The life of a Trainee Fireman - Part 2

This blog should have been published last year, at the end of March, so all references refer to last March!

So today’s training turn was somewhat different to a normal training turn!  As Bryony eluded to in her last blog, I was lucky enough to secure a training turn on one of the afternoon “race trains”.

It was so nice to have a book on time of 1330, and not 0615, although this did mean that I had to go to work first for a couple of hours before booking on at the railway.  I was, however, very careful to ensure that I did not exceed a 12 hour working day.

My afternoon started as soon as I booked on. The early afternoon crew had to put a warming fire into the standby loco, which, for me, meant lighting up 35006, P&O.  I was looking forward to this, because although I am right handed, I naturally fire with a left handed action, so firing a Southern engine, where the fireman stands on the opposite side of the footplate, is far more natural to me.

Firing a Western loco is not natural to me, given my prefered left handed technique

After doing all the checks on the loco (it was already warm from having had a warming fire put in it the day before), it was time to light her up.  Every fireman will tell you the “correct” way to light up a loco (wood first then the coal or coal first then the wood then more coal), but in truth, so long as you reach the correct pressure at the correct time, there is no right or wrong way, just different! My personal preference is wood first, then coal.

It was just at about this time that our loco that we would be taking to Cheltenham and back (7820, Dinmore Manor) arrived back on shed.  After a quick handover chat with the outgoing crew, it was nearly time to take our loco and 8 empty carriages to Cheltenham Racecourse.

The journey to Cheltenham was non stop, which meant no stopping at Winchcombe or Gotherington, to give the fireman a chance to look at the fire and sort any issues before moving off again.  Once we arrived at Cheltenham, we did the “Racecourse Shuffle” so that the trains were in the right order to depart after the last race.

7820 Dinmore Manor stands at Cheltenham Racecourse, waiting to depart for Toddington

One of the interesting things with an afternoon race train is that by the time we are ready to depart, it has turned dark, which means we have to use lamps to communicate, not flags and arms!  As I am a trainee, my trainer, Jamie, thought it would be a good idea to test me on what light signal I would get from the guard for various instructions.  I am pleased to say that I got them all right, with the odd bit of coaching.  As I say, lamp working is not something we do a lot on our railway, so it is good to be tested now and again!  There is something mystical about being on a loco in the dark.  Not least, the fact that the train appears to be going a lot faster, although a quick glance at the speedo soon confirms that we are not!

Dark and blurred, we were really flying (at 22mph!)

The race trains are a great way for the railway to kick start the season, both in terms of crewing, as there are plenty of turns to go around, and financially, as it is always very well supported.

I am pleased to say that we arrived on time in Toddington, with no issues along the way, and a train load of very happy, some may say merry(!) passengers!

Although tired, I booked off, looking forward to my next training turn.  I wouldn't have to wait too long for my turn, as in fact I had another one just two days later!  More on that another time

Thanks for reading

Tom