It looks certain that 11-year-old Braxston Clay will follow in the footsteps of his father Jonathon Friend and become a truckie.
39-year-old Friend dives a Kenworth C509 for Charters Towers based Footy’s Livestock Transport and Big Rigs.
Friend had delivered cattle from the Burdekin region to Julago just south of Townsville and was hooking up trailers on a triple road train at the Port Access Road.
“The cattle will be live exported to Indonesia on the Ocean Drover vessel from Townsville Port,” he says.
Friend has been with Footy’s for nine years and says live exports may have slowed down but not so much the beef industry. “Everyone still wants to eat meat.”
His son Braxston is a genuine chip off the old block and likes to travel in the truck with his proud dad. “He just loves trucks and I am sure he will end up a driver,” Friend says.
Friend likes stopping at the Gold City Puma on the outskirts of Charters Towers and rates the Clermont to Rockhampton road as amongst the worst he gets along.
“Also the dirt roads in the Dalrymple Shire around Charters Towers are bad,” he adds.
Outside work Friend enjoys a game of cricket and lines up for the Balfes Creek Boozers at the annual Goldfield Ashes carnival held at Charters Towers each January.
Friend barracks for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL which haven’t had a good 2020 season. “I still follow them though and went to school with one of their former stars Jacob Lillyman who now runs a family pub in Richmond,” he says.