Eventually we
on staying fifty yards behind the vehicle in came to a gate and had to stop. By this time
front and soon began to think I was doing the boys were practically on their knees. I
not too badly. Until that is we reached the switched on, tried the starter and she fired
Autobahn when I noticed that the truck was up. Thats when I learned not to floor the
making strange bumping noises every few throttle when starting on the choke but I
seconds and I could feel vibration in the was still baffled as to how pushing a truck
steering wheel with each bump. It took was meant to make it start. It was some
a mile or two of this before I realised that months later I was shown how to start an
it was because we were running over the engine by using the clutch when being
expansion joints on the road surface. pushed.
When we reached the training area and The Champ had two holders by the drivers
started to go across country on a small, right side to hold a rifle. Having neither
muddy track I got all nervous again since doors nor indeed any bodywork,leaving the
this was all new stuff to me and I was worried vehicle simply meant lifting your leg over
about doing something wrong. At a place the body sill and putting your foot onto
where there was a steep downhill run into the ground. This was fine if a Lee Enfield
a long flat patch of mud and water then a 303 was in the holding clips but we had
steep climb up through trees the rest of the been issued with the Belgian made FN Rifle
convoy were lining up to tackle it one at a (forerunner to the SLR) and it could only go
time. I went down far too fast showering in the clips upside down with the pistol grip
mud and water everywhere and started and magazine sticking upward, perfectly
up the other side with the trailer snaking placed to rip a nice gash in your thigh as
about behind me and the signallers in the you got out. It became necessary to remove
back declaring loudly that I was a fatherless the rifle from the holders when getting in
halfwit. I didn’t care, I was through the or out.
worst I thought until suddenly the truck
started shuddering almost to a halt and the The night before the last day of the exercise
oil pressure and ignition lights were flashing whilst sorting myself out to go on stag I
wildly. Without the faintest idea why I was suddenly realised with horror that I did not
doing it I crashed her down into first gear and have a rifle. I searched everywhere in the
49
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