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55013's Contemporary Trip Reports
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47403
Established Member
In fairness I love telling the tale of 37289, despite it being close to 30yrs ago, the memory of it is as vivid as yesterday, however I can't remember which 143 we actually got to Sunderland but that trip on the 37 always make me smile.
Sunderland Station will never win an award for its outstanding beauty but put a loco on a passenger train, especially something EE and the cavernous nature of the place, lends to some fantastic acoustics, the noise just reverberates round the walls.
Them summer Saturdays, oh to go back to them days. I've got a couple of pics, I found of two moves my mates and I were on. these are not my photo's, the 1st is Martin S Vos's taken in June 1985, 37062 arriving at Newcastle on the Yarmouth- Newcastle, which we'd done from Darlo, the other is Vince Minto's pic of another CF Beast 37272(had us frothing big time) from the year before in August 84, a popular morning move on the Saturday was the Glasgow QS-Scarborough, unfortunately it was a bit of a risky move, for the Scarborough-Newcastle at Durham, there was a quite dodgey +7, dodgey as in, if it was late you were relying on your move back being late or you just missed out on the move. I remember the move on 37272 because I went on a holiday abroad the week later and got back to find out the lads, had got 37178 from Darlo-Berwick, for whatever reason the Yarmouth got extended to Edinburgh, my response to hearing that, was largely full of expletives in response to how lucky they were and I was in no way, jealous of any sort
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First - 37612 & 37611, Romsey to Llandrindod Wells (double headed, April 14)
I've only ever had 4x 37s for haulage (those 2, plus 37674 and 37423)
This is a stat that is only mildly embarrassing to the discerning basher
I thought I was on average figures with 56 tractors in the book and I'm only 20 :roll:Two more mind if all goes to plan this weekend
D841 Roebuck
Established Member
Apart from D6983 (scrapped when I was 3 months old!), and 37075 (waiting for me to visit the KWVR
) 37062 is the only 37 I've not seen. You're not the only one who's jealous...When it comes to sight I only missed one as well (D6983 notwithstanding - I don't think many people saw that).
The one that got away for me was 37699.
It was stored at Crewe works in about 96/97 and I made a special trip, walking all the way round the perimeter, looking through holes and climbing up lampposts to see over the wall, all to no avail.
It never came out of there, well not in one piece.
The one that got away for me was 37699.
It was stored at Crewe works in about 96/97 and I made a special trip, walking all the way round the perimeter, looking through holes and climbing up lampposts to see over the wall, all to no avail.
It never came out of there, well not in one piece.
Keith Jarrett
Member
Just catching up with your recent antics and some might fine traction getting a well deserved mention. Perhaps my best runs with EE Type 3 traction have to go way back to the 1970s when two stick in my mind.
The first being a storming run in the middle of the night on a return railtour from Porthmadog to Bristol. We;'d had 25061 staggering all the way from Porthmadoc to Machynlleth where 40128 took over to storm through the West Midlands all the way to Gloucester before giving way to 37242 which handled the 12 8 mark 1s perfectly on the final leg down to Bristol. The noise was just incredible and I'm sure a good slice of Gloucestershire was awakened by 242 powering back to Bristol.
Then a year or so later, I was at Sleaford at some rather late hour when the ECML was shut due to works on Peascliffe Tunnel and everything was going round the joint line. 40081 appears on the overnight Leeds/Bradford postal (heading for The Cross) and promptly fails on departure from the station. The only loco in the area was 37106 (GB vb) on a Toton to Whitemoor freight. after depositing its load in various sidings in and around Sleaford, 37106 is bolted on the front of the train to assist the stricken Bucket (an its important load of mail) onwards towards London. The run as far as Peterborough was mediocre and there the fun and games began. The station supervisor did not want the 37 to go through to the Cross but the driver was not having anything of it as he knew what the alternative was - a knackered 31 that was sat on the stabling point. Control sided with the driver and eventually we left. Driver made somewhat of a point by doing Peterborough to the Cross in about 58 minutes with 14 on the back. It was so loud that even though I wanted to sleep, the noise was deafening and my hearing has never been the same since. 37106 was a rather rare machine at the time and had literally just been outshopped from Doncaster - I'd seen it on the test train the previous day. Rumour was that the engines were uprated to 2025hp for the test train and they forgot to downrate 37106 afterwards. But imagine the sight at the Cross - 37106 sat on Platform one and me the only one who'd managed to bag it. Everyone else had gone for some no heat 40 which did not produce! Talk about cats and cream ...
