On the road with Sonja Siewertsen: a northerner and her Actros

Roadstars presents

Girl power at the wheel.

Sonja Siewertsen was a true “car kid”. But the fact that she now proudly sits behind the wheel of “Luna”, a white Actros 1843, was all down to her hard work.

Always a “car kid”: Sonja Sievertsen


As a small girl, Sonja was always fascinated by engines, tyres and bolts. “I actually spent most of my time in my father's workshop.” So her career choice was clear from an early age: she wanted to be a car mechanic. However, she couldn't find an apprenticeship position in her home town of Flensburg. “One boy was chosen over me even though he had worse grades, and other companies had to turn me down because they couldn't offer the sanitary facilities for women that were prescribed by the trade association.”

So she decided to start working at a truck wash. She was so good at moving the trucks into position that she was asked whether she could imagine being at the wheel of a truck on a regular basis. She could. However, as Sonja already had a job, the employment agency didn't want to pay for the training to become a professional driver. Then, five years ago, she decided to pay the 10,000 euros out of her own pocket. And it was worth it: “I now earn much more than I did before, and of course I enjoy the work more,” says the 27-year-old as she proudly admires her “Luna”. That's the name she has given her 3-year-old, white Actros 1843, which the northerner drives for HaGe Logistik.


“Men are often surprised to see me, a woman, driving a 13-metre long truck.”

– Sonja Siewertsen


Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.
Unloading in Hamburg: Sonja has called her white Actros “Luna”.

A true northerner.

The haulage firm specialises in bulk cargo, so it is mainly grain, rapeseed, animal feed and feed components as well as wood pellets being transported by Sonja and her colleagues. She is usually on the road in northern Germany and in Denmark, meaning she can sometimes even stay the night at her parents' house which is near to the motorway in Flensburg. A few personal favourites are waiting for her there: First there are two vehicles, one a Mercedes ML, “the big boy”, and the other her motorbike “Else”, which she likes to tinker with now and again. Then there is her Swiss shepherd dog “Sunny” - who she says is “everything to me” –, the Boa constrictor “Shiva” as well as 19 other snakes, including two ball pythons.

Without fear through the night.

Sonja is also pretty fearless when she is on the road. She likes to stay overnight in calm and quiet places. But she feels most at home when she's close to water. Over time she has discovered especially beautiful places on the shores of lakes and the sea, like on the Danish island of Nykøbing Mors, for example. Before she goes to sleep she likes to listen to audio books from the “Hui Buh” and “The Three Investigators” series. This means she sometimes might be just a little apprehensive if she has to go out during the night. She is no longer completely alone on her travels though, as she now has “Olli”, who has been her faithful companion on the co-driver seat for one year now. The child-sized cuddly monkey, who even wears a safety vest, was a present from her mother and brings her good luck on the road.


Sonja's favourite places to stay overnight are on the beautiful shores of Denmark. At home, everything revolves around her dog “Sunny” and her snake “Shiva”.
Sonja's favourite places to stay overnight are on the beautiful shores of Denmark. At home, everything revolves around her dog “Sunny” and her snake “Shiva”.
Sonja's favourite places to stay overnight are on the beautiful shores of Denmark. At home, everything revolves around her dog “Sunny” and her snake “Shiva”.
Sonja's favourite places to stay overnight are on the beautiful shores of Denmark. At home, everything revolves around her dog “Sunny” and her snake “Shiva”.
Sonja's favourite places to stay overnight are on the beautiful shores of Denmark. At home, everything revolves around her dog “Sunny” and her snake “Shiva”.
Sonja's favourite places to stay overnight are on the beautiful shores of Denmark. At home, everything revolves around her dog “Sunny” and her snake “Shiva”.

Responding with cool comebacks.

It does the trick. Her best buddy, who she met shortly after, is also called Olli. In her job, Sonja not only needs luck but also to stay calm. “Men are often surprised to see me, a woman, driving a 13-metre long truck.” She might then have to come back with a pithy remark or think of one for her individually printed sweaters that she also wears to work. “Luckily my boss has a good sense of humour,” she laughs. And no matter what some men might think: For Sonja, the fact that she drives a truck and is not worried about rolling up her sleeves and even getting dirty when loading and unloading anything from dry bulk material to animal feed is perfectly normal.


Photos: Claudia Behrend, Sonja Siewertsen, Fotolia/Nmann77

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