apropos of nothing and NG | Vital Football

apropos of nothing and NG

jokerman

Vital Football Hero
My wife and I took the grandchildren (girl 4, boy 3) on the pumpkin train yesterday. Ten mile round trip up the north shore of Lake Superior on the local heritage railway to a pumpkin "patch" where the kids select pumpkins to take home for carving. (Non-rail buffs/enthusiasts look away now). It's a five or six car rake with a diesel electric loco at each end to obviate the need for run-arounds and couplings, although they've got the loops to do that if they want to. (Back to the story). Well, we go to pick up the tickets and a former student of mine is on duty. He's an excellent Political Science major, but when I asked him why he wanted to come to UMD back at the start of his career, he straight out said he wanted to volunteer on the railroad. Hi Prof, he says, wanna ride in the cab? (Americans talk like that). Rather, I said (English talk like that). My wife thought the grand kids might be scared, but that was a chance I was prepared to take. So up the ladders the four of us climb and sit with the engineer in the front of an air-break chuffing, two tone horn honking, 3600 diesel horsepower generating 2600 Kw 1966 General Motors locomotive. It was absolutely brilliant. I was amazed at the protocols the crew go through for switches/points and stopping all under the control of the conductor -a young woman in full uniform who looked about 22. The kids had a great time -first ever train ride and they're up in the cab. Perfect day!

Here she is
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Northern_400
 
I did once get a ride in a train drivers cab in the UK we were wishing to carry a whole load of kitchen tiles from a shop right next to one station to our home which at the time was in South London right next too another station. The driver allowed us illegally I am sure to travel in his cab with the tiles thus meaning we would not have to carry them down the underpass. While it was only a standard electric train call me a big kid. I enjoyed it .
 
Bit jealous. Who doesn't love a great big train? Steam especially. They had an event up at the York Railway Museum where you could stand on the footplate of the Mallard and chat to an engineer. Got quite emotional.
 
Nice story. Someone I know works for Southeastern as a train driver, when the high speed was introduced I was in the cab for one of the many test runs they have to do. Went to St Pancas and back from Gillingham. Very interesting
 
As a youngster back in the early fifties I spent hours train spotting and some years later while at Liverpool ST. station waiting for the train to take me back to base in East Anglia I came across a Britannia class engine that had just arrived and got chatting to the driver.
He invited me into the cab and after the carriages had departed he said I could ride with them to the turntable just outside the station and back onto the next set of carriages which would then form the train I was waiting for to Norwich.
The engine was the BLACK PRINCE, it was a wonderful experience, a day to remember.
 
Great story Jokerman. Railways are in my blood to the extent I'm actually writing a book on the subject to be published around the end of the year/early next year. It deals with the lines from Lancaster to Morecambe and Heysham.
 
Great story Jokerman. Railways are in my blood to the extent I'm actually writing a book on the subject to be published around the end of the year/early next year. It deals with the lines from Lancaster to Morecambe and Heysham.
WK, perhaps with your knowledge of railways in the North West perhaps you could throw some light on a subject that I could not find on google some while ago.
When I was trainspotting at Kirkham with it's four tracks leading from Preston to Blackpool in the summer months, trains from Scotland to Blackpool I was told arrived in the vicinity of Preston then somehow circled around the town before heading west to the coast, but have not had much luck in finding out on line the route they took around Preston. Can you shed any light on this query.
 
My wife and I took the grandchildren (girl 4, boy 3) on the pumpkin train yesterday. Ten mile round trip up the north shore of Lake Superior on the local heritage railway to a pumpkin "patch" where the kids select pumpkins to take home for carving. (Non-rail buffs/enthusiasts look away now). It's a five or six car rake with a diesel electric loco at each end to obviate the need for run-arounds and couplings, although they've got the loops to do that if they want to. (Back to the story). Well, we go to pick up the tickets and a former student of mine is on duty. He's an excellent Political Science major, but when I asked him why he wanted to come to UMD back at the start of his career, he straight out said he wanted to volunteer on the railroad. Hi Prof, he says, wanna ride in the cab? (Americans talk like that). Rather, I said (English talk like that). My wife thought the grand kids might be scared, but that was a chance I was prepared to take. So up the ladders the four of us climb and sit with the engineer in the front of an air-break chuffing, two tone horn honking, 3600 diesel horsepower generating 2600 Kw 1966 General Motors locomotive. It was absolutely brilliant. I was amazed at the protocols the crew go through for switches/points and stopping all under the control of the conductor -a young woman in full uniform who looked about 22. The kids had a great time -first ever train ride and they're up in the cab. Perfect day!

Here she is
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Northern_400

I of course , would have been disappointed not to have sampled the turntable.
 
Great story Jokerman. Railways are in my blood to the extent I'm actually writing a book on the subject to be published around the end of the year/early next year. It deals with the lines from Lancaster to Morecambe and Heysham.

