Gwsr Cotswold festival of steam

A quick heads up that here at the Gwsr we will be holding our annual Cotswold festival of steam gala from Saturday 27th to Monday 29th may. Our first guest (still subject to contract) is Lms black five 45305, courtesy of our friends at the great central railway and the 5305 locomotive association. As previously, there will be a collection of traction engines and the opening of the carriage and wagon workshops for tours. We will also be running another 14 coach special, possibly on two evenings this year with 35006 rostered to repeat last years superb spectacle. Hopefully a second guest might make an appearance on the other evening. More details as they are finalised.

 

Any further news/speculation on other visiting engines for this event ?

 

Nope

 

Give it time, still only early March.

 

We are hoping to release news of a further 2 guests later this week or early next week! Sorry for the lack of news, it's making sure that all parties are happy with the arrangements. Hopefully if all comes off we shall have 9 engines in use.

 

Well two visitors have just been announced on the blog: http://gwsrsteamloco.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/gala-loco-announcements.html

 

I assume that the S160 will be chosen for the 14 coach special ?

 

No sooner had I typed the earlier post and I get news that we could go live with the news!!! As stated, we are very pleased to announce S160 no. 6046 courtesy of the churnet valley railway and also to welcome back gwr auto tank 1450 and auto coach 238 courtesy of the Severn valley railway and push pull ltd.

 

Correct, the current aim is for the S160 to be used on one end of the 14 Coach train.. haven't decided on the other end yet!!

 

Interesting!

Be nice to see either of the GW 2-8-0's extended on 14+ the S160......

Chris

 

45205 and 1450 are two locos that certainly make it very tempting for me to make the 300-mile journey, but an S160?? Does it really draw the crowds ? Personally, I wouldn't even cross the road to see one. Ghastly monstrosities.

 

I was waiting for this. I don't understand how anyone can hate any steam engine. You don't get this in other countries and you don't get it in the traction engine World here either.

 

What S160's lack in looks they make up for in sound effects.

 

Each to their own & whilst the S160 may have its admirers it is not to everybody's liking. Folk are entitled to their view and attend events accordingly.

 

John is entitled to his opinion, for me I agree with your sentiment, anything that moves on rails (particularly steam) is worth having a look at. Anyone who has seen and heard an S160 blast up to Darnholme on the NYMR can't fail to be impressed in my opinion. My mate isn't impressed with a steam loco unless British, I've shown him my recent photo's of the Harz trip in the snow and he was completely unimpressed! No accounting for taste.

 

The passenger figures at the CVR gala a couple of weeks ago would certainly suggest that S160's do pull in the crowds!

 

So, we have both good news and bad... the bad news is that 45305's maintenance program has slipped and so the 5305 locomotive association have informed us that it will no longer be able to attend the gwsr steam gala. Whilst this is a huge shame, we thank the group for there help upto now and for letting us know with time to spare. On the good news front we can announce that west Somerset railway based 7f 53808 will be attending the event. 53808 was intended to make the 4th and final visitor as we would have paired it up with 45305 to create a suitable s&d pairing, also unfortunately these two along with S160 6046 were intended as the Saturday night 14 coach motive power. As such, without 45305, we have decided to remove the 7f from the evening and will replace it with MN 35006 in a re run of last years train. For those of you who missed p&o on 625 tons but have seen the video, you can now see and hear it in person. 6046 will operate on the south end of the train and we have requested that she will face Cheltenham. We are investigating replacements for 45305 but cannot promise anything at present. With just over 4 weeks to go, I'll be updating this thread with more news on a regular basis.

 

I guess that S160's are something of a marmite loco, you love them or hate them. Personally, I love them and I'm very glad that we have 6046 coming. Being one of the crowd that ventured to the CVR that Chris Meadowcroft mentioned on a previous post, I can attest to that fact that they are impressive beasts when working a heavy load. The final decision as to which locos will work the 14 coach special on the evening of Sat 27th has yet to be taken, but 6046 has been mentioned as a possible choice. S160's ran on the GWSR line during WWII and being able to recreate a bit of history is always a good thing. The same is true of 1450 and autocoach, which will be stopping for a fortnight after the gala and will be present for the official opening ceremony at Hayles Abbey Halt.

Anyway, as an update, I regret to announce that 45305 will no longer be able to come, it's restay is taking rather longer than anticipated, and it now doesn't look like it will be ready in time. This is a great shame, but that's the way things go in the world of steam locomotive restoration & operation I'm afraid. On the good news front, we have secured S&DJR 7F, 53808 from the West Somerset Railway, which ties in very nicely with our Workhorses of Steam theme this year. Like many people, I have a soft spot for these fine locomotives that plied their trade up and down the steeply graded lines of the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway for so many years.

More details can be found regarding the full gala lineup can be found on the GWSR's Steam Loco Dept Blog:

http://gwsrsteamloco.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/the-gala-one-step-forward-one-step-back.html

We are still actively looking for a 9th gala visitor, but even as it stands, it's still a line up with something for everyone.

 

Shame about 45305, but 53808 is an excellent substitute. Well done to the gala team in securing this loco.

 

Surely it makes sense to have the Merchant and the S160 on the evening train, considering the load.