The first being a storming run in the middle of the night on a return railtour from Porthmadog to Bristol. We;'d had 25061 staggering all the way from Porthmadoc to Machynlleth where 40128 took over to storm through the West Midlands all the way to Gloucester before giving way to 37242 which handled the 12 8 mark 1s perfectly on the final leg down to Bristol. The noise was just incredible and I'm sure a good slice of Gloucestershire was awakened by 242 powering back to Bristol.
Then a year or so later, I was at Sleaford at some rather late hour when the ECML was shut due to works on Peascliffe Tunnel and everything was going round the joint line. 40081 appears on the overnight Leeds/Bradford postal (heading for The Cross) and promptly fails on departure from the station. The only loco in the area was 37106 (GB vb) on a Toton to Whitemoor freight. after depositing its load in various sidings in and around Sleaford, 37106 is bolted on the front of the train to assist the stricken Bucket (an its important load of mail) onwards towards London. The run as far as Peterborough was mediocre and there the fun and games began. The station supervisor did not want the 37 to go through to the Cross but the driver was not having anything of it as he knew what the alternative was - a knackered 31 that was sat on the stabling point. Control sided with the driver and eventually we left. Driver made somewhat of a point by doing Peterborough to the Cross in about 58 minutes with 14 on the back. It was so loud that even though I wanted to sleep, the noise was deafening and my hearing has never been the same since. 37106 was a rather rare machine at the time and had literally just been outshopped from Doncaster - I'd seen it on the test train the previous day. Rumour was that the engines were uprated to 2025hp for the test train and they forgot to downrate 37106 afterwards. But imagine the sight at the Cross - 37106 sat on Platform one and me the only one who'd managed to bag it. Everyone else had gone for some no heat 40 which did not produce! Talk about cats and cream ...
Techniquest
Veteran Member
Keith, that 37 thrash down the ECML must have been more than a little bit fun! Worthy of a railtour that these days!
What a run that must have been. I suppose I ought to elaborate on the mention of 37606 on the GEML. The date was March 5 2005 and it was snowing in East Anglia again. I had some vague idea of going out to see if any of 86232 or 86235 were about having been resurrected to cover for the 90s that were dropping like flies. Anyway I fired up the gen machine then nearly spat my coffee all over the screen as a message telling me that 37606 was on its way LE to Liverpool Street to work an as yet undetermined service train north!! Once I'd regained my composure I grabbed my gear, left a note for the folks and headed for the station as quickly as I could. The first estimated service that 37606 could work was viewed at Ipswich with a 90 on the back, so I headed for Colchester. On getting there, it was absolutely freezing, so I sat in the buffet with a whole load of familiar faces from the Anglian bashing fraternity who were like me waiting for news. A few had decamped to a nearby pub, but soon returned when the man with a hot-line straight to Control confirmed that the 37 would work the 1530 LIV - NOR solo, the 90 (Techniquest look away now - it was 90006!!) would stay in Liverpool Street to be dragged home by a 47. By the time 37606 showed up the temperature had dropped a few notchs again, but oh boy the thrash from the front was worth everything. Sparks flew as we rocketed northwards at 90 mph with a full load 10 on. At Ipswich, more bashers piled on for the ride and the scenes at Norwich resembled the arrival of a railtour, such was the scrum at the platform end to get the master shot. We were only 5 mins down on 90 timings - thanks to a driver who knew how to get every ounce of power out of his charge - the departure from Diss shattered the peace of the whole of South Norfolk!!! 10 years later it still ranks as an all-time classic.
Got to go for a very recent experience as a stand out for me. 37601 load 11 and 37612 in tow on the back. Let's call that Load 13/14 or so.
Up the bank out of Rannoch into the clear night. Shooting stars above, 20 minutes of reading the papers for the driver whilst it sat at full whack. Proper...
Didn't bother with videos, spoils the moment farting on with a camera sometimes...
Up the bank out of Rannoch into the clear night. Shooting stars above, 20 minutes of reading the papers for the driver whilst it sat at full whack. Proper...
