Robert Nelsons lousy driving wreaks havoc once again

WARKWORTH -- Is it the truck

or the driver to blame?
Or is it merely a coincidence
that every tme Robert (Ots
Flute) Nelson gets behind the
wheel of Jack Maynes Dodge
Ram truck theres an accident just
waitng to happen.
Whatever it is, one thing is
certain: Mr. Nelsons driving
record with Mr. Maynes truck is
absolutely abysmal.
The latest incident occurred last
month when Mr. Nelson backed
his friends truck into a brand new
garbage shed that is located be-
hind the Warkworth Legion. Mr.
Nelson was atemptng to get as
close to the shed as possible so
he could unload several garbage
bags from the back of the truck.
Well, as it turns out, Mr. Nelson
got a litle too close to the shed,
causing extensive damage to the
$1,800 metal structure that was
just purchased in May.
The 66-year-old Mr. Nelson,
who is the secretary treasurer at
the local Legion, blamed wet
grass for the accident. He said he
had difculty getng up a slight
incline because it was raining at
the tme.
I was spinning my wheels on
the wet grass so I decided to gun
it a bit, Mr. Nelson told the
Warkworth Journal in a recent
interview at the Legion.
That shed kind of snuck up on
me in a hurry. By the tme I hit the
brakes, it was too late. When I
heard the bang, I thought, Oh
shit! I guess Im close enough
now.
It marks the third tme in less
than a year that Mr. Nelson has
been involved in a mishap with
the truck. Last July, he completely
destroyed one of his wifes fa-
vourite lawn ornaments -- a beau-
tful wishing well -- when he acci-
dently backed over it.
A month later, he somehow
managed to run over Mr. Maynes
dog while backing out of his drive-
way. Miraculously, the dog -- a
14-year-old Beagle -- survived the
ordeal, although it now walks
with a notceable limp these days.
There is a common denomina-
tor in each accident, but
(surprisingly) it isnt alcohol. (Mr.
Nelson swears he was sober each
tme.) All three mishaps occurred
while Mr. Nelson was atemptng
to back up the vehicle.
This comes as no surprise to
Mr. Nelsons wife Trudy.
Robert cant back up worth a
damn, Mrs. Nelson said, statng
the obvious. He is the worst
backer-upper Ive ever seen.
This seems hard to believe for
someone like Mr. Nelson, who
spent 22 years driving a forklif at
the General Motors assembly
plants in Oshawa.
Oh, I got in my share of acci-
dents while driving (forklifs),
too, Mr. Nelson said with a
chuckle.
Mrs. Nelson
apparently has
seen enough car-
nage, and shes
doing everything
possible to im-
prove her hus-
bands lousy driv-
ing skills.
Mrs. Nelson has already sent
her husband to have his eyes
examined. Shes also made him
stop wearing moccasins when
driving and use proper footwear.
(Mr. Nelson now wears slip-proof
Crocs wherever he goes -- includ-
ing weddings and funerals).
And just last week, Mrs. Nelson
hired Charles (Chuck) Mills as her
husbands personal driving in-
structor to teach him how to back
up a vehicle.
Mr. Mills, who has just retred
afer 33 years as a professional
truck driver, has started his own
Driver Training Academy in Wark-
worth.
Mr. Nelson had his frst driving
lesson yesterday at the Legion.
And what did Mr. Mills think of
Flutes driving?
From what I seen today, this is
gonna take more than one lesson,
I can tell you that, Mr. Mills said
with a grin.
Flutes got a long way to go
before he gets a passing grade
from me.
ABOVE: Robert (Otis Flute) Nelson is seen getting some driving
tips from personal instructor Charles (Chuck) Mills recently at
the Warkworth Legion as Mr. Nelsons wife Trudy watches in the
background.
TOP RIGHT: This severely damaged metal shed behind the
Warkworth Legion is one of the reasons Mr. Nelson is getting
driving lessons these days after he backed into it while attempt-
ing to unload some garbage.
BOTTOM RIGHT: It wont ever be as good as new, but the poor
old shed looks a hell of a lot better now thanks to the handy
work of Shirley Poole, who volunteered to hammer out most of
the dents. We think Mr. Nelson owes her a drink (or two).
(Photos courtesy of Cheryl Pedersen)
Warkworth Legions
new garbage shed is
Flutes latest casualty