Top Driver Today - Awesome Departure | Bridgwater Flask Wednesday 18th Feb 2015

Having not ran for over a week, it was nice to know that the Bridgwater Flask was running today with locos 37402 and 37409 at the helm.
With a lovely sunny day, albeit chilly and a tad windy, it was great weather to go down to the station and film the shunting and the departure.
Different shots today, all from the station platform and a top class departure from our driver today......many thanks for that, much appreciated by all of us at Bridgy.

[@cdresser7175]

Impressive machines, look very powerful.

[@jw4620]

Magnificent as always!

[@MervynPartin]

Over 8 years since you uploaded this video and it has only just appeared on my home page, despite my interest in railways and the nuclear industry! Well done You Tube algorithm 🤣 Nevertheless, a most enjoyable video.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

And I have no idea why it was this one that has gone mad! I used to go down most weeks back then

[@chrishardy7728]

Same here lol

[@tamar5261]

Same here 😊

[@thevauxhallman7157]

Yet again, same here.

[@Lookup2Wakeup]

Note to self when buying a property: check it's not next to a nuclear flask distribution centre........😁

[@558vulcanxh]

I was thinking just what a good choice they made 😊

[@sausagefingers2885]

.... However... You might get a great bargain on the home and enjoy the diesel clag in the evening

[@paulknapper3633]

😂😂😂😂😂😂☠️

[@Mog435]

My thoughts too ! 😬

[@roycolvile]

If you've seen the video I show my students, of the train crash arranged to test those flasks, you might feel quite safe living near there... with the cost and affordability of buying a house suitably adjusted if other potential buyers are more worried about this.

[@roboftherock]

KZbin's infamous algorithm threw this one into my recommended list today. Yes, that was a tolerably smart and considerate departure. I have to say I'm surprised yours was the only camera on PL2 covering the moves.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

I'm sure there would have been others there but everyone tended to be over on the other platform. I used to prefer being right up next to them. Hardly go down anymore nowadays.

[@Gwril76]

I'm a big fan of these films Steve. This footage was awesome ! Cheers for sharing 😃

[@Gus0898uk]

Ah Ah, the sound of a 37 thrash, it reminds me of the happy days in Norfolk on the Norwich-Lowestofts.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

There aren't many better sounds than the 37.

[@dieselmanmike]

Another nice bit of shunting then the 'eruption' at the end, great stuff !

[@robmasterman]

That departure was well worth waiting for Steve.....great weather for your visit....excellent production...Bob

[@peter15871]

great video

[@crosscountry170]

Lovely. Nice and early through Brum today too. Dan

[@TRSPomerania]

What a beautiful locos they are. My favourite if it comes to UK's types. And the reason is at the back ofthe video :) Awesome departure, great sound and visual effects! Thumbs up straight away :) Cheers from Poland!

[@Mark1024MAK]

Well, having spent a large chunk of time in a cab of a 37 during a cold winter night, I can confirm the heaters work lovely 😀

[@TrevorLedgeway]

Super Thrash again from those lovely Class 37s Steve,Great Stuff......Trevor.''

[@runways_railways]

Great quality video. Nicely filmed 👍

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Thank you

[@jeanmcginlay2363]

Like the boot applied to see if the point changed!😂😂😂😂😂

[@barriejowett2412]

Excellent Video 👍👍👍👍👍

[@runways_railways]

Great video!! So I have subscribed to your channel

[@frankyjayhay]

We didn't see his thermos flask. Great filming though, steady and highly detailed.

[@daveelliott5855]

great to see the old 37s at my home station, used to watch this going on when i was a kid hearing the grunt from those engines was fab but two 37s seems a bit over kill love this

[@daveelliott5855]

thanks for that info, never gave that a thought

[@BornLate56]

Isn't there a rule that all flask transports must be double-headed, in case one breaks down?

[@johnbarthram2761]

Double heading a freightliner up Brentwood bank working hard pure raw sound and power, great days.

[@johnbarthram2761]

Superb locomotive the class 37 the noise of there engine takes me right back to Stratford East London when I was a secondman in the 70s.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Watched many a 37 go through Stratford in my youth........many years ago now unfortunately

[@johnbarthram2761]

@SteveSmithRailways true steve, to long ago sadly.