Didn't bother with videos, spoils the moment farting on with a camera sometimes...
I agree with the camera bit 37038 and both of the above posts were brilliant too.
This is a stat that is only mildly embarrassing to the discerning basher
Two more mind if all goes to plan this weekend
I'm only on 25 had for haulage
by the time I got back in the game I'd missed the last of the loco hauled fun.I'm really enjoying these reminiscences.
I've got nothing to touch Keith's though - I'll have a think and see if I can come up with my juiciest runs.
As for numbers, I would say I was in the fair to middling range having had 172 with enough requirements still in existence to possibly make 180.
I've got nothing to touch Keith's though - I'll have a think and see if I can come up with my juiciest runs.
As for numbers, I would say I was in the fair to middling range having had 172 with enough requirements still in existence to possibly make 180.
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I'm only on 25 had for haulage
I got up to about 35 on the mainline and probably another 8 on preserved lines, the trouble was as Mr Noddy would probably verify, it wasn't all that easy getting them in Devon. You were relying on something failing (usually an HST) and there being a 37 on EX ready to drag it over the banks, but if something failed at Plymouth they had the opportunity to swap it.
At Exeter I picked up 37141, 37142 and best of all 37035 (in it's full snow plough, split headcode finery for a thunderous run over the banks in May 91), all pulling failed trams.
For regular 37 action you had to go to Bristol for the Bristol - Cardiff part of the Portsmouth Cardiffs, although I only ever seemed to get 33s on that when I did it (no great hardship mind).
I knocked it all on the head on the mainline after 94 really, although I have done a lot of diesel galas in the last 10 years, but reading the reports on here has got me making plans to get up to Cumbria because I know I'll regret it if I don't, I need 402 and 425 although not some of the others.
There's a few preserved ones I need too so I could probably push it to at least 60. 37248 was a winner a couple of weeks ago at the GWR and 37716 at SVR diesel do in May.
In about 1986 I think, 37698 turned up in Exeter for crew training and it stayed around for a while, around then they started powering a coal train up to Exmouth Junction, there used to be a coal distribution depot there, they even had their own little industrial shunter. You could just see it from my school and you could see the 50s going by as well.
In the holidays when I was off I'd always try and be at St David's to watch the 37 (nearly always a CF 37/0) charge the 1 in 37 up to Central with it's loaded coal train, this was especially good on a wet day (although as we all know it hardly ever rained in the school holidays in our childhood memories).
It's great to reminisce
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D841 Roebuck
Established Member
I've had 86, intermittently over the last.31 years. 45 still in existence to go.at (although one of these is being slowly converted to a Baby Deltic). Would like to get to three figures!
Fourteen obvious targets to ge.me there:
407 and 424 with DRS
685 with WCRC (next year's Scarborough Spa Express??)
003/009/075/142//294/674/703/714 preserved and currently in working order AFAIK
97302/304 (Cambrian.railtouring??)
...which makes 99...
Then.we're looking at random.DRS or.Colas examples at Galas, or preserved ones being restored to bring up the ton
Fourteen obvious targets to ge.me there:
407 and 424 with DRS
685 with WCRC (next year's Scarborough Spa Express??)
003/009/075/142//294/674/703/714 preserved and currently in working order AFAIK
97302/304 (Cambrian.railtouring??)
...which makes 99...
Then.we're looking at random.DRS or.Colas examples at Galas, or preserved ones being restored to bring up the ton
I've had D6700 (37350), 37401, 37409 and 37422 which is a bit limp, but I have been bowled a few times on the Cumbrian Coast, so a few hopefully to add as yet
Best run for me was being on a late running 37401 through Corkickle Tunnel, driver seemed hell bent on making up time, what a racket and a half!
Best run for me was being on a late running 37401 through Corkickle Tunnel, driver seemed hell bent on making up time, what a racket and a half!
Techniquest
Veteran Member
407's also DRS now? Need that, maybe my luck will be in next time...
EDIT: The tale of the 37 thrash on the GEML was just epic, phwoar that would be amazing!
EDIT: The tale of the 37 thrash on the GEML was just epic, phwoar that would be amazing!
I've been pondering the "best 37 haulage" question over the last few days and have come up with my three favourites.
