(Pendennis) Castle on The Hill - Stalling & Sliding at the Churnet Valley Steam Gala 2024

[@SimonGrego]

I was part of that crew, the pressure relief valve on the inside cylinder opened, and put a lot of atomised oil down to the track, and cause her to slip. The driver did his best to recover, and when we came to a stand, the loco was in top dead centre, so we had to roll back a little bit. From this point forward, the driver concentrated on the regulator and reverser, and i was operating the leading sanders. Once we were on the move, the driver had full control, and kept the momentum going, rather than trying for out and out speed. He did an excellent job in recovering the situation. The firemen (2 on board) also worked hard and well, and we estimated that they shovelled about two tons of coal, to get to the top of the bank. Recovering a train, on a 1 in 40 incline with 6 on, is not easy with a big wheeled express loco.

[@iskra1234]

It was undoubtedly the right decision to concentrate on maintaining traction rather than going for speed. Excellent job getting the loco going again, and thank you for the spectacular entertainment!

[@volvomad]

Was it fixed on arrival at the next stop or removed from service for repairs?

[@hellotractor4772]

Bet the fireman couldn’t shovel it in quick enough

[@iskra1234]

It continued in service on the flatter section of the line without incident for the rest of the day

[@7007GreatWestern]

Thanks for taking the time to explain to us the issues you encountered and the steps you took to manage a very difficult situation. All sorts of people can speculate from the comfort of their armchairs but you were actually there and *know* what happened. . Sounds like excellent Enginemanship. Well done!

[@crompton33022]

Thank you for sharing with us. A great performance overall.

[@steveevans6241]

I've driven a couple of big steam locos under different conditions & the melding of man & machine is difficult to achieve so the crew did very well here it's a real art keeping things going in circumstances like these.

[@davidcrc9155]

The last time i went up this branch line was behind a Fowler 4MT 2-6-4 Tank loco on one of the best railtours I've ever expirienced, 'The Stafforshire Potter' circa 1966/67. We had 5 old LMS coaches, porthole type.

[@iskra1234]

That’s a wonderful memory thanks for sharing!

[@duck1946]

Well handled loco good job done! Love the stack talk!!

[@pjd7325]

Nice to hear the usual "Experts" commenting on the Crew and locomotive performance. It does seam to be leaking a lot of steam from the front end for a recently overhauled locomotive

[@doughunt9621]

As the steam from the cylinders apeared to reduce considerably at the end of the video, I would suggest that the cylinder drain cocks were open for much of the climb, then closed at the summit.

[@316CactusJack]

Anything that comes out of didcot does that, the star, 6023, this

[@Gary-cvr23]

No wonder we were waiting for her for ages at apesford she also delayed one of the s160s for what seemed like ages awsome footage too

[@markburgess4528]

Good recovery but when it started slowing down, was the regulator wide open? I did hear any increase in the exhaust noise. Also no sanders? Edit. Always wondered how a 3 or 4 cylinder engine can get stuck TDC.

[@james426able1]

I can't see the staff behind the scenes re inviting the castle back the gradients are too steep for the old girl 😅

[@wgj4813]

This is what steam rides are all about lots of steam and sound and the occasional unexpected "bonus?"

[@iskra1234]

Couldn't agree more!

[@robertmarshall6578]

Wow - what a slog for this express loco! Excellent video. I'm intrigued to know what the crew were preoccupied with during the climb, hanging out of the cab and staring downwards - injector? sanders? just hoping for no more slipping?

[@maartendelandmeter7705]

finding a way to see the track and signals into the mist from the leaking glants, leaky bump!