The Western Sydney Historical Truck Club is this year once again presenting the ‘Haulin’ the Hume’ Historic truck run.
The Haulin’ the Hume truck run takes place on the Old Hume Highway on Saturday and Sunday the 25th and 26th of March, which runs from Sydney to Yass.
The Haulin’ the Hume truck run helps raise much-needed funds for Aspect-Autism Spectrum Australia
Departing from the Clarendon Showgrounds in Richmond at 6 am, the Haulin’ the Hume truck run will head down Northern Road to Narellan, through Picton, Mittagong, Berrima and into Goulburn for lunch.
The truck run then continues through the spectacular Cullerin Range into Gunning and then finally into Yass for dinner where the group will share photos and relive the good old days.
On Sunday morning, the tour will wrap up in the popular ‘Gasoline Alley’ for breakfast before heading back to their various homes.
Organiser of the event Bruce Gunter spoke to The Times about the background of ‘Haulin’ the Hume and their stop in Yass.
“Haulin’ the Hume started in 2011, that was the first one that we did. We had to skip one due to Covid and this is the first one back after Covid.
“I originally kicked it off with a couple of other guys and my reason was because my dad did long haul down the Old Hume Highway. I said to him one year I wouldn’t mind doing it and we set it up and started running it.
“We follow the Old Hume as much as we can. Dad used to talk about the different parts of the Old Hume and how much it meant to him.”
Gunter praised Yass and mentioned why the truck stops here as their final destination.
“The highway pretty much stops at Yass and it’s a good distance from Sydney,” Gunter said.
“Yass is a pretty town and a lot of the guys know it. It’s a nice spot and there’s a lot of accommodation there and they’ve always been accommodating to us. That’s why we love going there.
“We’ll be having dinner at the Yass Showgrounds with a caterer. I got in contact with Coleen Stirton who used to be part of the Yass Show Society and we’ve dealt with her in the past. I asked if she could help out and she said no problems.
Gunter explained his link to Aspect-Autism Spectrum Australia and why they were raising funds for the charity, which they have raised over $160,000 for during the event’s life.
“My little bloke has got autism, so that’s how the connection was made. He’s grown up now, but we still try and raise money for that,” he said.
“We’ve made a donation to Yass before and Goulburn, and we always make sure we buy something for them rather than just a cheque.
“We try and buy things for disabled kids and for the schools that have severely autistic kids.
“We’re still preparing for the run in a couple of weeks with getting signs and stickers made up. We’ve got to get the police and the councils and the NHVR (National Heavy Vehicle Regulator) all confirm and be happy with what we’re doing.
“The trip is about 300 kilometres so there’s a lot of hoops to jump through to get it organised. It’ll come off as long as the weather is okay, and we don’t get any breakdowns.”
Gunter admitted he didn’t know how well the event would be received when starting it, however, it has surpassed his expectations.
“We decided to get it on the road, but we didn’t know how popular it was going to be, it’s massively popular,” Gunter continued.
“I was a bit surprised with the first one with how many old guys came along and loved the fact that we did it and acknowledged them. I didn’t realise how important it was to certain people. That’s one of the main things that kept it going.
“The bit that we love is everyone on the side of the road watching us as we go past as we honk our horns.
“We normally get it up to about 300 trucks on the run before we have to cut it off, but there’s a lot of other people who tag along, so there’s often more than that.
“The trucks have got to be 25 year or older so that we can keep the historic element in it as best we can.”
Tim Warren
