RTC Flying Scotsman/Black 5s to Carlisle 23rd January

The bard of Blyth! lol

(bet that bloke in the far field got a great shot)

 

Fabulous especially the last shot through Lancaster. You have captured the magic of steam at speed at night. Brilliant.

 

Outstanding pictures and videos on this thread.
What I have noticed by looking at a lot of the videos from yesterday was that a lot of people turned out for this run. Even though this was probably for 60103 and they didn't know she wasn't available hopefully the Black Fives would have impressed the non-enthusiasts and converted them into enthusiasts!

Well done to Ian Riley and his team for turning out his two steeds for this trip (especially as 44871 had her wheels out earlier in the week).

 

Thanks very much. The passing of Lancaster, exceeded my expectations !

 

Agreed. And all with a DEAD box on the back. Did it really matter in the grand scheme of things if it meant the train ran?

 

In the grand scheme of things nothing at all matters but as far as steam on the mainline is concerned, of course it matters. The arguments are about how much it matters.

 

Great videos all round.
As a traveller on the CME it was nice to see the journey from the "outside".
Yes, there were literally hundreds of watchers/photographers along the journey, alongside the track, in the fields, on fell sides, in the passing stations, and at Carlisle, and Preston where I de-trained.

The two locomotives were the main attraction for many, and if your were hoping for a good photo, forget it. But a great atmosphere all round.

It was good to see that two members of the WCRC footplate train crew were young firemen, main line drivers of the future.

 

And I suspect that many of those watchers now think that a rather long 4-6-0+4-6-0 locomotive numbered 44871 + 45407 is the famous Flying Scotsman.

And maybe some of the steam enthusiasts watching/photographing it do too!

 

"It was good to see that two members of the WCRC footplate train crew were young firemen, main line drivers of the future"
I love to see young enginemen on the mainline and yes, they will be the enginemen long after I have passed on to the mainline in the sky!! In the short term I just desperately hope the the ORR don't toss a spanner in the works of mainline steam. Now, that would be a disaster!

 

Yes think he did.Did you miss sta out lol

 

Yes it was great to see the Rilettes producing the goods Well done to the team

 

One more for any Lancaster fans. There must have been more gricers than passengers there last night

 

Yes...

 

The advantage of which is lost by dragging 110 tons of ticking over box ! Not that I disagree on this occasion that diesel assistance for shunt purposees was essential, but certainly not on all trains.

 

In a word- No!

There has been some absolutely stunning photo's & video's of the run.

So thanks to one & all for venturing out.

 

May not be the case this year, but haven't all previous years of the London starting WCME's left the stock in the platform during the layover in Carlisle?

 

Yes, but as there was often no diesel involved they were shunted by the steam loco. Also, it was often done very quickly.