Scarborough Spa Express 2018

Gorgeous shot, Stuart. I don't recognise the location though. Care to share? Please?

 

Home Metals???????

 

What's the record time in steam days from York to Scarborough start to stop? Could it be done in even time?

 

Might be a reference to the owner's home turf? Possibly explains the choice for SSE this year, a chance to have it close to home each week and for the neighbours see the latest addition up close.

 

42 minutes would represent even time for a non-stop York- Scarborough (or v.v.) run. Looking back through the records, I don't see anything that remotely approaches this sort of time. The one general observation I would make is that the fastest times with steam all seem to have been recorded in the preservation era (1973 onward) rather than what we think of as "steam days".

Up to the demise of BR steam in the early/ mid 60's, I couldn't find any instance of a non-stop run in the down direction being achieved in anything less than 55 minutes (45.8 mph start-to-stop). Looking at a copy of a 1951 poster for the Scarborough Flyer, this service was allowed 59 minutes from arrival at York to arrival at Scarborough, and an identical 59 minutes in the opposite direction between departures times from these two points. These times as published in the public timetable would have encompassed the detachment from the down service and attachment to the up service of a portion for Malton and Whitby, so maybe this summer dated named train would have needed to achieve something under 55 minutes for the York-Scarborough leg.

In the up direction, prior to the preservation era, I have located one record of a B1 / Load 7 run in a few seconds under 52 minutes (48.5 mph).

In the preservation era, Mallard, Bittern, Lizzie and Cromwell have all recorded non-stop times (either up or down) of between 49 and 50 minutes over this section. But honours for fastest times would appear to go to performances by 46115 Scots Guardsman in 2010 and Black Five 44932 in 2011, both of which recorded times in the down direction of between 48 and 49 minutes (52.5 mph at best), and both on the Scarborough Spa Express. They have been fully documented in the Railway Performance Society's "Milepost" quarterly journal.

Given the various line-speed restrictions west of Kirkham Abbey (45/50) at Huttons Ambo (40) and through Malton station (30/ 40), quite apart from the ruling 70/ 75 overall vmax (or less with a Black Five), an overall time of something approaching 48 minutes looks pretty impressive to me. Can't help feeling, though, that its much more the atmosphere and the landscape of this delightful route that's really to be savoured, rather than out-and-out performance.

I hope that this at least gives some perspective on record times and it would be great if anyone can identify any performances that would rival those instanced above.

 

Thanks for this and @Where's Mazeppa?. I was thinking it would have to be eastbound because green signals into York are pretty unusual. I didn't know about the restrictions except the sinuous section by the Derwent at Kirkham which is the highlight of the route from a scenic point of view.

 

Two from week two,

"The Scarborough Spa Express", 07/06/18.

"The Scarborough Spa Express", 07/06/18.

 

Nice shots Lance,the engine looks so at home in the East.

 

I was on this tour and some photos are here:

https://andrewstransport.smugmug.com/MyBritishrailtours/Scarborough-Spa-Express-2018/

Andrew N

 

Week three, gale force winds and no exhaust!

"The Scarborough Spa Express", 14/06/18.

 

The wind is so strong it didn't need to work.

 

Is it possible to POTD at York on the SSE this year?
Thanks

 

Go to the buffet and pay Bob.

 

Week four.................dull.

"The Scarborough Spa Express", 21/06/18.

 

Thanks for your replies, hoping to travel next week..

 

Like the feeling of power Toni,something we don't see when she working in the West