He may have both eyes firmly on the road by day, but after-hours Lowes Petroleum driver Marcio Ribeiro is fiercely tuned into the soccer World Cup, predicting we’ll see France and Argentina again head to the grand finale.
The Brazilian driver played the sport for more than 20 years – the latter part of that as a professional player for team Palmeiras: considered one of the country’s most successful clubs of all time with 20 million supporters.
At 26, he formally joined his father’s sugar cane transport business, although prior to that he learned to drive by jumping into a truck and learning the ropes as he went along.
By night he studied a Degree in Physical Education (and later in Australia – a Diploma in Logistics) but threw himself into learning everything about trucks for his father’s business.
“I didn’t want to just live sports,” Marcio said. “I said to my father, ‘how can I manage the drivers if I cannot drive a truck?’ so I wanted to learn everything I could. I even worked to understand as much of how the machinery worked as possible.
“Often, I could see what was wrong and tell the mechanics to look for this or look for that because I knew what was going on with the engine or the brakes.
“It was funny the mechanics would say – ‘who is that driver?”
Marcio came to Australia 15 years ago when he decided he had to learn to speak English.
“I studied for a year and a half because I could speak no English at all,” Marcio said. “Once I could speak and understand the language, things started to happen and I found a job.
“I started off in WA driving for mining sites and other fuel companies. What I love about driving is that days are routine, but at the same time, that routine is not routine because you are driving in a different direction and meeting different customers.”
Based at Lowes Petroleum’s Brisbane Pinkenba Depot – on any given day, Marcio could drive over 1000 kilometres – heading north to Gladstone, west to Cunnamulla or Quilpie and south to Rowena in New South Wales.
With 18 months of driving for Lowes he still marvels at the lack of traffic compared to Brazil.
“Sao Paulo where I am from has a population of over 40 million people,” he said. “So, the roads are always congested with an air of madness to it, especially when you throw in the popularity of motorcycles and those dodging the traffic riding them.
“It is always busy: when you consider my state has virtually double the population of Australia, so it is always double the problems. Here you might not see a car for hours when you are driving, but in Brazil – that would be impossible.”
Marcio said the technology of the rigs he has been driving today was a far cry from some of “the craps I drove in Brazil”.
“The technology has certainly come a long way from those first few trucks I drove for my father,” he said. “The sugar cane was so heavy, and the trucks barely had to power to move the 130 tonnes, but we made it work.”
Marcio said his workday started the night before – ensuring a good night’s sleep. He recalls an accident in Brazil between two trucks where a driver died, so is always mindful of driving at his best and managing fatigue.
“I try to keep my mind clear,” he said. “I pay attention all the time because I know what I’m doing but I am also aware of managing other drivers on the road. Nothing makes me angrier than to see motorists taking risks with reckless driving.
“I want to tell every motorist to be calm: be patient. It’s simple but most people forget about the most important thing – your life – it’s ok to arrive five minutes late and alive.”
When he’s not driving, he likes to go to the gym, cycle and read motivational books – occasionally playing soccer with his friends.
“I played in an over 35s competition for a while, but it was funny – that often ended up being more competitive than when I played in Brazil,” he laughs.