GWSR General Discussion and Operations

Alex, hard at work, and I never realised he was a leftie, the best people are, (I'm one) But I bet your hands are a lot less shaky than mine are, I can't sign free hand like that, and I bet there are many who can't. keep up the good work young man.

 

Thanks Martin, yes a sinistral signwriter, I have to paint right to left! Or as one magazine featuring that photo had it, self taught 'song-writer' - err....!

 

Oh yes, the Sinistral bit, all left handers have to contend with, We are the forebringers of pestilence and doom, when your crops fail, yes it was us, when your maid un-explainably fell pregnant, yeap it was us, well one of us anyway So have you ever been tempted to paint " Ye are all doomed " on a wagon

 

Alex is the George Gershwin of signwriters.

 

Oh come on now Mark, I'm sure you can do better than that, only one song fits really, Paint it black ,

 

Paint your wagon I should think, given my particular biases in rolling stock preservation!

 

" I see a MINK, and my evil side says, paint it black, " I know it won't be liked, and i will get the flak,

 

Looking at the Carriage and Wagon blog on the GWSR website - I see they are back up to 2 MK1 FOs in their fleet again (although 3127 will be some way off being ready for service by the looks of things!). Obviously the East Lancs have decided they don't need all of their MK1 FOs for their dining train, hence the sale of 3127 to a GWSR member - it makes a change for one of those to not get bought by MK1 FO addict Jeremy Hosking! The only (very minor) disappointment is that with two MK1 FOs changing hands in the last couple of months, it's a shame that the GWSR member didn't get 3090 from the Swanage Railway and Hosking get 3127 from the East Lancs - then the GWSR would have ended up with an FO that was allocated new to the Western Region when it was in service with BR. SO 4790 looks like it is nearly there, work seems to be getting on with 4798 too, and the restaurant car can't be that far off completion.

 

Class 117 DMU moving to Bo'ness.

 

For those of you that prefer not to use Facebook. <BJ>

''We're thrilled to announce that our Santa Express trains are now completely SOLD OUT!
A big thank you to everyone who booked—we can't wait to welcome you aboard. If you missed out this time, keep an eye on our social media for any updates on returns or cancellations''.

 

That's good news then. I had a reminder from the Mid Hants that their Steam Illuminations trains are "selling out fast" but when I looked at the website there were plenty of spaces although the Father Xmas Express trains have sold out. I wonder which is the most profitable?

 

I was at another, albeit small (length-wise) heritage railway the other day and they told me bookings have been well down on their Santa trains this year because those who can afford to do this type of thing are gravitating towards the 'experience'-type trains e.g. lights/polar express. I'd be interested to know if this is reflected across the country, there is definitely some competition in my area with a few railways all within an hour's drive so I wouldn't be surprised if this was also a factor.

 

The Battlefield Line has sold out their Santa Special offerings again this year. Anecdotally I think the date of selling-out might have been a little later than last year, but that might be wrong, and in any case, the last train still sold out a week before the first one departed

 

Not sure it has to be an either / or - they probably attract slightly different types. So I see things like Lights trains as an extension to your Christmas offer, not a direct replacement for Santas - provided you have the volunteers to cover all the turns, of course!

Tom

 

Fair, but I think some people are gravitating away from Traditional Santas towards Polars, based on what I see on my social media.

 

6880 to be long term resident from February 2025

When are 35006 and 7903 due to be bowing out?

 

35006 certainly by end of September, 7903 is dec 25 but an extension is being looked into.

 

Our Santas have been very successful. We offer a 40 minute ride with Santa giving wrapped named gifts followed by photo opportunities and Xmas sing alongs. We give age targeted books as gifts and this is hugely welcomed largely by the kids and parents who sometimes comment never seen them go quiet so fast for so long. Target market is under 10s so very different to say Polars which seem to be very successful as well. Perhaps we are in a niche market but it’s been a very rewarding year both from a financial and positive feedback perspective

A tired Santa looking forward to the promised mince pies that the children offer to leave out.

 

Happy new year all! As is traditional, here's our C&W roundup of the year, always surprising how much we forget we've done over the year. Take a look and see for yourself!
gwsrcarriageandwagon.blogspot.com/2024/12/2024-roundup.html

Sent from my PGT-N19 using Tapatalk

 

Couple of shots from 7820s last couple of days left of its ticket.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk