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Tornado to Exeter 25 August

Discussion in 'What's Going On' started by alastair, May 27, 2014.

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  1. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    Westbury to Newbury in a little outside even time with 65 over Savernake in a rain storm. Brilliant stuff.
     
    Big Al, Aug 25, 2014
    #41
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  2. royals pete

    royals pete Member

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    Looks to have been a pretty good run from Westbury to Newbury. Is it going to be too dark at Twyford I wonder ????
     
    royals pete, Aug 25, 2014
    #42
  3. bakabung

    bakabung Well-Known Member

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    Definitely too late at Burnham/ Taplow, especially as I am on the sauce.

    I see a note on UKSteam that First GW are operating it from Reading. Is that normal?
     
    bakabung, Aug 25, 2014
    #43
  4. mrKnowwun

    mrKnowwun Part of the furniture

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    Tornado gets a '43 power car pilot?
     
    mrKnowwun, Aug 25, 2014
    #44
  5. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    Reading to Slough. Booked for 14 min. It's 17.5 miles. You couldn't make it up! Waiting at Theale for our path to Reading snooker hall. (You need a red before any other colour)
     
    Big Al, Aug 25, 2014
    #45
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  6. bakabung

    bakabung Well-Known Member

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    Glad it's dark and I'm still on the sauce then!
     
    bakabung, Aug 25, 2014
    #46
  7. royals pete

    royals pete Member

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    Out of Theale loop yet ????????
     
    royals pete, Aug 25, 2014
    #47
  8. royals pete

    royals pete Member

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    So you're having to wait for 'right time' then ??
     
    royals pete, Aug 25, 2014
    #48
  9. Yorkshire Exile

    Yorkshire Exile Member

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    Nope 0ne and a half minutes late!
     
    Yorkshire Exile, Aug 25, 2014
    #49
  10. Martin Perry

    Martin Perry Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator Friend

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    A 'Western' would do it ;)
     
    Martin Perry, Aug 25, 2014
    #50
  11. 34098

    34098 Member Account Suspended

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    34098, Aug 25, 2014
    #51
  12. Hemerdon

    Hemerdon Member Friend

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    Here’s my video from today. The first clip on the climb from Axminster towards Seaton Junction and the second clip just north of Tiverton Parkway. Considering the weather I’m not sure why I bothered!

     
    Hemerdon, Aug 25, 2014
    #52
  13. royals pete

    royals pete Member

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    Well...went over to Twyford, surprised at the number of people on the platform and the driver obviously saw; geat long pull of the chime..brilliant stuff. Assume you got out of the way of the HST on your heels ??. Really glad i saw her, did a vid but sound is great but the headlight takes up a lot of the approach !!
     
    royals pete, Aug 25, 2014
    #53
  14. free2grice

    free2grice Part of the furniture Friend

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    I'm certainly glad I bothered. Rain, rain, rain but it was well worth it.

    I saw the train at Clink Rd Jct on the outward and Bruton bank on the return, although the speed that Tornado passed the summit at Bruton I'm not so sure that the route actually has an incline. Wonderful whistling at the station. Thank you!!

    Very smart stock and superb loco. It's so nice to report on a well organised railtour.
    Many thanks to the DBS crews, support folk and organisers. <BJ>
     
    free2grice, Aug 25, 2014
    #54
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  15. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    Lovely finale from Reading up the main all the way. 19 min to Slough. 25 to Padd incl sig check. Running in the 70s. Well done to all the crews...and Tornado. What a machine.
     
    Big Al, Aug 25, 2014
    #55
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  16. hatherton hall

    hatherton hall Well-Known Member

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    Yes I was there too and it was worth waiting for. Tornado raced through with an HST on its tail with whistle wide open. Wonderful stuff on an otherwise damp, miserable Bank Holiday Monday.

    Here is my video, the third of the day. It's amazing what results are possible from an Apple Smartphone!

     
    hatherton hall, Aug 25, 2014
    #56
    royals pete, Big Al, mrKnowwun and 1 other person like this.
  17. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    Just a few additional thoughts about The Devon Belle.

    This was a well conceived trip by UKRT/A1ST and worth repeating with any big pacific. If we really are going to be stuffed in future for something decent down to Exeter out of Waterloo (and please....Victoria is NOT an alternative), then a Paddington exit works well for pickups and water. It also has great variety. Decent climbs: Honiton, Whiteball and then Savernake/Brewham each way plus some fast stretches: Exeter - Taunton, Taunton - Westbury, Westbury - Newbury were all good.

    Hill climbing, given the weather conditions, was pretty impressive: Savernake - 63 westbound, 65 eastbound. Honiton - 27 after a slow start through Seaton at 36, Brewham - 53 westbound, 56 eastbound. Timekeeping was good throughout the day and the dash home from Reading up the fast was unusual and a fitting end to an excellent performance by Tornado and the crews.

    The only disappointment was not being able to have a full run at Whiteball on the return. Wayne Thompson had wound her up to 70 by Cullompton before we were looped at Tiverton to let the London train pass. It was ironic that the early departure from Exeter so a Plymouth bound X-Country could use the platform turned out not to be needed. We could easily have stayed where we were and let the London train pass at Exeter as the XC was twenty late. But that's a detail. All in all this was money well spent and not a diesel in sight.
     
    Last edited: Aug 26, 2014
    Big Al, Aug 25, 2014
    #57
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  18. steamvideosnet

    steamvideosnet Well-Known Member

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    A screenshot from my video at Great Bedwyn this morning (taken from a foot crossing near Bedwyn station) - going like the clappers and looking superb, despite the relentless rain!

    Flickr1.125.jpg

    James
     
    steamvideosnet, Aug 26, 2014
    #58
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  19. dublo6231

    dublo6231 Member

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    The chime as Tornado passed on this video has sent shivers down my spine and brought a tear to my eye.
    I'm sure my late grandfather would of approved. Thanks for sharing.
     
    dublo6231, Aug 26, 2014
    #59
  20. Big Al

    Big Al Nat Pres stalwart Staff Member Moderator

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    Well actually we didn't. We were early coming up to Southcote Junction but not for the first time it took ages to get into Reading and that included sitting on the curve into the station. As a result we were late away. Network Rail believed the daft time of 14 min that we had been given between Reading and Slough so although we went flat out (17.5 miles in 19 minutes) that didn't stop us holding up the HST. We should have been crossed to the relief after Slough but remained on the main and kept to booked time. However as we rolled into P1 (that I'm guessing was the ML decision as we should have been P10 off the RL) the HST was alongside us into P8 having dropped over 10 min from Reading. I hope that this is not put down to Tornado as Fred Lewis did the best he could at the regulator. It was really a problem back at Reading that Control generated for itself. So much for the streamlining of operations at Reading after the new track work and signalling!
     
    Last edited: Aug 26, 2014
    Big Al, Aug 26, 2014
    #60
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