Cotswold Venturer, 70013, 10/02/18

A video from yesterday's superb performance.
Locations are Radley, Hanborough approach and Sapperton Bank....

 

So here's the video / audio of OC storming past Frampton Mansell in the gathering gloom.

Don't expect good visuals but the atmosphere is there!
Thanks as always to all that made it happen and to the guy that let me stand in the bottom of his view to get the shot.

 

Bit more on the speeds on the return:

32 max to Norton Jn; Crossed Abbotswood Jn 23; mp71 61; Eckington 72; Ashchurch 75.6 (max); CSpa 28; Max 64 half way to Barnwood; Tufley 69; Standish Jn 49; Stonehouse 53; Stroud 49; Bourne Via 51; St Mary's Cr 51; Chalford Via 44; Frampton Via 41.6; slight slip pos'n of mp96 1/4 36.9; tunnel in 32.1; out short 48; Kemble 64; Purton 70; Swindon 30; Shrivenham 74; Bob Baines from Didcot; subdued run to Reading, max 61 Pangbourne; same to Pad, max 58 at Goring. 1 late into Pad.

 

On reviewing my video I don't think there was any slip - just the effect on the blast as she heads under the overbridge Did also hear the slight slip Shireman refers to just before the tunnel entrance.

 

You're welcome. <BJ>

 

Short clip on the return.

 

My video of 70013 yesterday. Seen at Culham, Fawler, Campden Foot Crossing and Sapperton.

 

Wonderful sounds there.

 

A dominant showing from Ollie ! Enjoy

 

The sun almost shone on Ollie during the run round at Worcester on what was a very grey day generally.
I can confirm that even from coach 10, with the windows shut (well at first anyway) on Sapperton it sounded louder than most locos do from coaches 3 or 4.
Once again many thanks to 1020 Shireman for the comprehensive speed information. (I now know who you are after one of my fellow stewards told me where you were sitting, was good to see you "in action")

 

70013 was sounding in good form as she raced through Twyford yesterday morning.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/davestubbings/39310267005

 

Drawing the stock back into Worcester Shrub Hill

 

Thanks for the account. I think I must have heard the loco working away from the stop at Ascott for a couple of minutes before it came into view at my position near Lyneham.

 

As it was the last proper steam hauled train 70013 will haul on this mainline ticket ....

Cotswold Venturer 10th February 2018

After the disappointing confirmations that all four of Steam Dreams Tours using 70013 and RTC's final run to York would be subjected to the whims of the driver of the diesel on the rear of the five trains. Fingers were crossed that the Venturer would be diesel free as it had been in 2017, apart from the final one with 46100.

Up at 0300 to a frosty morning. Run engine on motor to defrost it and left just after 0400 to get to Newport for the 0509, due in Paddington at 0741. 5 late and a bit more after BTM. Things get a bit fraught on the slow run into Pad these days and we didn't stop at the platform until 0751. Still plenty of time to confirm that the Class 33 that had brought the train in was detached. It was and the steam heating was actually reaching the rear of the train. It was cold as WCR hadn't coupled the train to a '47 at Southall. The 33 apparently had no ETH?

Our seats were in the Buffet, milepost side, so first port of call was the loo to get some lightly soap dampened paper towels to make sure the window stayed clear to Worcester. Spike Hodges was our driver with Roger Griffiths providing the steam.

A right time departure with a few slips on the wet rails as Spike got the 11 coach train underway. The path was not made for high speed running - 36 minutes for the 18 and a bit miles to Slough. We weren't far behind a Heathrow Connect Service which explained the timing. Spike had the Brit working quite hard, making that special characteristic big two cylinder sound as we passed Old Oak to 43; Ealing Broadway at 50 and were charging through Hanwell at 57 when we paid for it and the brakes came on firmly, taking speed down to 25 as we drifted through Southall. The HC was out of the way and the noise got louder as Spike enjoyed himself up front. We hit a max of just under 60 between Iver and Langley before we drifted into Slough right time.

We left right time and charged off down the track towards Maidenhead, reaching 58 thorough Taplow before being eased a little. We passed Maidenhead mp 29 1/4 at 57 and Spike worked 70013 quite hard up the 9 miles of 1 in 1320 to pass mp28 at 60. Speed fell slightly to 57/8 through Twyford, mp31 passed at 58. Just as we came off the 1 in 1320 the braked came on gently and we drifted into Reading right time.

A noisy departure attracted the men on shed just outside the station as Spike used the downgrade to get to 29 by mp37. We were close to a preceding service so slowed to 11 through Tilehurst. With green signals Spike opened the Brit up and we had a noisy climb up the 1 in 1320 to pass Pangbourne at 52. Down on the level the Brit was given its head and we roared through Goring at 65; accelerated up the 1 in 1760/1320 to a max of 71 at mp14. Cholsey was passed at 69 before the Brit was eased down towards our last pick up at Didcot Parkway.

