Milly McCauley met up with Jared Bruysten, who drives for Sollys Contractors of Golden Bay, two hours west of Nelson. He was about to leave the Golden Bay Takaka depot in one of the company‘s Isuzu stock units and was heading for Blenheim with a load of cattle. Jared has had his class 5 licence for two years and got into truck driving through both family and friends. As a boy he spent hours after school at Sollys Takaka yard “washing trucks and just mucking around”.

Jared‘s favourite part about the job is seeing the country and his preferred accommodation is The Racecourse Hotel in Christchurch because it is comfortable, and easy to manage with a truck. Milly asked Jared what his favourite meal was: “Steak, especially when the boss pays for it,” was his answer. When asked what he likes to do in his spare time, Jared said, “Sleep!”

He drives a range of the company‘s Nissans and Isuzus carting livestock, bulk, and general loads, and he is happy to drive anything as needed. Milly asked Jared if there was anything he didn‘t like about trucking and he said the early morning starts, as he hates getting out of bed so early.

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