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The Lost Art

In September 2025, The Way We Were•1 Minute•By Rod Simmonds•14 October 2025

‘Tarp’: a large piece of waterproof cloth or plastic used as a cover to protect exposed objects or areas from rain or other elements. But, for the old-school truckers, it was just bloody hard work!

Before the arrival of early curtainsiders, ‘if it fits, it ships’ general freight carriers all used tarps of varying fabrics to protect their loads from our wet climate. The art of securing a mixed load and then covering it neatly was part of the day’s professionalism.

It’s rare to see tarped loads these days, but a neat job will always bring admiration. These are just some that caught Rod’s eye back in the day.

The Mitsubishi of Kaitaia’s Mangonui Haulage connecting the northern wool clip and southern buyers with the full covering tarps.
Regan Carriers’ Detroit-powered Kenworths were always well loaded and impressively tarped.
The Mack Cruise-Liner for Davis Contracting Wool Scourers and Buyers of Cambridge regularly delivered across to the Napier wool stores, with loads always well secured and covered.
The Ford Cargo of Dawe & Sons, Te Puke, crawling up the Bombay Hills into Auckland with a decent tarped load.
Now there’s a tarp job … Opzeeland was renowned for it.
The famous Combined Haulage L&P Kenworth Aerodynes carted from Oasis Industries (Coca-Cola NZ), Mt Wellington, nationwide, and always had neatly tarped loads in the days just before curtainsiders came on the scene.
A rare Renault R310, painted in the old Trailways livery, that worked all over New Zealand with a tri-axle semi on general freight.
The late Darryl Shellard contracted to well-known Keveys Transport with his rocket – a V8 440hp Mack Cruise-Liner, carting spuds in bins, milk powder or timber all over the North
Piako Freighters of Morrinsville ran Macks on linehaul and inter island work. Milk powder, timber and produce were the company’s specialty, with maximum loads always neatly tarped.
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