Here Ray Poole took over the driver's seat for the rest of the outward journey. He would also bring the train back to Didcot on the return. A check on RTT showed a clear path to Oxford which I'm sure pleased Ray. Sure enough we charged out of Didcot; passed North Jn at 36; romped through Appleford at 48; picked up noisily on the mile if 1 in 314 to Culham, passed at 52. No real fireworks as on mixed grades, none steep, we only got to 61 by Radley. On the downgrade our max was 65 at mp65 1/2. At Kennington Jn Ray eased back and we drifted on the level through Oxford at 14, and to our water stop below North Jn.

We were ready to leave early but as on every occasion it seems the single line section between Charlbury and Wolvercot Jn that the myopic Network Rail didn't re-double, caused us problems, as the Great Malvern to Pad HST was running over 15 minutes late. We then had to wait for the Bournemouth - Manchester Piccadilly XC to pass before we were let out over 11 late. Ray charged out to pass Wolvercot Jn at 36 and made a noisy climb of the 1 in 150/430 to pass mp68 at 45. Over mixed grades we passed Hanborough at 60; on the down Combe at 65; lost nothing to the mile or so of 1 in 335/250, then after a mile+ of level climbed into Finstock at 68. On the level we flew thtough Charlbury onto the double track at 69; lost 1 mph to the mile of 1 in 315 and then the brakes came on firmly. We couldn't figure out why but the long block came to mind.

We passed mp80 on the level at 10mph and thereafter were treated to a noisy 'restart', passing Ascott-under-Wychwood at 22. Then it was up a short climb at 1 /n 388 to Shipton, 42; mixed grades to 1 in 472 then 750 to Kingham, 64; top of 1 in 402 65. On the 2 miles of level track the Brit sounded superb as speed increased to 70 max before Ray had to brake for our stop at Moreton-in-Marsh. If you haven't seen it, as I hadn't until Saturday, take a look at the very old 3/4 metal milepost against the up platform face. It's directly below the Waiting Room Door.

After we got the right away, Ray worked hard, after a few slips, up the 3/4 mile of 1 in 294, 25, then on the downgrades we got to 68 by Blockley LC, 3 miles out. We lost 4 mph on the climb to Campden then dived down into the tunnel at 71, leaving at 74. Ray drifted down the first 2 miles of 1 in 100, 63; passed Honeybourne at 71 and stayed in that mode until braking for Evesham, 46. A noisy climb of the 3/4 mile of 1 in 425, topped at 55, was followed by some nice running downgrade/level to just top 70. We lost no speed on the 3/4 mile of 1 in 198 to Pershore and held 70 down to mp114. Speed fell slowly and then the brakes came on a mile from Norton Jn, passed at 15. The 3 mile run down to Worcester was entertaining with a max of 49 and we drifted into Shrub Hill right time.

Lunch and a stroll down to Foregate Street and The Postal Order. Kelham Island Pale Rider (5.2) was recommended by locals and it was seriously good. A couple of pints around the large mixed grill, then off to the bar to see what else of interest was there. A global guest brewed for Wetherspoons of Dutch Origin, a ruby premium ale, bizarrely called Mr Feathers (4.9) was interesting to me as I love red ales. Again it was a very good tasty ale so one had to have a second with some pancakes before we took the lazy way back, the shortest HST ride we've ever had from Foregate Street to Shrub Hill, 3 mins journey time!!

It had been wet and all the return journey was on wet rail. I believe Craig Stinchcombe took over on the shovel for the return. Apologies if I got that wrong. Ray made a confident start and we'd reached 37 just over a mile out. After passing Norton Jn at 24 we crawled around to Abbotswood Jn and had to wait for a late running XC. The panel let us out before a late running Nottingham-Cardiff train and even 8 back we could hear the noise level rise as Ray took us to 72 just 5 miles down the track. On the level we ran at just over 70, losing nothing to the mile of 1 in 319. Once over that Ray really used the downgrade well and speed rose to 76 through Ashchurch no doubt to the pleasure of the photographers. Over the following 1 1/2 miles of 1 in 297 despite being worked hard, the Brit slowly lost a bit of speed down to 72 and after half a mile of 1 in 719 down we took 71.5 onto the 6 miles of 1 in 285/305. Speed only fell slowly to 69 over the crossing at Swindon road before braking for Cheltenham Spa, passed at 28.

