"Driver Sam and fireman Chris ready to work the 10:30 train with CSR No19"
Today I was rostered to drive at Statfold Barn but, unusually, it would be a turn that I hadn't worked before. The railway has gone through a lot of change in the past few years, transforming itself from Tamworth's best kept secret to a thriving entertainment's venue with a lot to offer. When I first started crewing at the SBR in 2012 (see picture), the railway opened a mere three Saturdays a year and that was your lot. Now, it's often open three days a week! Today's turn would be the SBR's now standard weekend steam offering, with all of Statfold's regular attractions: the museum, the railway, the soft play etc: open, plus a 45-minutely train service out of Oak Tree. One engine is steamed on these days, with more joining the roster on event weekends or of course for the ever popular enthusiast's days. I arrived at the SBR's base on the Ashby Road a little before our 07:30 booked sign on. Trudging across to the engine shed in pouring rain, I found our loco: CSR No19: standing in the shed doorway, with fireman Chris having just lit up. The shed door was brought down to keep the cab dry for now...
This foul morning was a stark contrast from the fair weather turns I've had of late. The rain was quite obnoxious and seemed determined to soak us through. Whilst Chris got up steam, I went around the engine with the oil cans and gave everything a check over and a top up. Our guard Barry and our duty officer Ian also joined us in the dry of the engine shed, with old Batesy also turning up to collect my freshly completed rules refresher. A little after 09:30, we got the 1914-built Hudswell Clarke on the move and proceeded down to collect the waiting ECS in platform two, via the signalbox. It was still raining well as guard Barry removed the scotches from the stock in readiness to give us the "right away" for Oak Tree. What a crap morning...
Leaving Statfold, we collected the token from Ian in the box and proceeded out into the saturated fields. The engine steamed easily as we trotted around the railway, carrying out the line inspection. Soon enough, we were screwed down at Oak Tree awaiting our first train at 10:30. I don't think any of us were expecting a stampede today...
The timetable on this job is steady but constant, with trains leaving Oak Tree every 45 minutes from 10:30 until 15:00. You depart Oak Tree for Statfold, where the engine runs round upon arrival, via the turntable. This gives the passengers a chance to grab some snaps and see the engine moving without being on the train. The train then departs Statfold for Oak Tree via Cogan Halt, taking in the entirety of the 2ft route. (Should the need dictate, there is also an optional 15:45 train, which works the bottom half of the railway only. Thanks to the weather however, this wouldn't be patronised today so we didn't work it). All three of our first three trains had but three passengers aboard, which was no surprise thanks to the heavy rain. Thankfully the indoor areas seemed busier. Below, Chris readies No19 for departure from Statfold with the 11:15 ex-Oak Tree. At this point the rain was just starting to let up for us...
Here, a slowly drying out CSR No19 stands on the turntable on our 12:00 train as the electric motor spins her around. The premises of Statfold Seed Oil can be seen adjacent to the table as the Hudswell moves around...
The 12:45 was a fair bit busier and No19 is seen here waiting at Oak Tree...
The sun was even out as we prepared to leave Statfold on this one!...
For the 13:30 and the 14:15 trips I decided to swap with Chris, who took over the regulator whilst I did the firing. No19 is a chunky lump with plenty of power on offer, meaning that it's hard to keep the thing quiet if you over-fire. Therefore, I elected to run the pressure at around the 120/130psi mark (full pressure 160psi), giving myself some leeway against the Ramsbottom safety valves fitted in the cab. (You can end up with a sauna if you're not careful!). Running the pressure lower allowed me to keep the engine quiet whilst keeping the grate covered. You need to be careful with this one as she'll let you fire too thin and keep steaming but of course it doesn't do the firebox any good. No19 is of course a Leeds product but worked for Colonial Sugar Refining in Fiji, alongside the larger No11 (also based at Statfold and now wearing the name "Fiji"). It's a nice engine to take out and always does a good job...
"The road ahead on the fireman's side"
For the well patronised 15:00 train I was back on the regulator and, much to our satisfaction, most of the seats aboard our two ex-Tynedale coaches were taken. No19 is seen here waiting to depart for Statfold with what would be our final trip...
Having worked the 15:00, we returned to Oak Tree where the passengers alighted and waved us goodbye. When nobody turned up for the 15:45, we closed the gate and Barry duly gave us a final "right away" with the ECS for Statfold. Having turned on the table one last time, No19 was taken back up to the engine shed for disposal. Chris had thankfully ran the fire down well and the little diesel shunter was soon dragging the Hudswell back into the shed with a quiet fire, a capped chimney and a full pot of water. It was nice to spend the day with Chris. We grew up together in a way, somewhere not far from here. Thankfully these days we're at pastures new, but it's nice to keep in touch at Statfold. I must thank Barry, Chris and Ian for their company today and for a nice, easy day driving. Thanks all for reading as usual...
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