Actually, our motorcycle transport crates were supposed to be picked up and transported to Munich Airport about two weeks before our departure. Towards the end of the crate construction, however, we received the info that the pickup of the crates with a truck would be delayed by another week - i.e. not until the week of our departure. Therefore, we had to reorganize all our appointments and plans, because in the meantime we had "accommodated" with our relatives until our departure, in order to be able to spend a few nice days together with everyone again.
However, a small obstacle in reorganizing was that we received only very vague information at first. At first, we were given two days ("Monday or Tuesday") as a pickup date and the truck driver would contact us about an hour before that he was coming. Just before the weekend, this information changed again: "The truck will come on Monday between 12:00 and 2pm!"
When it finally became Monday, a call came from Kerstin's sister already at 8:00 a.m.: "The truck is already in front of the front door and the driver wants to load the boxes!" However, since we were still visiting our parents somewhere else at that time, but the boxes were in Kerstin's sister's garage, the truck driver had to wait a bit for us - among other things, because it had snowed a bit during the night!
Half an hour later finally arrived there, the next surprise awaited us: instead of the originally announced 7.5t truck there was only a small Polish 3.5t truck. This is of course meant to be much smaller. We began to have some doubts.
Next, we were informed by our brother-in-law: "The truck driver speaks neither German nor English - only Ukrainian (attention: Cyrillic script!)!" Thanks to Google Translator and various apps, we were at least able to communicate. Even if it is a bit strange to have a conversation without a single word being spoken and only the text being entered into the cell phone and shown to the other person in each case! But at least: cheers for the technical progress, because everything worked out!
So off to load the boxes onto the truck! Here we had the next surprise. For the construction of the crate, we were told the maximum crate width was 235 cm. This would then easily fit on the truck, as it would be about 240 cm wide. Space would only have to be left on the long side as access points for forklifts or ants. It would not be necessary to be able to load the crate with a forklift from all sides due to the size and weight of the crate. Therefore, we had adapted our crate construction and built a length with 230 cm and space for the forklift on the long side. Well, we thought this would be enough.
The first crate was on the loading ramp right in front of the truck and our truck driver started frowning and shaking his head, putting on a more serious face. He jumped off the loading platform again, got a tape measure.
Our crate width: 230 cm - the width of the transporter's loading area: 228 cm! Only two cm difference, but this was enough that the boxes could not be loaded with the ant. Desperate looks between the people involved, we already thought that our first doubts had been justified.
However, we were lucky! There were enough people present and together we managed to turn the approx. 400 kg crate by 90 degrees and push it into the truck with the wider side first.
The same game succeeded with the next crate. Thanks to our crate width of only 1m each, both luckily just fit into the truck! Because one behind the other it would not have worked, otherwise they would have been too long for the truck.
Not only we - also the truck driver were therefore visibly relieved!
After briefly completing the last formalities, signing the bill of lading (freight = "2 boxes"), then our two motorcycles "Munin" (Andreas F 800 GS) and "Trinianne" (Kerstin's F 700 GS) drove away.
Two motorcycles in a Polish truck with an Ukrainian driver from Austria to Germany to fly to Canada! If that is not international enough for the beginning of a world trip!
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