Excellent!!
You've got to interview me -I can just about remember riding the Heysham electrics and Scale Hall station opening. The electrics ran from Heysham Harbour right past the Catholic primary school I was at for seven months then into Morecambe Promenade, back out to Morecambe Euston Road, then over to Lancaster Green Ayre, and then up past Saint George's Quay to Castle Station. Green outside and dark wood longways seating inside -that's all I can remember
so no need to interview. There's a good book on the Little Northwest with stories about the postwar day trippers from Yorkshire to Morecambe aka Bradford-on-Sea in those days.
 
I of course , would have been disappointed not to have sampled the turntable.

They don't have one. The big locos' are usually single-ended but operated in sets (up to four engines at the front and two at the back on the big ore trains) with a cab facing each way. When they do need to turn they use a big triangle set up.
TMI, I know.
 
Excellent!!
You've got to interview me -I can just about remember riding the Heysham electrics and Scale Hall station opening. The electrics ran from Heysham Harbour right past the Catholic primary school I was at for seven months then into Morecambe Promenade, back out to Morecambe Euston Road, then over to Lancaster Green Ayre, and then up past Saint George's Quay to Castle Station. Green outside and dark wood longways seating inside -that's all I can remember
so no need to interview. There's a good book on the Little Northwest with stories about the postwar day trippers from Yorkshire to Morecambe aka Bradford-on-Sea in those days.
That's just about the book with additions such as Poulton Lane Station replaced by Euston Road. Middleton Lane Halt near Heysham golf course and the extensive Trimpell refinery sidings as well as pictures of Northumberland Street station on the site of the current station, which was moved brick by brick to build Promenade station. Marvellous.
 
Great story Jokerman. Railways are in my blood to the extent I'm actually writing a book on the subject to be published around the end of the year/early next year. It deals with the lines from Lancaster to Morecambe and Heysham.

" In this week's final book review we take a look at the second offering from new author Wayne Kerr. Following on from his hugely successful 'TWAT! - Message Boards And Me', a gripping, no holes barred account about life on football forums, Kerr shows his softer side with ' Meet Me at Heysham' a wonderful account of the finest line in the North West. Kerr captures the reader brilliantly, with a heady mix of fun tinged with melancholy, will we ever get back to the golden years of train travel? Aside from a slight slump half way through, when Kerr goes on a rant about someone called Steve Lovell and his 'stuff of promotion' away form this is a must have book for any railway enthusiast or Charlton fan. 4/5. '
 
" In this week's final book review we take a look at the second offering from new author Wayne Kerr. Following on from his hugely successful 'TWAT! - Message Boards And Me', a gripping, no holes barred account about life on football forums, Kerr shows his softer side with ' Meet Me at Heysham' a wonderful account of the finest line in the North West. Kerr captures the reader brilliantly, with a heady mix of fun tinged with melancholy, will we ever get back to the golden years of train travel? Aside from a slight slump half way through, when Kerr goes on a rant about someone called Steve Lovell and his 'stuff of promotion' away form this is a must have book for any railway enthusiast or Charlton fan. 4/5. '
You forgot to review my earlier books 'Smell my finger - Confessions of a Proctologist' or my countless reviews of mens' skin products.
 
You forgot to review my earlier books 'Smell my finger - Confessions of a Proctologist' or my countless reviews of mens' skin products.

I didn't think I was allowed to mention ' EXFOLIATE!! EXFOLIATE!!' after the legal challenge from the Dr Who fan club. I thought a Dalek with a face mask on the front cover was obvious as to what the content entailed but apparently not
 
My wife and I took the grandchildren (girl 4, boy 3) on the pumpkin train yesterday. Ten mile round trip up the north shore of Lake Superior on the local heritage railway to a pumpkin "patch" where the kids select pumpkins to take home for carving. (Non-rail buffs/enthusiasts look away now). It's a five or six car rake with a diesel electric loco at each end to obviate the need for run-arounds and couplings, although they've got the loops to do that if they want to. (Back to the story). Well, we go to pick up the tickets and a former student of mine is on duty. He's an excellent Political Science major, but when I asked him why he wanted to come to UMD back at the start of his career, he straight out said he wanted to volunteer on the railroad. Hi Prof, he says, wanna ride in the cab? (Americans talk like that). Rather, I said (English talk like that). My wife thought the grand kids might be scared, but that was a chance I was prepared to take. So up the ladders the four of us climb and sit with the engineer in the front of an air-break chuffing, two tone horn honking, 3600 diesel horsepower generating 2600 Kw 1966 General Motors locomotive. It was absolutely brilliant. I was amazed at the protocols the crew go through for switches/points and stopping all under the control of the conductor -a young woman in full uniform who looked about 22. The kids had a great time -first ever train ride and they're up in the cab. Perfect day!

Here she is
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Northern_400

Hi

I have an amateur DVD of the last days of the Morecambe electrics. I'll see if I can copy it or get hold of another one for you.

Cheers
 
I have nothing to add on Lancashire trains but cannot resist promting a youtube video created by a friend. This was a work of love to recreate a lost line remembered from childhood.