[@thomasshepard6030]

I could have driven either of these37s when I was a fireman out of eastfield traction depot springburn Glasgow 1974 as DRS bought a few of the class 37s from eastfield depot and refurbished them and another strange twist of fate my older brother ended up a driver with DRS moving the nuclear flasks about out of sellafield nuclear ☢️ power station so he probably drove the same 37s that I drove 30 years before I was 19 years old at the time 1974 my older brother was in the RAF at the time so when he came out the RAF after 22 years he became a train driver and ended up driving for DRS it’s a strange old world

[@banksroadmodernimage7358]

Classic video steve👍👌👌

[@SteveSmithRailways]

The old ones are the best

[@banksroadmodernimage7358]

Good old train spotting days were best they could be @@SteveSmithRailways

[@stephenpowell5912]

Wow Great video and Fab sounds from a Class 37 Double Header also ,Great locomotives under Privatisation ownership ,Glad to see they have life in them after 60 odd years ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@SteveSmithRailways]

This was 8 years ago but there's still some 37s left but their days on the flask train have long gone

[@558vulcanxh]

Privatisation is the worse thing that ever happened to our once publicly owned assets, BR looked after everything very well on a shoestring budget 😡

[@richardturpin5958]

Jaw dropping! This give train-spotting it's reputation as being for anoraks. Beam me up Scotty!!

[@rogerwolstenholme2710]

A small Banquet for 37 lovers...... Thank You !!

[@SteveSmithRailways]

The good times..

[@therealsharps]

awesome. no other word

[@SteveSmithRailways]

totally agree

[@antman09ful1]

Yes it was Steve. Regards Mike.

[@johnbrown9092]

Nice video

[@Crewecabking]

Lovely day for it

[@toonmag50]

These old British locomotives look like what i imagine locomotives to look like.- chisel jawed power Unlike the modern Canadian and orher imported locos which look like under powered sideboards on wheels .

[@SteveSmithRailways]

There are still some going strong after all these years on the mainline but they dont do this job anymore

[@andyfreeman7395]

Ah, reminds me of the Sunday evening double header returning along the north Wales coast. Load 13, tight schedule, now they were some departures. Don't think the Chester drivers hung around 😊

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Bet that was a great sound

[@jamiew1664]

i find train vids really cool andy, but i dont know much about trains mate, what does a double header mean? is that coz theres two engines at the front im guessing? why do they do that?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

@@jamiew1664 Correct, 2 engines together are called 'double headers'. Why do they need 2? because this is carrying waste nuclear rods, so not something you want stranded on the main line, hence they'll have 2 locos incase 1 should fail. I have on one occassion seen a single loco many years ago but 99.99% of the time it will always be 2.

[@jamiew1664]

Steve, ive been a chef for 25 years now, but as a kid i had a dream of being a train driver, and i kind of still have that dream. Although its probably too late now as im 44, but i love to watch train videos on youtube. Especially videos with a view from the cab, is there any way that a guy like me could ever take a trip on a train riding in the cab??? how could i possibly try and make this happen? Its just that ive been fascinated with trains ever since i was a small boy, but ive never really explored my fascination, apart from watching youtube videos. @@SteveSmithRailways

[@SteveSmithRailways]

@@jamiew1664 Maybe 30 years ago you may have been lucky and got in the cab...... too many H&S regs now to even think about it. I have a few contacts and the last cab ride I had was back in Feb 2009.......there is a playlist I think on here that I did and filmed it, with us failing on the West Coast Main Line. Typically, my battery died so never got to show the end but we were recovered by the rescue/thunderbird loco at Preston and brought back to Preston where the rescue loco detached and I ended up having to catch a Pendo back to London. Still, great memories to have.

[@laurencecope7083]

They used to come past my back garden when I lived in weston super mare.

[@john1703]

That is where those two went on their way to Cumbria.

[@edwardmcdermott2672]

What station is this located at please? Also is this a weekly occurrence? Daily occurrence? Or a monthly occurrence? Ed

[@john1703]

Bridgwater, Somerset. Such an occurrence (moving 2 flasks) would be approximately monthly.

[@neumoi3324]

Weekdays awesome about this?

[@keithdeley7236]

Why is this Departure awesome

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Back then, we used to have a few drivers who didn't like the enthusiasts on the station, so pulled away slowly. This day was not the case.

[@PaulNiblett]

Does this happen every Wednesday? Great video!

[@SteveSmithRailways]

It's actually got a path in the network every day Mon - Fri and can run any day. Back then, it did seem to run very often on a Wednesday, which was handy as that was my day off. Nowadays it runs whenever and can run more than once a week. Unfortunately, I dont get chance to go down anymore.

[@user-ol9wu7bl3c]

Is it on it's way to Sellafield?