First up, a railtour.
It was one of Pathfinder's 24 hour+ jaunts and took in Blackpool South in the middle of the night.
I dozed off leaving Preston behind 37372 and woke up to a magnificent aural treat as we growled venomously through the night. There's something about being half asleep and in the dark that adds to the experience - sitting, with my eyes closed and listening to the beast hard at work - brilliant.
The next mention features a preserved line. Who would have thought it?
The NYMR, 29th of July 2001.
37116 was visiting and I had a few runs on it but the one that stands out is thrashing up the 1 in 49 from Grosmont to Goathland.
My head was out the whole way and the sound was fantastic.
My all time favourite Syphon run was on a service train and was unexpected.
In the late 1990s I worked shifts and often purchased a four day in seven Freedom of the North East.
I would work an early and drive to Wakefield, do a 91 to Doncaster and then cover 1E33, the 12something Bristol - Newcastle.
This would be done through to the Toon, followed by a walk to a nice chippy in Newcastle city centre and the same 47 back to Wakefield on 1V67 18.05 Newcastle - Bristol.
A nice little move that really got my xc 47 mileage up.
The 10th of August 1998 was a little different to normal, though.
It must have been my day off as I was out in the morning, doing 91s between York, Doncaster & Newcastle.
47814 turned up on time and an uneventful run to Newcastle was had.
Sausage and chips were purchased and consumed and I was back on the platform in time to board the train when it pulled in.
So far, so normal.
18.05 came and went.
After a wait there was an announcement; the locomotive had failed and passengers were advised to get a GNER service that was soon to arrive heading South.
The train emptied pretty rapidly.
There was no way I was doing that, though - there might be a big loco in it for me.
There was!
By the time 37238 arrived from Tyne Yard the train was virtually empty and I pretty much had the front coach to myself.
I've no idea how late it left but I know that the Leeds and Wakefield stops were omitted and it was straight up the ECML from York to Doncaster.
The grapevine had obviously been busy and hoards of bashers piled on at York and the train looked like a railtour as I watched it pull out of Doncaster.
I'd had 113 miles off it but was still jealous of all the heads out of windows.
I've had many fabulous runs behind 37s but they're the three stand out ones
First up, a railtour.
It was one of Pathfinder's 24 hour+ jaunts and took in Blackpool South in the middle of the night.
I dozed off leaving Preston behind 37372 and woke up to a magnificent aural treat as we growled venomously through the night. There's something about being half asleep and in the dark that adds to the experience - sitting, with my eyes closed and listening to the beast hard at work - brilliant.
The next mention features a preserved line. Who would have thought it?
The NYMR, 29th of July 2001.
37116 was visiting and I had a few runs on it but the one that stands out is thrashing up the 1 in 49 from Grosmont to Goathland.
My head was out the whole way and the sound was fantastic.
My all time favourite Syphon run was on a service train and was unexpected.
In the late 1990s I worked shifts and often purchased a four day in seven Freedom of the North East.
I would work an early and drive to Wakefield, do a 91 to Doncaster and then cover 1E33, the 12something Bristol - Newcastle.
This would be done through to the Toon, followed by a walk to a nice chippy in Newcastle city centre and the same 47 back to Wakefield on 1V67 18.05 Newcastle - Bristol.
A nice little move that really got my xc 47 mileage up.
The 10th of August 1998 was a little different to normal, though.
It must have been my day off as I was out in the morning, doing 91s between York, Doncaster & Newcastle.
47814 turned up on time and an uneventful run to Newcastle was had.
Sausage and chips were purchased and consumed and I was back on the platform in time to board the train when it pulled in.
So far, so normal.
18.05 came and went.
After a wait there was an announcement; the locomotive had failed and passengers were advised to get a GNER service that was soon to arrive heading South.
The train emptied pretty rapidly.
There was no way I was doing that, though - there might be a big loco in it for me.
There was!
By the time 37238 arrived from Tyne Yard the train was virtually empty and I pretty much had the front coach to myself.
I've no idea how late it left but I know that the Leeds and Wakefield stops were omitted and it was straight up the ECML from York to Doncaster.
The grapevine had obviously been busy and hoards of bashers piled on at York and the train looked like a railtour as I watched it pull out of Doncaster.
