DRIVER BLOG: WHAT’S IT LIKE TO DELIVER FOR Spud?

A delivery driver for Spud is at the intersection of muscle power and customer relations. While most of your time is spent driving and delivering on your own, you also talk to customers and curious members of the public. Most noteworthy: a driver gets to talk face to face with the customer.

They really like Spud!

Driving around with a giant billboard certainly attracts attention. Little kids wave and people in the neighbourhood know when the Spud delivery man or woman is around.

Some customers are waiting at the door, having watched your delivery progress online. New customers are excited to hear about the service. I have yet to meet a grumpy customer, or someone with a complaint.

It was about three weeks into my job that I felt comfortable enough to start to appreciate the unique window into the world drivers get delivering for Spud.

The first few weeks I was so intent on getting the deliveries done on time that I didn’t sit back and get things into perspective.

My truck was fully loaded, with more than 50 deliveries to be made in West Vancouver, Lions Bay, Britannia Beach and Squamish, where most of the load was destined for. I could feel the weight and I wondered – how much food was in there? Driving to Squamish gave me time to think.

I rounded the numbers. Fifty deliveries, an average of two bins per delivery (a bit low an estimate) and 30 pounds per bin (maybe a bit high). Hmmm…that’s 3,000 pounds! I’m moving a ton and a half of produce and other consumables, lifting it out of the truck and carrying it to someone’s doorstep. No wonder I’m tired at the end of a shift.

But it’s great having a project like that, knowing exactly what you need to do. Plus, you get to see some great scenery – if you have the presence of mind to enjoy it.

Now that I’m over the training part of the job, I do.

In coming weeks, I’d like to talk about some of the interesting little stories I’ve come across in my travels. Please join me.

Written by Peter Louwe

Incurably curious, Peter likes to find stuff out and tell other people about it. A former journalist, he believes if brevity isn’t the soul of wit, it is at least a virtue.