ROCK ON ROD
You think you have seen it all and then wham – all of a sudden you find yourself looking at something you have never seen before. Just where the heck did this come from? Even trying to describe the stunning job Rod Richards has made in rebuilding – or should that perhaps read recreating – WMA 836J leaves you scratching around looking for superlatives to try and fit something that you haven’t a clue what to say about. And while the pictures certainly reflect its stunning appearance, up close in the metal it just oozes a presence and almost intangible class which is more than just one heck of a well-done restoration. And seeing that Rod did the vast majority of it himself, it’s yet an extra attribute to this self-taught workaholic’s hugely impressive CV which stretches all the way to Canada and back, as well as embracing all manner of horse power (with a passionate love for all things Gardner thrown in as well). Just like the stunning six-wheel scow end dumper he has produced, his 71 years – and counting – of jam packed life has certainly been different.
Inter city
On paper, Rod hasn’t travelled more than a mile or two from where he was born and brought up, which even now is more like an oasis of rural backwater mid-way between the huge urban conurbations of Greater Manchester and the ever growing mass of Merseyside. This part of the Irlam area is close to the border line of Cheshire and Lancashire and Rod’s early days were with
