WHR Superpower Weekend - King of The Hill- 10th & 11th September

Timetables Released, and Booking Form for Tickets / Guides, http://www.festrail.co.uk/content/publish/specialevents/Super_Power_2011.shtml
Looks To Be A Good Event! :whoo:
Taliesin

 

Re: WHR Superpower Weekend - King of The Hill

• Triple-headed Garratts

• Double-headed Double Fairlies

• Double-headed Penrhyn Ladies

• Double-header with Mallet + B Class

• Triple-header with Mallet + B Class + Lilla

• Triple-header with Garratt + Mallet + B Class

• Both WHR Passenger and one FR Passenger set required

• 1920s FR Vintage set

• Mixed trains

• Complete DHR train

• All Caernarfon departures running right through to Porthmadog

• Special train which includes Non-stop running Pont Croesor to Minffordd and vice-versa

Looks to be a VERY good event...

 

Re: WHR Superpower Weekend - King of The Hill

i'm just being pedantic here, but if it's competition shouldn't the engines be running single to see which is best? By all accounts the Mallet romped away with the vintage set on its first trip to the WHR. I know it's not as heavy as a regular 8/10-car set, but I don't think it would struggle.

 

Re: WHR Superpower Weekend - King of The Hill

If it was a strict competition - Yes... but it isn't.

Unfortunately you see, we have a railway to run and passengers to carry... :wink:

It's just not possible, financialy viable or desirable to block the railway and use it solely for a series of strict performance tests.

The limitations of strict performance tests should also be readily apparent. What load should you provide for the tests? One to suit the lowest powered locomotive or one to suit the highest powered locomotive? Load too heavily and trains are guaranteed to stall or fail in section. Load too lightly and you can't go any faster because you have to observe the ruling speed limits...

So we're running an intensive timetable over as much of the railway as possible, with as much 'haulage' variety as possible - on a range of trains suited to the capabilities of the rostered locomotives.

Trains that are to be included in the trials are being monitored by the Railway Performance Society, who have assured us that they will be able to cope with the vagaries of the train consists and 'number crunch' through their data to produce an empirical Champion 'King of the Hill'. Don't ask me how, that's up to them...

Whichever way you look at it though - competition or marketing hype - there's no getting away from the fact that you're guaranteed a series of spectacular runs up the 1 in 40 behind some fantastic locomotives... just one part of a truly ambitious weekend on the UK's longest heritage line!

 

Re: WHR Superpower Weekend - King of The Hill

Is K1 going to be out? No big deal if she isn't, just that she's my favourite. (And definitly King of the Hill!)

 

K1 is not included in the Loco Roster for the weekend...

 

Will there be additional workings to those shown in the public timetables and if so how will we know about them?

 

The only additional workings not shown in the public timetable are a couple of light engine movements...

Your indispensable source of information for the Super-Power Weekend is the 'Spotter's Guide' which includes full working timetables, train graphs, loco roster and stock formations. This can be ordered with your tickets in advance - see http://www.festrail.co.uk/content/uploads/1/SP11_-_Booking_Form.pdf

 

Thanks Roger

 

Due to the Deputy Operating Manager having found a locomotive he'd forgotten about...

...the Triple-header with Mallet + B Class + Lilla will now be a Double-header with Mallet + B Class.

Lilla + Britomart will be running light engine to Dinas on Super-Power Friday.

 

Just out of curiosity is there any particular reason? K1 doesn't seem to have been much in evidence this year so far - or have I just not looked at the right moment?

Steve B

 

It's not powerful enough to haul the service trains.

 

Aye. So you'd have thought the Superpower weekend, or some other special event weekend all of which see shorter trains being run, would be a good time to give it some use. But I'm merely an onlooker and so have no idea of the why's and wherefore's.

 

Correct... :tongue:

Seriously though - been there, done that, designed the T-shirt...

'K1' had a good run-out at last year's Super-Power event. This year we're doing something completely different and have visiting locomotives working on the shorter/lighter trains.

 

K1 has also been sidelined for the early part of the year due to a blackbird nesting in part of it's lubrication system according to the railway press!

 

Its true - I've seen the nest!

As I said in my first post, I'm not majorly upset and I'm certainly not going to miss the event - just putting in a plug for my favourite operable loco on the WHR.

 

K1 was well in evidence during the February week when I was there, often double heading with Lyd. This made an interesting comparison as the locomotives were built 101 years apart! It also double headed with one of the other Garratts, so that was superpower in itself.

Lots of pictures in the 'British Narrow Gauge Railways' Collection in my Flickr site. See the Sets entitled 'Welsh Highland Railway 2011' :

http://www.flickr.com/photos/train-pix/collections/72157626163161663/

 

Are there rides available,on Sunday, at Dinas or elsewhere with Lilla and Britomart,please?

May be the deciding factor on a six hour drive.

 

Yes.. both at Dinas on Saturday and Sunday.

 

Oh Roger.. having seen the loco rosters you are such a tease!!

I repeat what you said.. this is definitely an event NOT to be missed, book your accommodation now (if you can find any!) and get to Port!!!