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what a win
I’m a white van man… people judge me for my job but I don’t care – I just won a £62k motor
A WHITE van man has told how people judge him for his job but he absolutely loves it.
Now Russell Eatly, 42, has won a £62,000 Mercedes motor after entering a poetry competition.
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The dad-of-one started his business Pristine Carpets from his home in Brickhill, Bedford, 18 months ago,
It came after he was made redundant from his family's security company.
Now he's won a £62,298 EVito Mercedes van after his wife Nikki, 42, wrote a poem about her husband's battered work motor.
After watching hundreds of carpet cleaning videos on YouTube in his then unlimited free time, Russell decided to have a crack at it himself.
But he had to take loans for the £16,000 needed for the cleaning equipment.
And he was gifted a beaten up 16-year-old Ford Transit van to lug it around in.
He told Sun Online: "We're called Pristine Carpets but we've been driving around this old van. It was embarrassing and we were constantly terrified it would stop working.
"When we first got it it didn't work at all. It failed its MOT and cost us £2,000."
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Now Russell's responsible for cleaning all the carpets at Woburn Safari Park - as well as hotels and businesses across the south east of England.
He added: "We're doing really well. We need to pay off the debts but then we've the potential to become rich.
"I used to be up late a night watching these carpets being cleaned. Now I'm doing it myself. It's an amazing job."
Nikki was diagnosed with Graves Disease, a thyroid eye disease, that meant she lost her sight, two years ago.
She was forced to quit her job as a teacher and was confined to her bed until just weeks ago.
What's Graves Disease?
Graves' disease is a disorder of the immune system.
It results in the overproduction of thyroid hormones, which can cause vision loss.
Thyroid hormones affect many body systems, so signs and symptoms of Graves' disease can be wide ranging.
A common symptom is bulging eyes and sensitive vision.
It's more common among women and people younger than 40, but can affect anyone.
Now, she's won her husband a brand new work van after entering a Mercedes competition.
She said: "I'm shell shocked to say the least. We've had such a rough time since Covid-19. I won't even be able to drive the van but it'll make Russell's life so much easier.
"The van even has three seats in the front so we can take our six-year-old son with us in it.
"There was the constant stress of whether our old van would stop working. All of a sudden that stress is gone."
Mercedes set up the poetry challenge to prove that "van drivers are more than just their motor".
It's now published an anthology of the entrants' poems to end any prejudice around "white van men".
Entrants included Raymond Kelly, a third generation painter decorator, Connor McLean, director of a blinds business, and carpenter Dan Watson.
George Mpanga, otherwise known as George the Poet, whose family are van drivers, said: "These poems challenge the outdated notion that van drivers are uneducated or lacking in culture.
"I've had van drivers in my family for ever. My dad and brother are van drivers. They're the driving force, literally, of the economy. They're essential. And poetry is for everyone."
Robert Veit, managing director at Mercedes Vans UK, added that the poetry anthology "proves the reality of today's van community is miles away from the outdated image with which they are associated".
It comes after a woman quit her 9-5 to live in her van - but says it wasn't worth it.
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While another woman told how she loves her tiny home on wheels.
And it was revealed the cost of white van men's favourite mode of transport, the Ford Transit, has risen by hundreds in the last few years.
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Russell Eatly's poem - The Work Wife
The shrill of the alarm, awakens me from my slumber,
As I draw back the curtains, I see her and wonder,
What lays ahead? Today’s journey yet untold,
What experiences collectively are soon to unfold?
We’ve been through so much and still we are together,
I doubt there is much that the two of us couldn’t weather.
Busy days, quiet days, happy and dark,
The difference without her would be too stark.
She’s not much to look at, well not anymore,
Her wing mirror constantly falls off the door,
Over the years she’s had a few bits done,
A touch up here and a new black bum[per].
Sixteen years old and thousands of miles on the clock,
It’s fair to say, she’s been round the block.
No mod cons, she’s ready and rough,
Cosmetics aside, underneath she’s tough.
I stock her up ready for a day of work,
A more spacious van would be a perk.
I bid her good morning as I turn the ignition,
Our mutual labours are coming to fruition.
Occasionally, it takes her a while to get going,
(I have to give her extra time when it’s snowing).
But saying that, she’s yet to let me down,
No clients are left waiting when she takes me to town.
It’s hard to express what she means to me:
Independence, freedom and financial security.
I’ve shirked off the shackles of the 9 till 5,
I buckle my belt, and away we drive.
In companionable silence we travel together,
Unless the radio plays an old school belter.
Then we roll down the windows and hit the gas,
Just me, on the road, with my old van Flash.