Ray took advantage of the almost 7 miles of 1 in 368d/304d and speed rose noisily to 74 max. We shot through Barnwood Jn at 73 and Gloucester Yd Jn at 71; then Tufley at 68. The mile and a half of 1 in 104 saw speed fall to 54 before Ray eased the Brit for Standish junction, crossed at 39. This was the section the enthusiasts came for, Standish to Sapperton Tunnel. The Brit roared up the mile of 1 in 720 (50); gained speed up the almost two miles of 1 in 347/300 to dash through Stonehouse at 53 with the chime whistle echoing around the valley bottom. Stroud was passed at 49 and the Brit began the climb to Sapperton on 2 1/2 miles of 1 in 250. Capel Viaduct was crossed at 50, a speed we held to the change of grade to a bit of 1 in 100d/1 in 185 over Bourne Viaduct, crossed at 51. The bit of level/310 didn't affect speed at all and we hit the 3/4 mile of 1 in 103 at St Mary's Crossing at 51, taking 48 it onto the mile of 1 in 70/74. We crossed Chalford Viaduct on the 1 in 70 at 43 and came off the next mile of 1 in 74 at 40, increasing to 42 on a bit of level track.

The Brit sounded superb as we raced over Frampton Viaduct on the 1 in 75 at 41.6 before we hit the almost mile of 1 in 60. Half way through we were storming up the bank in seriously impressive style at 36.9 but a slight slip, the only one on the climb, brought us back to 32.1 at the entrance of Sapperton Long Tunnel. The summit is in the tunnel, close to the exit. Time through the tunnel was 1min 45.8s so I doubt the summit speed was much different. We left Short Tunnel at close to 47. An excellent climb by a Class 7. No doubt a bit of fire cleaning and boiler filling took place before we dropped down the bank and powered through Kemble at 64. We passed Minety LC at 63 and hit a max of 72 around mp83.

Swindon was passed at 30, some 5 mins down. Ray charged through the station onto the long 1 in 834 down. A mile in at Highworth Jn speed was 46 and the noise level was rising. By Marston Crossing, 3 miles in, we were rolling along at 68 and by Shrivenham 6 miles in, 74. We passed Uffington at 73, Challow at 70 and rattled into the loop at 52. We came to a stand before Wantage Road and waited for the passage of a couple of HSTs. After 12 minutes we set off for our water stop at Milton Junction after which we arrived at Didcot Parkway right time.

Here we bade farewell to Ray with Bob Baines taking over. We were pathed on the relief all the way to Paddington and the timings weren't encouraging. Bob made a noisy departure but no high speed run was to follow. We passed Cholsey at 54.7; goring at 58; Pangbourne at 60.5, our max. We guessed signals were against us as speed fell and we drifted through Tilehurst at 40 and took almost another 10 minutes to cover the 3 miles into Reading. After setting down passengers bob made a good start away and we passed Twyford at 57.6, but as with our run from Didcot, no fireworks were to follow. We ran through Maidenhead at 57; Taplow at 61; and Burnham at 63 before easing down for the run into Slough where we arrived 3 down.

As on the outward the timing to Paddington was a poor 33 minutes for the 18m 36c distance. The Brit sounded good as we left and we passed Langley at 49; Iver at 56; and on the 1 in 1640 West Drayton at 57.5. It was quite noisy at the front and we only lost 3 mph up to Airport Jn, 2 miles away. We ran through Hayes at 56 and passed Southall on the 1 in 1320d at 57. 9 miles in 12 minutes. Shame when we knew what Cromwell was capable of. We were checked before Hanwell, passed at 27 and we were getting close to thinking we wouldn't make the 7 minute connection for the 2045 Swansea. It was a shame we weren't allowed out on the main as not many trains passed us between Slough and Paddington. It took 14 minutes to cover the final 7m 24c from Hanwell to Paddington, but we did arrive at our booked time of 2038 so we got the 2045 Swansea.

There were enough miles of good running to make the tour well worth doing. Mr Poole certainly got the best out of 70013 on the climb to Sapperton on wet rails with a Class 7, worth the cost of the tour alone. Spike and Bob definitely drew the short straws on the day with slackly timed relief line running. I bet both of them wished they could have really have let the Brit have its head.

Many thanks to Nigel for running the train, what looks like the final proper train 70013 will run. Tom Tighe and his team are not happy about the imposition of the diesels on the remaining trains. Who is? It was a shame it wasn't full but there was the pull of 35028 on the King Alfred for our Southern Railway aficionados.

I renewed my acquaintance with Ray Mason on Worcester Station. He told me that unfortunately Nigel is rather poorly at present. We wish him well as I'm sure do all Nat Pres contributors and readers. Without him we'd have a very limited program of proper mainline steam. We hope it's not long before we see him out on a train again.

Many thanks to Tom and his group for their work in both providing us with 70013 is superb mechanical condition so near the end of its 10 year mainline ticket, and for their support on the day; to West Coast for arranging the train and providing the stock and for providing the usual excellent crews. Special thanks for leaving the Class 33 at the buffer stops. Even the steam heat seemed to have worked through the train all day.

 

A well detailed account. Thank you very much for taking the time to write it and pass it on to us.

After witnessing Cromwell at Frampton Mansell it was wonderful to read a report from aboard the train. <BJ>

 

Another superb write-up Shireman! Keep them coming (only on diesel-free trips of course)