Footplate Experiences

Hi,
I dont post much, but registered quite a while back.

Can anyone recommend a footplate experience? Its for my Dad as his birthday is in January. For his 60th last year, we took him on Tornado to Edinburgh but had planned to do a footplate course then.
We have decided to do it this year, but just a cab ride as driving and firing will be too much for him.

Mid Hants do one for £95 and thats a full round trip.

Thanks
Matt

 

Footpleate experiences

I can commend the excellent offers at the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway including a very popular Day with a Driver. These are markered by BuyaGift and the links can be found on www.e-v-r.com

Regards

Martin

 

Details of the NYMR Footplate Awareness are at:

http://www.nymr.co.uk/information/footplate-experience/

Bronze is basically what I think you are looking for.

Steven

 

Matt

The railway experience day at Didcot is quite good one if you don't think your father is fit enough for a full on day on the footplate. You get half a day with the train, around an hour on the footplate driving for some and firing for the rest and the remainder on the train. The other half day is a guided tour around the whole Railway Centre. Breakfast, lunch and a certificate is supplied. Go to the Didcot Railway Centre web site for more information.

For most of the experience days you can do as much or as little as you want, generally the crew (I always do anyway) will ask how much you want to do.

The other option is to ask for a footplate pass on one of the service trains on any of the railways, depending on the rules at the railway in question you may get one or they may decline. Most railways have footplate passes that allow members of the public ride on the footplate and these will have to be organised before hand, phone the railway and see if they do rides and ask who you need to write to request one.

 

http://www.llangollen-railway.co.uk/driverexp.html

Llangollen do An Evening Ramble Experience, where after the service train has finished you get to drive the days service engine from Llangollen to Glyndyfrdwy and return. Scroll down the above link for details.

 

Thanks for the replies.
I should of added that ideally it needs to be a railway with at least a 15 mile round trip and be steam.
Didcot only has a mile or so.

 

Well that narrows it down somewhat. Good luck!

 

"Footplate taster" on the K&ESR is basically a footplate ride for one round trip, about 20 miles.

 

http://www.kesr.org.uk/railway-experiences.html

 

Look at the GCR footplate experience days. Not cheap, but you get to drive a nice big steam loco on double track. Th crew does all the hard work, you just control the regulator, brake and whistle

PS Although I think you're leaving it rather late to book a footplate experience for January! They are usually very popular