Lisa Lloyd
I suppose . I haven ’ t always driven trucks ; I worked in hospitality while I was rearing my boys but when my first marriage broke down I was left with nothing . I said to my dad , ‘ I think the only thing I can do now is go truck driving ’ – he wasn ’ t happy about my decision but I ’ m good at truck driving and have made a good living from it . The blokes would say to me , ’ We know you ’ re a damn good little truck driver and you work really hard .’”
Lisa Lloyd
Starting in the truck driving business young seems to be a common theme . Lisa Lloyd started driving tractors on the family farm at sixteen and got her semi licence at twenty-two . “ I didn ’ t do much with it when I got it ; I think it was more for the challenge .” Lisa married a station manager and drove cattle trucks , loaders and tractors in the partnership . When her marriage fell apart she moved to the Northern Territory and worked in a major supermarket chain , eventually working her way up to manager in the bakery section . After a nasty injury she left that job and started work as a tour guide around Uluru and Katherine Gorge . Finding herself unemployed during the wet season a friend offered Lisa a job driving a water truck for a local earthmoving company . “ They gave me a broken down old Mack that took me three days to find third gear in but by the time I left I was driving an eighteen speed rigid water truck . The company helped me get a multi-combination licence which meant I could drive side-tippers , doubles and triples .”
While Lisa can obviously hold her own in a ‘ blokes ‘ world , it hasn ’ t been without its challenges . “ Other than perfecting the
proper load of gravel or mastering the water truck , my main challenges haven ’ t been mechanical or the isolation but the old men ; one told me I should have been in the kitchen and I replied with ‘ I ’ ll go to the kitchen when you go to the old folk ’ s home !’ We were good after that . Really , the men I ’ ve worked with have been awesome . I owe it all to the men who have had the faith to give me a go ; without them none of this would ’ ve happened .” Now 52 , Lisa lives in Port Augusta and drives a Kenworth AB triple road train running supplies to Olympic Dam . “ I still love driving but no more six weeks on , one week off , driving all over the state . This job means I ’ m home in my bed every night and get to see my
40 HONESTLY WOMAN MAGAZINE - SUBSCRIBE NOW