I'd had 113 miles off it but was still jealous of all the heads out of windows.
I've had many fabulous runs behind 37s but they're the three stand out ones
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djpontrack
Member
Hi. I've got 117 class 37's recorded for haulage. I lived in Fort William when I was a child and always enjoyed the thrash leaving Glasgow QSt on the way back home, the noise in the tunnel was unbelievable. I also had a few 37's when I lived in Wilts. June 1989 was rather good as 37350 was doing Swindon to Taunton and Bristol TM to Weymouth regularly so I had a few miles on that and some other 37's. My favourite class 37 on a preserved line was 37254 on the Spa Valley Railway, I had two rides on it in July last year at the diesel gala.
djpontrack
Member
Hi 55013. Unfortunately I never had 37081, it was one that managed to get away. I was fortunate however to get a few cab rides on class 20/27/37's in the FW area and managed to do almost all the sidings at the local aluminium factory and the paper mill at Annat near Corpach.
Wow. That sounds superb. It's been really enjoyable reading all this guys.
I'm really enjoying reading people's memories of great tractor moves of the past, but I think it's time to bring things up to date with something from this week.
Last Friday was time for my monthly stress busting day trip.
Would I be London bound once more?
No.
This time I headed North.
Various people have posted about their recent Scottish adventures and I desperately wanted to get in on the act.
I was up at 04stupid and in my car by 05.00.
The journey was uneventful, marred only by the fact that going so late in the year meant that three quarters of the run was in darkness, meaning I missed the view.
I had to concentrate on the road instead
On previous trips I had gone to Shotts as it’s got a nice car park but this time I wanted to start at a winning shack.
I arrived at Newton bang on 09.00, so spot on four hours including a short break at a service station.
Not bad.
My plan for today was to get my last two stations on the Cathcart Circle proper and all the ones on the Newton branch.
In this, I failed miserably.
The initial idea was that I would head to Glasgow in search of required EMUs and finish up by doing the outer shacks during rush hour, then head home.
Winning traction is always my priority and I went needing eleven 318s and five 320s.
These were my target in preference to the newer types.
My days of doing loads of tedious Partick leaps are behind me, I want to have further, more varied, runs.
Even if that means the number of winners is reduced.
I’ve been looking at my mileages and of the two classes only 318265 and six of the former 321s had been had for more than ten miles.
That had to change and change it did.
My first Scottish unit of 2016 was dud 320316, which became the first 320/3 to pass ten miles on the run to new shack Hyndland.
The first winning unit followed shortly after and that was 318257, which was paired with 320312 and taken to Singer.
This was followed by the next in the series, 318258.
I looked for a new shack to bail at and plumped for Cambuslang.
A dud paring followed, 318259 and 320413.
The latter, of course, once being 321413 and, along with its LM sisters, once the focus of my cranking attention.
As they were both dud I used the opportunity to score a station when I otherwise might have gone a bit further.
This was Argyle Street.
Required 318265 was up next, working with 320320 and taken to Westerton.
318255 and 318266 were next and, once again because they were both dud, I took the opportunity to do a short run, this time of little more than a mile, to Anniesland
I had seen a required 318 earlier and worked out when it would be coming back.
My plan was changed slightly when required 320308 pulled in.
A bird in the hand and all that.
I took this for a very short leap to Hyndland.
Less than a mile but at least it was in the book and I hoped to get it in again later.
The 318 that I had been waiting for was next, 318256.
This was with 320314 and I chose to kick back and relax for a while and do them to Airbles because the name amused me.
Dud for the day 320413 and 318259 were next.
I wasn’t best pleased with this and so bailed at Hamilton Central.
I had worked out what 320308 would be doing and intended to head it off in order to up the mileage a bit.
That’s what I intended to do but it’s not what happened, or at least not in the way I planned.
Hamilton Central was left behind on another pair that had already been sampled today, 320320 & 318265.
Rutherglen was my destination this time.
I now hoped to head to a new shack, get something back to Hyndland and pick up 320308.
Unfortunately 320305 lost a few minutes on its way to Yoker and the other unit was already pulling in.
What’s worse, it was 320301.
The last time I had been in Scotland, with 45135 last year, we had missed 320301 by seconds due to a misunderstanding, now I’d missed it again!
