EddieB

Those days (1980s), I also tended to shoot mainly in black & white. Here's a couple of "foreign" workings of DB locomotives from May 1981, two classes that I'm surprised haven't featured already. 103 on TEE stock at Basle Hauptbahnhof, Switzerland and 181 at Strasbourg, France.

Late to this thread, but some lovely photos and memories. Just a small request - could some locations and dates be edited in where absent? Some are obvious (station names), others inferred (Kornwestheim with the withdrawn E93/E94s?) - but helpful to know! Regarding the Dutch 1500 class (ex-BR EM2), I found them rather elusive. As with other NS electric classes, they were allocated nominally to Maastricht, which was where I mostly went looking but only once found one. As is clear from the photos, they tended to work on international trains out of Hoek van Holland!

Never should there be a service vehicle on the circuit while cars are still on track - the only exceptions being the safety car and the medical car attending an emergency. Flags or no flags, whatever speed Gasly was doing, there was no emergency requiring the deployment of a recovery vehicle before the track was clear of cars. Given the poor visibility and as the same circuit where Jules Bianchi was killed makes it totally inexcusable.

Point taken. One of the drawbacks of watching edited highlights is not knowing the actual time interval between things shown sequentially - in this case the chequered flag and the post-race interviews. Together with utter confusion in the commentary box, it came across as a complete muddle - and let’s face it, there is plenty of precedent for that.

If it was that clear and simple, then (as has been said) why did it take so long to “clarify” after the end of the race? With so many variables in play, it’s not surprising that even those conversant with the rules could be confused as to which permutation would be applied. When it became clear that the race would restart, and the time available, then the stewards should have known how points would be awarded - either from adherence to the rule book or having settled on a decision. They should then have communicated their decision, so that everyone - drivers, teams, commentators - knew what they were racing for as soon as they went into the restart procedure. The way things turned out, it smacked of another attempt to make the rules up “on the fly”, which clearly benefitted some more than others. That it turned out to the benefit of the same team and driver as the last attempt to make up rules as you go leaves something of a sour taste.

I can’t say that will happen. According to Lewis, last year Red Bull arrived at almost every race post-Silverstone with yet more upgrades. A lot happened in those races. Would the results have altered had teams been aware that sanctions were looming? As soon as you change something retrospectively, the whole subject of contingency arises. Trying to undo the resultant mess is too complex and I suspect the FIA are taking their time because they want to find a solution that doesn’t involve “losing face”. Questions of “fairness” are a secondary consideration. I bet they find a way to wriggle out, treating some of RB’s overspend as legitimately off the books. I have considered whether the FIA might even have decided to nullify the 2021 season. Max would be stripped of his title, but it wouldn’t be given to Lewis. However, I reckon that’s a step too far even for the FIA.

Internationally most countries applied names to locomotives in the early days - it was only as companies became bigger or state-organised that the practice waned. The United Kingdom is far from an exception (and let’s not forget that names were also frequently applied by the railways in Northern Ireland), as there are many places where locomotives (particularly top link) are routinely named - European examples have been given, but others include Malaysia, Nigeria and Australia.

I thought it was an absorbing qualifying, but a dull race - thanks to all the “impermanent way slacks”. I’m becoming rather jaded by the off-track rumours and politics, that basically comes down to which teams are the best cheats and most able to get away with it.

Yes it is the Spanish loco, the “adif” lettering is still discernible. Transfesa have taken on maintenance of the Adif 311 fleet - hardly a good advertisement! Here’s the loco before being vandalised: https://www.listadotren.es/galeria/verfoto.php?section=motor&id=15872

Roger - published material on Uganda Railways is quite rare. The book appears to be a "print on demand" edition(?), but there is no information about ordering, shipping, etc. I think there may be a few of us on "one of the IO Groups you frequent" that may be interested - perhaps in placing a combined order? (Had I known, I could have asked friends who visited "home" earlier this year).

The Uganda Railway (starting from Mombasa, Kenya) was built using labour, materials and original locomotives and rolling stock imported from India.

No, don’t tell me - introduce “smart circuits” where part of the track can be switched out and used as a breakdown lane in an emergency?

