COLIN Bond has visited more than 76 countries during his career at digger giant JCB.

And the 62-year-old said he has clocked up "millions of highlights" in his 41 years of service for the Rocester firm.

Yesterday, he waved goodbye to colleagues as he retired.

He said: "Now I've made the decision to retire and the day has arrived, it seems like only yesterday that I joined."

Colin started out in 1969 in the machine shop at Rocester, before rising to the position of worldwide events project manager, organising shows and exhibitions all over the world.

He said: "There's been millions of highlights, just in being part and parcel of working for a fantastic company and being involved in so many things that it's done.

And he cited his involvement in breaking the land speed record in 2006 as a high point.

It was Colin who was driving the JCB Fastrac tractor that gave the Dieselmax car a push start at 40mph as it set off on an 11-mile course over the Bonneville Salt Flats in the U.S.

It then hit 350mph to break the world diesel land speed record.

Colin's wife Delia, aged 62, also worked at JCB before retiring as company archivist about four years ago, while daughter Tina works at JCB Insurance.

It was thanks to Delia that Colin got his break at the firm.

Delia, who was working at the machine shop in Rocester, reported for duty, despite the fact she was due to be on holiday ahead of their wedding.

Company founder Joseph Cyril Bamford asked her what she was doing and, during the course of the conversation, questioned why her fiance was not working for the firm too.

Colin joined and was soon promoted to test and development and later spent 20 years as a demonstrator, showing off JCB machines worldwide.

When the company donated machines to help out in the aftermath of the Armenian earthquake in 1988, Colin spent two weeks there helping.

He said: "I've been able to travel the world. I've visited every continent and seen more than 76 countries.

"I've been to lots of beautiful places, but I've also seen poorer parts of the world such as India, and I visited all of Eastern Europe when the Iron Curtain was still in place."

Colin, of Uttoxeter, said he will miss his former colleagues, but hopes to keep in touch with them.

He said: "The beauty of my job was I got to mix with the senior people and the people on the shop floor."

He said he was looking forward to a relaxing retirement after a career that often demanded time away from home.

"I want to spend a lot more time with my family," he said.

JCB chairman Sir Anthony Bamford paid tribute to Colin.

He said: "Colin has helped the company enormously over the years.

"You always knew that, wherever it was in the world, if Colin was doing the job, it was going to be a job done well, properly and on time."