[@TRAlNVlDEOS]

I think it would go to Crewe and then Sellafield the next morning, it still runs just sadly not with 37s anymore

[@stu176mmm]

Two locomotives ..... what weight is in those flasks?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Not huge amounts....it's what's in them is the reason for two locomotives. They have two incase one of them fails and therefore allowing the consist to continue and not be stranded on a main line. Spent nuclear rods isn't sumut you'd want hanging around!

[@FaZeAkimo]

Where is this? Looks nice

[@125crezzerig6]

FaZeAkimo Bridgwater

[@SassyToll]

How heavy are those trucks!! 😮

[@SteveSmithRailways]

around 50 tonnes

[@chrsrwlns]

Great video, but why are there 2 locos to pull just 2 trucks? They can't be THAT heavy.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

See reply from same question answered below

[@richardhancock2771]

How is it the second loco moves but nobody in it how does this work plz

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Its done by multiple working. The rear loco is connected to the front, so the driver basically has control of both. On occassions, the rear loco is just couple up and non connected in multiple and only used if the front loco fails, hence why there's always two, due to the nature of the working.

[@PhilMacVee]

"Top Driver Today", how? "Awesome Departure"? What did I miss? Please explain to me what awesome means when two class 37s pull two Flasks when the light goes green!

[@webmuir]

I was wondering this. I’d love to see what sort of chaos the normal lesser drivers cause if this marks him out as a top driver.😁

[@raylp4751]

Did he just kick the junction into place?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Yeh, they often do that to make sure the blade has fully gone over

[@djrichylaurence8991]

Didn't know they were still using Deltics even in 2015. 😮

[@allancawleys.trains9917]

ITS NOT A DELTIC !!

[@DaveTheTrain]

Deltics are class 55s and haven't been used for many decades (except preservation and tours). The video features class 37s which are still being used on the network although their use is slowly diminishing over the years.

[@davidpearson6011]

Were in the Uk is this

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Bridgwater, Somerset

[@sidscrote7570]

Whats in those "flasks" ?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Nuclear waste rods

[@sidscrote7570]

Ok , I thought it was something nasty!@@SteveSmithRailways

[@PaulNiblett]

@@sidscrote7570What makes you think they ain’t nasty!!!! Go and hold onto a rod!!

[@theotherandrew5540]

Two Deltics to move just two wagons? A bit expensive isn’t it.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

There is always 2 locos incase 1 should fail as its moving nuclear waste.... not something you would want stranded on a main line. The consist can be either a single wagon twin or triple. On this occasion is was two.

[@theotherandrew5540]

@@SteveSmithRailways ok, thank you.

[@tomt9543]

They’ve got the same throaty growl as an old Cat D9 bulldozer! Loved it!

[@2760ade]

They're class 37s surely, not Deltics?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

@@2760ade I think he may be taking the mickey

[@jonathanmoss5328]

Why two locos?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

As it's a nuclear flask train, a 2nd loco is in the consist incase of failure of the leading loco. It allows the train to continue its journey. It's not a load that you would want blocking the main line with fast trains around .

[@animaltvi9515]

Does a nuclear flask keep your tea really teally hot ? I've only got a thermos flask.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

try it and see.....it might be your last cuppa!

[@hoofie2002]

No security since you need a place like Sellafield to open the flasks without instantly killing yourself.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

plenty of security whilst its in the holding area.

[@MichaelBeeny]

It's all so painfully slow.

[@SteveSmithRailways]

5mph speed in the yard.

[@grahamlait1969]

Beauty is definitely in the eye of the beholder here if the comments below are to be believed, because all I'm seeing is a couple of old diesels, one of which doesn't seem to be working and the other of which is spewing out a lot of filthy fumes, faffing about in sidings with all of one wagon to deal with between them, finally sloping off gently in the direction of away.... What am I missing?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Lol. If you're not a rail enthusiast and a class 37 fan then watching this video is pointless. It'll only appeal to those. Thanks for commenting though.

[@topcat4643]

Not sure what was happening, a lot of shunting and b*ggering about

[@SteveSmithRailways]

It's the nuclear flask train. Its reversed into the yard and into the compound. Once done, the locos pull the wagon/s out then run round so that they then reverse back out onto the main line ready to depart back to Crewe

[@volpeverde6441]

don't they ever wash these trains....

[@SteveSmithRailways]

Every now and again I would imagine but certainly not regular as they were workhorses and most probably only went back to the depot for routine work and if lucky, they got a wash!

[@ronnieg6358]

Why two locos?

[@SteveSmithRailways]

There is always 2 locos incase 1 should fail as its moving nuclear waste.... not something you would want stranded on a main line. The consist can be either a single wagon twin or triple. On this occasion is was two.