g'day.

i got the cash together for the bike travel gig by driving road trains and other trucks, and thought i would share some wisdom on how to deal with them on the road:

do let them overtake you. you will be surprised how fast most of these vehicles travel - most of them are fitted with speed limiters, and these let the truck reach 102 or 104km/h. from time to time, one will come up behind you, so let it past. this seems self-evident, but it's clear from up there in the driver's seat that lots of people get freaked out just at the wrong moment.

do wait until the truck is out in the opposite (passing) lane, then just ease off the throttle (brake lightly if you want) and let the train slip past. this will happen quickly, and then you can go back to your cruising speed and the truckie can keep earning a living.

do not move towards the edge of the road, as the bow wave of the truck will blow you that way anyhow, and you want some spare space. do not accelerate away either, just let the truck pass and you will probably never see it again.

in australia, do not travel behind a road train or other large truck. it seems a lot of people feel safe back there, but it is not, for a couple of reasons:
- when the truck hits a kangaroo, cow, sheep or whatever, the animal will likely exit from underneath the rear of the truck in a variety of chunks, plenty of them big enough to end your day's ride.
- a small movement at the front of a roadtrain can translate into a much larger weave at the rear, and all those wheels pick up a lot of gravel if they leave the asphalt or cross a broken surface. you would probably prefer not to eat dirt. oh, and if you think you can drive a roadtrain without kicking up dirt here and there, give it a go!

cheers,
andy.

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