I didn't realise there was an observation point! HS1 is mostly surrounded by high security fencing. There are a couple of vantage points in the Dagenham Dock/Rainham area, but views aren't particular great for photography.

What's in a name? It's probably widely known that KTMB (Malaysia) gave names to their "most important" locomotives. In the steam era names were given to some 4-6-4Ts, Pacifics and Sentinel railcars. The practice was continued by naming main-line diesels. Whereas for steam, names were carried in Malay script on one side and English/Roman script on the other; diesels bore two name plates on each side, Malay at one end and English/Roman at the other. Full lists can be found on the web, but in summary the names follow a scheme by class: Class 20 (EE) - Flowers ("Bunga") Class 21 (Kisha Keiso Kasha) - Rivers ("Sungai") Class 22 (EE) - Places in West Malaysia Class 23 (Hitachi) - Virtues Class 24 (Toshiba) - National heroes Class 25 batch 1 (GM) - Islands ("Pulau") Class 25 batch 2 (GM) - Precious stones Class 26 (Bombardier/GE "blue tiger") - Capes/headlands ("Tanjung") Class 29 (Dalian) - Trees/types of wood While the names might appear prosaic, the "heroes" of class 24 include some who led uprisings against the British colonial rule. In particular 24104 "MAT SALLAH", which appears to be named for Datu Muhammad Salleh, a local chief from Sabah who led a rebellion against the British North Borneo Chartered Company at the close of the Victorian age. However the term "Mat Sallah" is also believed to be a corruption of "mad sailor" and is used as a derogatory term for "white people"! Here is a photo of 23103 "BERANI" ("Courageous") at Singapore in 1987.

So another instance where a safety car was called too late in the race to allow recovery and restart. When Ricciardo stopped on track (lap 46 out of 53) in a place where recovery was only possible with a tow truck, there should have been an immediate red flag. Why is it that the way these incidents are “managed” always seems to favour Red Bull? Well done to the other Dutchman, Nick DeVries - ahead of Wallman in qualifying and way ahead at the “finish”. A couple of points on debut, and in a Williams, to boot.

Farce on Saturday, farce on Sunday.

Yuk! https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/cricket-farm-london-ontario-1.6506606 Although the article implies that the protein source is intended as pet food, the World Economic Forum is advocating insects as a sustainable way of supporting a rising global population. I can’t see the rich elite that attend Davos being the first in line to try the yummy new recipes, however.

Should make for an interesting comparison with Latifi...

I don't see how it can always be "fair". It's one thing to penalise the driver responsible for bringing out a red/yellow flag during qualifying, another to fairly compensate drivers who may lose out as a result. (Which is why putting in an early "banker" lap is recognised as suitable insurance during qualifying). Obviously the same applies during the race itself, where an infringement may be punished by a time penalty, but if an innocent party has had their race ended or compromised, they still lose out - it's called "racing".

While on this subject, at the very least drivers should not be released from pit stops to change tyres while the SC procession is being routed through the pit lane. Whilst we may be sympathetic to George Russell, it's general risk was exemplified by the unsafe release of Sainz. If a stop is needed, the driver must be held until the entire procession has passed.

Going back to Spa and the hagiography (C4 and elsewhere) of Verstappen's mercurial slicing up through the field - can someone point out that when Jim Clark and Schumacher did similar they didn't have DRS and the turbulence reduction of the modern formula?

...so just leave it out on the circuit to force a safety car - we can’t let Mercedes win the race fairly.

Sounds like one of those “make my day” moments that you just have to share. Fantastic!

I'm losing interest. Ok, a driver's skill makes a big difference - I know he's quick, but I'm struggling to understand the widening gap between Max and the rest. It's compounded when those chasing manage to fall apart - Charles comprised by his team (if he doesn't throw it way himself), Lewis making an uncharacteristic error (surely he knows you can't win the race on the first lap, but you can certainly lose it) - it's like the season is over already. After last season's fiasco, I was hoping for a fair and competitive series of races this year.

Thanks - that would fit better with my suggestion that the move was from Preston Park rather than Clapham.