Dear Editor,

On Oct. 25 , 1999 I started a truck driving course in Belleville Ont. I had just retired from 27 years of communications with the OPP and wanted to start another career. I have always loved the trucking industry and felt that this was for me.

Well, everything was going good for the first three weeks and then there was a twist to things. When I was just a little guy I contracted polio, which affected my right arm. I have always been able to compensate with my left side until it came to shifting the 18 wheelers. The slip shifting went fine, but the double clutching kind of blew me out of the water. The shifter, of course, had to be pushed too far to the right and since I was using my left side for the clutch, I was unable to shift to the far right. That kind of brought things to a halt. I would not be able to pass the Ontario Ministry of Transportation test with this problem. I know that I would make a good driver and was also told this by the instructor. But my school does not have any automatic trucks to practice with. I need to find a company that would be willing to let me finish the two outstanding weeks of training with an automatic, and I would guarantee that I would go on with them as a driver. Can anyone help me? n

Don Chatterson

Stirling, Ont.