It's true to say I've never done things the easy way, and my road to this point is an all too clear example of this. I certainly never expected to have 2 of my dream cars buy this point in my life, but I'm not complaining about that bit!!
As a child I did all I could to emulate my Dad. He wasn't home much as he worked all hours to keep a roof over our heads in difficult times. He was a bus and HGV mechanic and that was pure magic to me. When he was home, usually working on our family car to keep it on the road I'd be stuck to him like glue. Picking up his tools the instant he put them down, holding his torch when ever I got half a chance, and stealing his jack so I could get to work underneath my ride on tractor.... of course!
I was always the industrious type. Never indoors and always busy. I built car washing round when I was 13 for a bit of pocket money and always struggled to pass up any opportunity to earn an honest quid.
At 16 chomping at the bit I landed my first job as a car and commercial mechanic and studied at college along side this first to become a coded welder and then for body work and spray painting qualification. Later my work moved over into the world of fabricator welder, at the time simply for financial reasons. I came away with invaluable skills and experience, my life (barely) and a life long friend. So all in all it was a bloody good move.
After a few years the mechanical side became too tempting to resist given my life long interest so I shifted back into mechanics with my other training firmly under my belt.
Years later, now a well seasoned HGV mechanic and Mercedes specialist after spending many
years at the top of my field at Mercedes-Benz main dealers. With a wealth of wide ranging experience from buses to emergency repair and recovery in very dangerous situations (tales for another day!), MOT testing, diagnostic technician, body working, custom car building, classic restoration and many many Land Rover repairs(!!!) to name but a few strings to this ever greying bow. I feel very lucky to have had such a varied path through a world I still find so exciting.
I can't imagine going through life without having something I am this passionate about. Without a trade, that when times were tough I could work 20 hours a day (yeah the docs weren't very happy with me at the time either) to make sure the bills were paid. Without something that still presents new possibilities and never ending questions to keep me awake at night searching for solutions, well. I just can't imagine I would be me at all.
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