I was adamant it wouldn’t happen a third time.
At times like this Real Time Trains is your friend and another plan was concocted.
I realised it would mean that my hope of getting some new Cathcart/Newton stations in the book was gone but I just had to do both 320301 and 320308.
With both of my wants to the East of me I naturally left Yoker heading West
That was because it was another winner, 318251 that arrived first.
I did it to Dumbarton Central and then back to Bellgrove where I hoped to meet the first of my two wanted 320s.
EMU 318251_2016.10.28_3_Bellgrove by Phil Wood, on Flickr
Sure enough, 320301 rolled round the corner and I was a happy man.
It’s always good to score, but a clawback is even more satisfying.
Hurray!
EMU 320301_2016.10.28_2_Bellgrove by Phil Wood, on Flickr
I’d calculated that 320308 was on the service immediately behind and so I left 301 at Hyndland and waited for five minutes.
My reading of RTT had been correct and the mileage from 320308 soon increased from the 75 chains that it had sat on for much of the day.
This was a service to Balloch that went via Singer and I left it at my last new shack of the day, Dumbarton East.
320301 had been on a Dumbarton Central service and I knew it should reach Dumbarton East on its way back to Cumbernauld shortly after 320308 deposited me there.
It was now time for me to be heading home and so I left 320301 at Hyndland and got the next thing to Glasgow Central, which was the unit that had kicked the day off, 320316.
I could have stayed on board to Newton but two things stopped me doing it to there.
For a kick off, I hadn’t eaten since a sandwich that I’d bought from the motorway service station at about 08.00 and so thought it a good idea to get some supplies.
The main reason for changing at Central, though, was that no Glasgow visit is complete for me without a bit of 314 action and so after buying grub it was to the 18.45 Newton service.
Although I’ve had them all, there were two members of the class on less the one mile and so I was pretty pleased when my last move of the day proved to be one of those, 314208.
EMU 314208_2016.10.28_2_Newton by Phil Wood, on Flickr
After that it was to the car and home by 23.30.
A very enjoyable, if long, day with 7 new units and 14 shacks.
My mileage figures look a bit more respectable now as well with no less than twelve units passing ten miles
Last Friday was time for my monthly stress busting day trip.
Would I be London bound once more?
No.
This time I headed North.
Various people have posted about their recent Scottish adventures and I desperately wanted to get in on the act.
I was up at 04stupid and in my car by 05.00.
The journey was uneventful, marred only by the fact that going so late in the year meant that three quarters of the run was in darkness, meaning I missed the view.
I had to concentrate on the road instead
On previous trips I had gone to Shotts as it’s got a nice car park but this time I wanted to start at a winning shack.
I arrived at Newton bang on 09.00, so spot on four hours including a short break at a service station.
Not bad.
My plan for today was to get my last two stations on the Cathcart Circle proper and all the ones on the Newton branch.
In this, I failed miserably.
The initial idea was that I would head to Glasgow in search of required EMUs and finish up by doing the outer shacks during rush hour, then head home.
Winning traction is always my priority and I went needing eleven 318s and five 320s.
These were my target in preference to the newer types.
My days of doing loads of tedious Partick leaps are behind me, I want to have further, more varied, runs.
Even if that means the number of winners is reduced.
I’ve been looking at my mileages and of the two classes only 318265 and six of the former 321s had been had for more than ten miles.
That had to change and change it did.
My first Scottish unit of 2016 was dud 320316, which became the first 320/3 to pass ten miles on the run to new shack Hyndland.
The first winning unit followed shortly after and that was 318257, which was paired with 320312 and taken to Singer.
This was followed by the next in the series, 318258.
I looked for a new shack to bail at and plumped for Cambuslang.
A dud paring followed, 318259 and 320413.
The latter, of course, once being 321413 and, along with its LM sisters, once the focus of my cranking attention.
As they were both dud I used the opportunity to score a station when I otherwise might have gone a bit further.
This was Argyle Street.
Required 318265 was up next, working with 320320 and taken to Westerton.
318255 and 318266 were next and, once again because they were both dud, I took the opportunity to do a short run, this time of little more than a mile, to Anniesland
I had seen a required 318 earlier and worked out when it would be coming back.
