The Livestock and Rural Transporters Association of Victoria’s (LRTAV) Young Driver of the Year has said there are great opportunities for young people in transport, if you are willing to make some sacrifices.
Caleb Baldock, 29, is an interstate MC driver for Mibus Transport in the Wimmera, doing everything from carting livestock to oversize work to handling compliance for the company.
He was named Young Driver of the Year at the recent LRTAV conference in Shepparton, with his uncle and employer Daniel Mibus praising him for his extensive skills and hard-working attitude.
“He’s not just a truck driver, he’s also a certified pilot driver for oversize work,” Daniel said.
“He handles all our permits and compliance, because he’s from a younger generation and he’s great with computers – where that just goes straight over my head!
“He runs the maintenance programs for us as well, and he’s right up with his mechanical knowledge.”
He added that Caleb, who joined Mibus Transport four years ago, is quick to help anyone who needs it.
“Say we’re chaining an oversize load on – he won’t just do it, he will always teach the person who’s with him why he does it that way.”
Caleb has a two-year-old daughter and another child on the way, and Daniel said his nephew has had to forego some family time because of his job, which brings him all around Australia.
“When you jump in a truck and you’re doing interstate work, you don’t know when you’re going to be home,” he said. “Caleb has missed out on a lot, but he always has a positive attitude.”
Caleb said balancing family life and work is definitely a challenge.
“You have to make sure that when you are home, you give time back to your family and enjoy it because if you miss it, you can’t get it back,” he said.
“My wife is very understanding of the roles that I play, but in recent years I have been trying to scale back the time away and do more maintenance and compliance.”
Despite the challenges that come with a career in the transport industry, Caleb would still encourage other young people to give it a chance.
“Obviously if you want to make the big money, it comes with sacrifices,” he said.
“But if you’re a young person looking for a career where you can travel the country and get paid well for it, I think it’s a great option.
“There are a lot of positives to the industry and some amazing people who help you along the way.”
Caleb said he was delighted to win the Young Driver of the Year award, which was presented at the LRTAV conference in Shepparton last month, and admits his attention to detail may have helped him claim the trophy.
“If I don’t know something, I will put a lot of time and effort into finding out as much as I can about it,” he said.
“That way I can be better informed to make decisions.”
Sharing his advice for new truckies, he said: “You’re not just driving a truck, you’ve got to really put your mind to it, take your time and do the job well. Learn from more senior drivers and work your way up.”
Safety of our trucks and vehicles and whatever is paramount trucks gonna be safe to drive why doesn’t cars utes and caravans on the same deal? I am a grey nomadI traveled Australia a bit last three or four years and the amount of rigs Caravan and Utes that are overloaded is unbelievable. If We don’t start clamping down to be more I accident and incident are going to happen.