60163 Minehead-London 18th June

That'll be my wife this saturday then. (The Girls goto Ascot..Us boys are off to the Paris Air show)... i'm not sure who'll be back saturday and who will be in the worse state ! :-k

 

Hi all,

Diesel on back for positioning move into Orpington then back out to Grove Park carriage sidings. Tornado looked fantastic sitting in Orpington station at 12:20am this morning. Feeling a tad sleepy now though.

Regards
Mike

 

I was a passenger and really enjoyed it. I will back up the comments about the latter end of the journey. The exhaust really started to bark closer to London and the Loco was showing what it could really do given the opportunity. I was sooooooooo glad I made the decision to book a hotel room in Town last night as we got in so late I would have missed my connection home. It did cause quite a buzz at Victoria even at 23:30 !!

Re the class 67, it was announced over the (very dodgy) public address that the 67 was being towed 'dead' on the return so I am not even sure if there was a crew aboard.

 

Thanks to Steam Dreams staff on the train yesterday. They really did their best to keep passengers up to speed on the problems arising. I was one of many dozens who baled out at Reading after FGW had confirmed they would honour our tickets. Luckily we caught an HST at 21.45 and I was indoors at Hemel Hempstead by 23.20! Beat that. I gather from another post that arrival at Vic was 23.30. My first run behind 60163 and all a bit low-key after all that's happened lately.

 

I don't know if it was in the local press or mentioned on the TV news, but the number of people at Earley station at 8.20pm was amazing, people were standing two and three deep on the platform, however when news came through that it was running nearly an hour late, the crowd soon dispersed, I gave up at twenty past nine as I wanted to get home...

 

I arrived at Reading around 19.00 after waiting until just before 20.00 one of the staff

told me it had just gone through Pewsey and still had the water stop so i gave up and

whilst on the next train back to Guildford saw them all but there was nothing i could do

to let them know of the delay.

I hope the media when giving out the times also advised people not to trespass on the

railway as this the problem on Tornado charters.

Mike M. ( 70c )

 

Tornado at Wolfhall - picture now online

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.p ... 915&nseq=1


STEVE

 

I was also on the train yesterday but stayed on until Victoria where it reached at 23.10.
Tornado, I felt was impressive from Reading and certainly made up some of the lost time. The scenes at Ascot with homebound racegoers on the platform were "interesting" to say the least. A quick run at Vic to the tube to Euston to catch the 23.34 to Watford Junction and then by car, we were back in Leverstock Green (near Hemel Hemstead) at 00.15. Agreed we couldn't beat your time but it was great to complete the full trip.

 

Excellent picture,Steve.
A fine record.

 

Thanks - every cloud has a silver lining. Had she been on time it would have been a dire shot

STEVE

 

Sometimes the Sun Gods work in your favour. Nice pic in nice light.

 

Most of them seem well lubricated passing through Waterloo going to Ascot!

Cheers, Neil

 

Pity in some ways to lose that Reading to Vic mileage but on occasion you just have to make a decision. Glad to see it was not 23.30 but 23.10. Good going in the end.

 

wicked pic steve, cheers
now my desktop !

i did the train after a week in minehead and the passengers were kept informed well of the delay by SD which by victoria was down to 50 mins
ata 2310

yes she performed nicely in the last bit to london but we werent as sparkling as usual on the first bit, then we got held up twice.
shame we didnt have a fast run into paddington !
we left minehead 30 mins early at 1605 to get more water at B-Lyd so the mainline run was gonna be full of water for us.

heres to the 2 runs tomorrow and top gear on hd sky+ is set lol

rog

 

I've seen several references to less than enthusiastic running west of Theale on this train. May I suggest concern for water may have been part of it? According to UK steam times there was no water stop between the WSR and Theale. Lydeard-Theale is, I think, over 90 miles. With an dead box (the 67 was certainly switched off on the two occasions I saw the train) on the back this was equivalent to a 15 coach load. Even with a new steam tight engine 15 bogies without water for 90+ miles sems risky to me. And asking one engine and 15 to mix schedules with HST's, two engines + 8, seems over optimistic. In short I think Tornado was overloaded for the high speed 21st century railway.

 

I would second this having had to get to Reading via Ascot on Friday. A near punch up ensued over a £6.50 placepot and the fellas weren't much better behaved either.

 

First time i've known someone say Geoff Ewans is not Exciting or enthusiastic but oh well #-o

The load was equivalent to 15/16 veichles? It was also i believe Geoff's first time with Tornado? We will see if it is "Enthusiastic" or "Exciting" in a couple of weeks then?

Geoff and Dave got off at Reading,i don't know who drove from there,however Colin Kerswell was Inspector at least from there onwards.


My photos are now up at:


http://mark-walker.fotopic.net/c1716364_1.html

Cheers,
Mark

 

Video finally available

http://www.rail-videos.net/video/view.php?id=6022


STEVE