Young European Truck Driver 2010: Irish champion coached by ex-champion
Proceed to gate. Gabriel Warde, winner of the Irish YETD competition, is on course for the European final in Södertälje.
The Irish final in Scania’s Young European Truck Driver recently took place over two weekends. Driver Gabriel Warde, with a near flawless performance, was named the winner by an independent jury from the Irish Road Safety Association.
The Irish national final of the Young European Truck Driver was held in early summer at the Scania distributor Westwards’ facilities in Strokestown, in County Roscommon. Spectators were treated to both a thrilling competition, a close-up look at the new Scania V8 trucks, and the trailer from the Irish Road Safety Association with its simulator.
A champion in action. Gabriel Warde, winner of the Irish YETD 2010, in discussion with a member of the jury.
The final was held over two weekends, 26–27 June and 3–4 July. At the first weekend, 30 drivers performed the fuel economy driving and fault detection parts of the competition; from there, 14 drivers made it to the contest finale the following weekend, which tested their skills in manoeuvring the vehicles.
The competitors were coached by the YETD 2007 winner Tom Sharkey who drove the track. The competition’s jury comprised representatives from the Irish Road Safety Association.
The final contest was extremely tight, with the drivers making few mistakes. Gabriel Warde won the day with near-flawless driving. He’ll be representing Ireland in the European final on 9 October in Södertälje, Sweden.
The majority of the competitors found the “reverse the garage” manoeuvre very tricky, and their best advice to future contestants was to practice.
Winner Warde says he normally drives a truck from another manufacturer. Looking forward to the European final in Södertälje, he says he plans to “contact Scania to test a vehicle” and “practise a lot”.
1st: Gabriel Warde
2nd: Eric Kelly
3rd: Robert Baker
On display. New Scania vehicles, mainly V8 trucks, were on exhibit during the opening day of the Irish YETD at Westwards, in Strokestown, Ireland.
Independent. The Irish Road Safety Association acted as an impartial competition jury for the Irish YETD competition.
Precision driving. The drivers showed excellence during the final’s manoeuvring tests.
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