Gilling August 2012
Entry posted by London cambrian
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I really am getting worse at this! If anyone is looking for an excuse for my lateness, just started my A-levels!
But anyway. The bank holiday weekend of august sees the annual second mainline rally at gilling rilway. The weather looked iffy but still we persevered!
Due to previous other reasons for which i shall leave space here to insert excuses [ ] , we didnt get our names in the running roster for the weekend. So, we would turn up to gilling with no guarentee of even a run, but no matter, we were taking the coaches for only their second run as a full set.
That didnt matter, it soon conspired that as at all rallies, engine inevitably fail and ther is always cover duties to be had. Arriving at about 9, yes thats a 3 hours drive, getting up at 5 to go play trains, only having had 4 hours sleep!
Most our first day was spent helping out elsewhere, amainline rally cannot run without an army of helpers! So, yard duties and generally lazing around watching the trains go by! That and getting the coaches out and ensuring all was right with them.
So, anyway, a large collection of some of the finest 5 inch gaugelocomtoives was ssembled in the weekend, some 40 of them, many of them belonging to good friends of mine, and an equally superb collection of wagons and coaches.
Day two dawned bright, though not hugely encouraging as the day wore on, becoming wet at times, but all in all a fantastic sunday. Its never good when a loco fails, but my friends electric loco failure mean we got some turns! Covering for a loco thats a good deal more powerful than your own can provide its challanges!
One of the most challenging turns on the rally is E pilot, or the bunker pilot. Overnight all rolling stock is put away in a massive 6 road 25metre long underground bunker, with the consequent graded headshunt to reach it. The bunker houses the resident 13 mk 1 set, and 2 or 3 lines of wagons when the rally is on, but is full to the rafters over the rally weekend. The bunker pilot is a very busy turn in the early morning, from 8 am onwards. Our turn, around 10 30 was when the last runs of wagons are pulled out. Our little engine was rostered for the turn and proved itself amicably. Pulling not only our rake of coaches with tail traffic up the two 1:100 gradients, no mean feat in itself, then pulling 39 wagons, including 10 loaded out the bunker, and up into theyard above. If ever i could be proud of a loco that was a moment!
The rest of the turn passed un eventfully, ending about half 11. Returning to shed, taking the yard pilot with us, a well used little Y4 dock tank, a favourite amongst many mebers!
a second turn just after lunch on a down goods had us back into the up yardby mid afternoon to run our final turn of turn of the day, yet again the E pilot! During the day this is an uneventful turn, more a standby duty, occasionally fetching carriages to the bunker. The Previous engine, an apple green V2 had tripped over to the up yard on a transfer working, and we were booked to accompany it back to erimus yard, with the return steel train, where he was due to terminate, and return to the MPD, which is right back to the up yard. Considering i was going over there, i woukld take the steel train, a train of about 3o wagon lengths, but mostly heavy bogie wagons, only bout 15 of, but still a very heavy load. Doubting my ability to pull out the apple tree siding with the train, we set the train down on the V2, and without its assistance in the end, pulled out the steel train, and tripped it to erimus yard. Thats was all the excitement over though really! There had been muttering of a night run but rain bout 5pm put paid to that!
So, yet again the final day dawned bright. Our only turn was a late bunker turn and a the scotch goods, not worth getting up for when last day usually winds down about 3!
It did give me the opportunity for some slightly more artistic shots! The early morning light does wonders on wagons! Not ideal as it transpired, though i would love to see some of the phots my mate Kempenfelt took, he hasnt been decent enough to share them yet 
;)
So, with no booked turns (it turns out the one i did have had been covered already), and seeing noone was covering the duty, thought i'd try my hand at a bit of Yard master! The down yard is the smallest of the yards, but has 2 pilots that dweal with freight trains and any train alterations in the platforms. So in actual terms is quite a busy yard. Many activities involve a bit of light shunting wuith the pilot, organising the odd pic up freight. Removin vans from the rear of trains to collect in the yard to trip over to the up yard to form an up fish train later. It all has significance. But yet again, it turned very wet late on, and rain stopped play, some people carrie on running, but it all got a little shambolic as stok wasnt where it should be and loco failures. Playing yard master is a great way to spend a rally, a sense of control is great in the melay that is a mainline rally! So it is, that this idiot has got himself invited back by a ryedale club commitee member to run a yard next year!
It was my intention to limit the words on this post but ah well! so if you've taken the time to read, thank you! Anyway, hopefully you enjoy the pics from the huge variety of rolling stock and activity that was there. Please feel free to comment, GL5 mebers ay hello, and if you wish you are welcome to come along to the next event in May!
Cheers all
Mark
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