My plan was changed slightly when required 320308 pulled in.
A bird in the hand and all that.
I took this for a very short leap to Hyndland.
Less than a mile but at least it was in the book and I hoped to get it in again later.
The 318 that I had been waiting for was next, 318256.
This was with 320314 and I chose to kick back and relax for a while and do them to Airbles because the name amused me.
Dud for the day 320413 and 318259 were next.
I wasn’t best pleased with this and so bailed at Hamilton Central.
I had worked out what 320308 would be doing and intended to head it off in order to up the mileage a bit.
That’s what I intended to do but it’s not what happened, or at least not in the way I planned.
Hamilton Central was left behind on another pair that had already been sampled today, 320320 & 318265.
Rutherglen was my destination this time.
I now hoped to head to a new shack, get something back to Hyndland and pick up 320308.
Unfortunately 320305 lost a few minutes on its way to Yoker and the other unit was already pulling in.
What’s worse, it was 320301.
The last time I had been in Scotland, with 45135 last year, we had missed 320301 by seconds due to a misunderstanding, now I’d missed it again!
I was adamant it wouldn’t happen a third time.
At times like this Real Time Trains is your friend and another plan was concocted.
I realised it would mean that my hope of getting some new Cathcart/Newton stations in the book was gone but I just had to do both 320301 and 320308.
With both of my wants to the East of me I naturally left Yoker heading West
That was because it was another winner, 318251 that arrived first.
I did it to Dumbarton Central and then back to Bellgrove where I hoped to meet the first of my two wanted 320s.
EMU 318251_2016.10.28_3_Bellgrove by Phil Wood, on FlickrSure enough, 320301 rolled round the corner and I was a happy man.
It’s always good to score, but a clawback is even more satisfying.
Hurray!
EMU 320301_2016.10.28_2_Bellgrove by Phil Wood, on FlickrI’d calculated that 320308 was on the service immediately behind and so I left 301 at Hyndland and waited for five minutes.
My reading of RTT had been correct and the mileage from 320308 soon increased from the 75 chains that it had sat on for much of the day.
This was a service to Balloch that went via Singer and I left it at my last new shack of the day, Dumbarton East.
320301 had been on a Dumbarton Central service and I knew it should reach Dumbarton East on its way back to Cumbernauld shortly after 320308 deposited me there.
It was now time for me to be heading home and so I left 320301 at Hyndland and got the next thing to Glasgow Central, which was the unit that had kicked the day off, 320316.
I could have stayed on board to Newton but two things stopped me doing it to there.
For a kick off, I hadn’t eaten since a sandwich that I’d bought from the motorway service station at about 08.00 and so thought it a good idea to get some supplies.
The main reason for changing at Central, though, was that no Glasgow visit is complete for me without a bit of 314 action and so after buying grub it was to the 18.45 Newton service.
Although I’ve had them all, there were two members of the class on less the one mile and so I was pretty pleased when my last move of the day proved to be one of those, 314208.
EMU 314208_2016.10.28_2_Newton by Phil Wood, on FlickrAfter that it was to the car and home by 23.30.
A very enjoyable, if long, day with 7 new units and 14 shacks.
My mileage figures look a bit more respectable now as well with no less than twelve units passing ten miles
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djpontrack
Member
That was a good trip 55013. I'm not doing too bad on the Scotrail electric units but I still need loads of shacks. My partner comes from Cumbernauld so I've managed to cop a few units when she wants to visit family.
Kite159
Veteran Member
A good day in SPT land
47403
Established Member
Anothef good read Phil. I'm mega jealous of the 37 on the Bristol turn, even as a 47 fanatic.
More than productive trip into ScotRail territory, that sense of mission accomplished, when you go for stuff on your wanted list and it tips up, is a good feeling.
Last Roundabout I was on, the former LM 321s were all floating round Motherwell and Whifflet, however the Engineering work at Queen St was on at the time, so I guess they were just diverting that way.
More than productive trip into ScotRail territory, that sense of mission accomplished, when you go for stuff on your wanted list and it tips up, is a good feeling.
Last Roundabout I was on, the former LM 321s were all floating round Motherwell and Whifflet, however the Engineering work at Queen St was on at the time, so I guess they were just diverting that way.
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