{"id":834,"date":"2012-05-15T18:20:00","date_gmt":"2012-05-15T16:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/news\/?p=231"},"modified":"2026-04-14T11:01:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T11:01:27","slug":"lou-breezes-through-hgv-test-after-just-five-hours-training","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/lou-breezes-through-hgv-test-after-just-five-hours-training\/","title":{"rendered":"Lou breezes through HGV test after just five hours training"},"content":{"rendered":"

A NEWLY qualified lorry driver has proven that the haulage business<\/a> is not just a man’s game after passing her HGV test first time at just 22.<\/p>\n

Lou Bowden from Ramsgate wowed family and friends after breezing through the exam after just five hours of tuition.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. LORRY LADY: After a first time pass, Lou Bowden is\u00a0 looking to make a living as a HGV driver<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    She says her choice of profession is partly inspired by her boyfriend Anthony Elson who made headlines last year after he aced the same exam at just 18.<\/p>\n

    She said: “I am feeling well pleased with myself. Learning to drive a lorry wasn’t bad as I thought it would be, you just have to be more careful. I found I got used to it quickly.”<\/p>\n

    The test, which Lou had to go to Essex for, had come in two parts, a “class two” test for rigid vehicles following by an advanced “class one” test for articulated lorries.<\/p>\n

    Lou said: “I put a bit of pressure on myself to pass first time. During the first test I was nervous but went it came to round to the second part it was worse \u2013 I was even more nervous”<\/p>\n

    Instructor John Dawson said: “It is a unique achievement.<\/p>\n

    The test is in two parts and we do have quite a few women taking the first part, mostly so they can drive a horse box.<\/p>\n

    “Very few, if any, go on to do their class one.<\/p>\n

    “Lou was so exceptional in her class two test that it only took a couple of day to prepare her for her class one.”<\/p>\n

    Lou was working in sales for an energy company<\/a> when she was made redundant last year.<\/p>\n

    She said: “Anthony gave me the idea to go for the test and I thought, ‘if he can do it so can I’. I only really decided to do it before Christmas.<\/p>\n

    “Some people might think I am crazy for doing it but most people I know are proper chuffed for me and think it is really good.<\/p>\n

    My dad loves the idea and mum still can’t believe I am allowed to drive something so big.”<\/p>\n

    Crediting Anthony for helping her pass first time, she said: “I am not sure if I would have done so well if it wasn’t him teaching me about lorry driving and helping me prepare for the test. He has been very, very supportive.”<\/p>\n

    John said: “She is easily the best class one pass we have had so far this year among men and women. As a driver she will be a major asset for any company that hires her. If I could, I would take her on myself, but you have to be driving for three years before you teach.”<\/p>\n

    Lou is now aiming get her first job which could see her driving lorry not just in the UK but on the continent.<\/p>\n

    She said: “I can’t wait to get started.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    A NEWLY qualified lorry driver has proven that the haulage business is not just a man’s game after passing her HGV test first time at just 22. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-10-29 21:52:34","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/834","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=834"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/834\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19116,"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/834\/revisions\/19116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=834"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=834"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.surreyandhampshirehgvtraining.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=834"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}