Up to 300 classic trucks will travel the old Hume Highway from Sydney to Yass on April 11.
Geoff Rudd was getting ready for the 2015 Haulin’ the Hume when Owner//Driver visited him at his home near Canberra recently.
He has entered his 1968 AT4 760 Dodge and 1980 White Road Commander SE9 in the road run and plans to share the driving with family and friends.
Haulin’ the Hume takes place on April 11 and 12 when classic trucks will trace the old Hume Highway from Sydney to Yass.
“You meet people you haven’t seen for years and year. It’s like a reunion all the way down the road,” says Rudd who has been driving trucks on the Hume since the late 1950s.
Haulin’ the Hume is the brainchild of Bruce Gunter who teamed up with the Western Sydney Historical Truck Club for the first run which attracted 140 trucks in 2011. About 260 trucks registered for the second Haulin’ the Hume in 2013.
The 2015 Haulin’ the Hume has been capped at 300 trucks and organisers are fine-tuning the event to cope with the run’s extraordinary popularity.
The run begins at Clarendon Showgrounds in Richmond on Saturday morning, April 11. Trucks will travel down Northern Road to Narellan, climb Razorback Mountain, pass through Picton’s Hole in the Wall, and continue through Mittagong, Berrima and Marulan to a short truck display at Goulburn Recreation Area.
After lunch the trucks will continue through the Cullerin Range to Gunning and Yass.
Bookings are essential for a sit-down catered meal at the Yass Memorial Hall on Saturday night. The weekend concludes on Sunday morning with a truck display at Riverbank Park, Yass.
Haulin’ the Hume will raise funds for Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect).
Truck entry forms can be found at www.wshtc.com.au. The official deadline for truck entries is February 15 but it is possible the event will be booked out before then.
For more information about Haulin’ the Hume phone Ron Ross 0437 384 736 or Richard Cant 0416 755 570.
Read about Geoff Rudd’s distinguished trucking career in the January issue of Owner//Driver Magazine.
Photography: Tamara Whitsed