Bluebell Diesel Gala 18-19th April

According to the DPS D9009 + 55019 are attending the Bluebell for a diesel gala.

Quote from the DPS website
"The Bluebell Railway and the Deltic Preservation Society are pleased to announce the visit of D9009 ‘ALYCIDON’ and 55019 ‘ROYAL HIGHLAND FUSILIER’ for the Bluebell Railway Diesel Gala on the 18th and 19th April 2015. This will be the first time two Deltics have visited the Sussex heritage railway with both locos arriving via the Bluebell’s mainline connection at East Grinstead. A two train service will be in operation each day with the locos switching diagrams on the Sunday".

Should be an interesting event...

 

Already being discussed under Bluebell Matters.

 

Thanks for that. Didnt realise....but its good to have a thread here as it is a "Gala"...and hopefully a very popular one.

 

The red pen brigade will be out to make sure they get mileage behind some very different traction on a new railway. It'll be weird, actually!

 

This is like AC/DC playing the Royal Opera house! Amazing to think that the Bluebell had been preserved before these 2 were built.

 

4 years! Imagine those pioneers turning up to see deltics on their line. It would be like me seeing a class 68 at Llangollen. It's a nice run, though. I reckon it should be a cracking gala. I wonder whether anything else will go.

 

I never thought I'd see the day that the Bluebell would have a bona fide diesel gala! Magic!

 

Did you miss this one then

http://simonwhittinghamphotography.zenfolio.com/p4816842

 

That one didnt count. That was just a running day!

 

Excellent to see the Bluebell moving with the times, but anyone who can red pen 55009/55019 is definitely not in the 'brigade'!

 

Not according to the Bluebell

http://www.bluebell-railway-museum.co.uk/archive/newsletter/058/newsletter.htm

 

The 21st March was not a planned running day see timetable leaflet attached.

 

No but there are those (cough SAD cough) who try to ride as much mileage as possible behind certain engines (usually diesels) and new track is always a big tick. I have to say, it would be interesting to ride behind a diesel on the Bluebell.

 

I would be amazed if they didn't wheel out the 09 given it's already in situ

 

Can deltic fit in between buffer stop (London end) and point at East Grinstead station? 9F can fit and run around.

9F = 66ft 2in (20.17 m)

Deltic = 69ft 6in (21.18 m)

 

I can't remember the exact length but it is somewhere in the region of 30m.

Don't forget that during the removal of waste from the tip, class 66s regularly ran round using that loop while they formed and reformed the waste trains. A 66 is longer than a Deltic by about a foot and there was no problem with space.

Tom

 

The 09 and observation car fit in the headshunt.
As experienced diesel gala organisers know-there are EE, Sulzer,hydraulic and red pen sections of the market-two deltics sort of fit the EE market only.A mixed fleet from BH with 55009 dragging would have been a more sensible approach, and competing with BH's own diesel event the same weekend...

 

Excuse my ignorance, but what is red pen?

Tom

 

Red pen is marking off locos and/or track that you haven't riden behind/ travelled over before.

Tends to be more common amongst diesel fans and is the mainstay some would say of the branch line society.

 

Ah thanks. Maybe there is scope for someone to do a public (pre-booked) version of the "extremities" charter with the Obo and 09 that ran a couple of years back.

Tom