After I had got over my extreme annoyance over the 3.10am train being cancelled from Folkestone to Calais, my recent trip to Holland was remarkeably straightforward (well, apart from the fact that I dropped my Blackberry down the loo - thank goodness for insurance!).
(me trying to take a picture out of the train window. It looks quite arty, however that wasn't the point!)
Last week I was testing a Freelander 2 - the new eco-friendly one with the disconcertingly effective stop/start engine. So, instead of flying to Amsterdam and hiring a car, I decided to drive instead, which worked out lots cheaper and quite enjoyable, too!
(Snug as a bug in a Channel Tunnel carriage)
What was I doing in Holland? Well, our Dutch sister publication, Boerderij, organised a test of eleven 4-furrow ploughs and we decided to join in, alongside French mag La France Agricole and German publication Top Agrar. These tests are generally great fun, but lots of work - making sure all the ploughs turn up, have all the correct balls etc and everyone's in the right place at the right time. Not to mention hitching on and off ploughs until I could probably do it in my sleep! Oh, and the pressure washing (thanks Martijn!).
(It's not that bad, is it Martijn? Our team of ploughing experts)
Ploughs tested, car demoed and all back to the office in Sutton for 5.30 for our photographer's leaving do after my two day trip. Phew - glad I didn't have to inflict all that on my car! The test will be in the mag some time in early November.
And here's a picture of what the inside of the car looked like after my road trip...
Note in top left - high vis vest - obligatory in France. And a multitude of chargers for just about everything!
I understand that but where does it take us?
We all can’t be heroes. Somebody has to sit on the sides and clap as they go by. :)
Most people are generally familiar with the word ‘fleet‘, which describes many vehicles in one set of cars, owned by a single individual or company. Vehicles from taxis to frozen treats trucks, almost any set of vehicles can be considered a fleet, and thus insured under a single insurance policy in order to save money.