Gala Weekend is here!!! Virtually!

The weekend has arrived and, in typical GWsR Diesel Gala fashion, the Saturday is wet!! However, with this years' virtual Gala you don't even need to leave the comfort of your own home!

To be honest, I think we would all prefer to be firing up the locos and preparing for a full day of action packed fun on the line, but we still hope you will enjoy the virtual show that the Gala and Social Media Team have slaved over. I hope you will all raise a pint (or whatever else is your tipple - even if its just a mug of tea) to the efforts that the team have made.

English Electric heaven from last years' Gala. 

Most of today's events are taking place on our Social Media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and on our Website. All the links are below -

GWsR Main website - https://www.gwsr.com/Virtual_Diesel_Gala_Sat_25th_July_and_Sun_26th_July--post--91.html

GWsR Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/gloucestershirewarwickshirerailway/

GWsR Twitter - https://twitter.com/GWSR


We have already seen the completion of the Favourite Visiting Diesel showdown with the Class 50 Fund's 50035 'Ark Royal' seeing off all and sundry and taking the crown. Class 42 'Warship' D832 'Onslaught' came a very close second.

Yesterday was the start of our Guess the Locomotive Class silhouette competition.


As easy as it sounds, all you have to do is guess the TOPS Class of each of the silhouettes. You then need to email your answers to our Social Media minions at social.media@gwsr.com

This gives you the chance to win a full line cab ride on one of our locomotives next year. Full Terms and Conditions can be found HERE.

The timetable for today's events is listed below. Do remember that these may be subject to a little alteration and will be on our Facebook and Twitter sites. The timetable is as follows:

12:05  The GWR by Train Sim - A man of many talents, one of our Guards/Signallers, Saul Jones, has put together a proper 'virtual' gala using Dovetail Games Train Simulator software (and third party add ons) so that you can take in the sights and sounds of the line and our locos, albeit in 32/64 bit! There are also a few surprise 'guests' that may put in an appearance!

14:25  Hydraulic Quiz - Just for fun. A quiz based around the WR Hydraulic Classes that frequented the line in the 1960s and 1970, and have also been popular visitors to past galas. 

15:10  The Bubble - A video showcasing one of the jewels of our fleet, the diminutive Class 122 'Bubble Car' DMU. 

15:45  The Shed Visit #1 - This video is the first that will take you 'behind the curtain' at Toddington MPD. 

16:20  D6948 Restoration Part 1 - A short documentary video giving you a chance to see part 1 of the transformation of EE Type 3, 37248 as it returns to its 'as built' 1964 condition and its re-emergence as D6948.

17:30  Class 37 Cab Ride Toddington - Gotherington. A chance to ride 'up front' on a run from Toddington to Gotherington. 

There will also be an evening TS skit from Saul as well to look forward to. 

Enjoy the Show!

Full Gala Details

With the auction for the flame cut from 37215 well on its way to a good figure, full details of the 2020 Virtual Diesel Gala have been released and are below.

VIRTUAL DIESEL GALA SAT 25TH JULY AND SUN 26TH JULY

We very much regret that our Heritage Diesel Gala this year is cancelled due to the Covid-19 restrictions. But...

We will be running a virtual gala for you to experience the sights and sounds of our fleet of Heritage Diesel Locos and more besides. There’s no need to travel to any of our stations for the virtual weekend it’s all on your phone, tablet or computer.

Our famous Locomotive Recognition Competition is back, this time it’s featuring Heritage Diesel engines that could be found on the mainline between the late 1960’s and 1980.
All you have to do to win a FREE Heritage Diesel Cab Ride is identify the silhouettes and tell us its TOPS Class for each. The winner will be the one who gets the most correct. In the event of a tie, the winner will be chosen by random selection (name drawn from a hat).

The prize includes a FREE Family Ticket (2 Adults plus up to 3 children) that includes a full line return trip in the cab of one of our home fleet of Heritage Diesels – that’s one of the Classes 24, 26, 37, 45 or 47.

The competition will open on Tuesday 22nd July and close on Saturday 25th at 16:00.

Plus, in the run up to and over the weekend there will be:

• The eBay Auction for you to get your hands on a flame cut panel with the number from the side of 37215, this was cut out on the last major overhaul. It’s a unique opportunity to own a bit of English Electric Type 3 memorabilia. All the funds raised go the Growler Group to keep 37215 and D6948 running for your enjoyment. The sale is live until Saturday 25th at 20:00 at: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ORIGINAL-FLAME-CUT-PLANEL-FROM-CLASS-37-LOCOMOTIVE-37215/274422849003
• The Favourite Gala Visitor Knock Out Competition, a look back over the years to see which loco you enjoyed most. This may be an influence for future galas.
• Virtual Trips along the ‘Honeybourne Line’ with the home fleet and some visitors, a Class 66 will feature, one which has been unable to visit physically. All done through the medium of Train Sim and courtesy of one of our volunteers.
• Two brand new Flickr sites to be live featuring the previous working lives of our home fleet and their subsequent life since restoration.
• The World Premiere of the inaugural run of Class 37 D6948 as videoed from the cab. This two part feature will show the driver’s eye view of the line as it was in 2016. First part is Toddington to Gotherington and on Sunday it’ll be Gotherington to Cheltenham Racecourse.
• Video compilations, with one featuring the restoration of the ‘Bubble Car’ or Class 122 Diesel Unit W55003, undisputedly the pride of the Cotswold Diesel Railcar fleet. This unit operated some of the last passenger services over the line in the late 1960s. It is a single car design, built at The Gloucester Railway Carriage and Wagon Works (GRCW) in 1958 and seats a total of 65 people.
• There’ll be a Video Tour of the Shed, AKA Toddington TMD, with views of restoration work and other loco’s along with engine room views of start-ups.
• And to top it all, we are still working on other ideas for fun quizzes where there will an opportunity to send in your best images of the loco’s featured – there will even be prizes.

Now the competition small print:
1. The Loco Recognition competition is open to the public and GWSR Volunteers alike
2. In the event of a tie the winning name will be drawn from a hat
3. The Prize will include a Family ticket allowing 2 adults and up to 3 children to travel all day free of charge (See 6 below)
4. The footplate ride will be for 1 adult for a full line return journey
5. The footplate ride can be shared between the 2 adults
6. The prize will be redeemable on a normal service day by prior arrangement with the Railway
a. social distancing restrictions must have been lifted and normal services resumed before the prize can be redeemed
b. a period of 6 weeks notice will be required before travel
c. the rostered locomotive may be changed due to serviceability or operational requirements
7. The cab ride participants :
a. must be over 18 years of age
b. must be able to ascend and descend from the cab unassisted
c. must not be under the influence of drugs or alcohol
8. Appropriate clothing and footwear must be worn (stout shoes or boots).

Everyone involved in the organising of the Gala, its Marketing and in the whole Diesel Department hope you will enjoy it all.

The Auction is live!

The first event of the 2020 Virtual Diesel Gala has begun with the auction for the flame cut body side panel from the Growler Group's Class 37, 37215.

If you are interested in putting in a bid the link is HERE.

All money raised will go towards keeping the Growler Group locomotives - 37215 and D6948 (which is under custodianship of the group) - in tip top condition.

Happy bidding.

Virtual Gala 2020 - First Details!

The 2020 Virtual Diesel Gala is slowly taking shape. It is gutting not to be able to do the real, all singing, all dancing gala we would normally do, the Team behind it all have really pulled out all the stops to provide something that will be entertaining and promote what we do in the department.

The first details can now be shared and, this truly is for the Class 37 connoisseur! The Growler Group have donated a piece of preservation (and British Rail) history that will be auctioned off using a well known bidding site - details of which are to be revealed in the next few days. This is your chance to get your hands on a real piece of Class 37, 37215.....a flame cut of the cabside with the loco number on it that was removed when the loco last had heavy restoration work completed in 2004.

The link to the auction will be posted on the GWsR's main Facebook site as well as on the Growler Group sites (both Facebook and Web) and here.

The links to the sites are below:

GWsR Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/gloucestershirewarwickshirerailway/

Growler Group Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/165601940289990/

Growler Group Website - http://thegrowlergroup.org.uk/

Other details are still having the finer points put on them but there will be plenty of activities for enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts to have a go at, videos, and photos.

Keep your eyes on the department's Social Media outlets for more details over the coming week.

5310 leaves for home.

A quick update on all things Diesel at the GWsR. Like swans gliding along the glass like surface of a still canal the legs are paddling like mad to propel them forward, and that is what is happening within the Social Media Team and the Gala Team as we head ever closer to our Virtual Gala on the weekend of 25th & 26th July.

We may not have any locos running, there is no beer tent, and no guest loco but that isn't to say that the teams working on the Virtual event are not trying to make it as interesting and inclusive as possible. More details will be divulged closer to the end of next week as things are finalised.

One bonus is we won't have to brave the weather like we had to last year on the Saturday!! In case you had forgotten.....

A reminder of the weather at our 2019 Gala! E6036 arrives at Toddington as the rain comes down in stair rods!!

 

2019 visitor, 50035 'Ark Royal' arrives at Toddington during another downpour. 

In other news, and with another link to our 2019 Gala, Class 26, 5310, has now left Toddington and returned to the Llangollen Railway. 5310 had arrived at Toddington at the beginnig of June 2019 with a view to having some minor repairs done, using the expertise of the chaps in the Cotswold Mainline Diesel Group who look after our own D5343, before taking part in the 2019 Gala to mark the 60th anniversary of the Class alongside 50035. As we know this didn't come to fruition as the repairs needed to 5310 were more severe and, coupled with the Covid lockdown, it would lead to the loco not even turning a wheel (except for being shunted around the yard) in anger on the line. The loco did appear at the Gala as a static exhibit in Toddington Car Park (alongside our own 37215), courtesy of the Llangollen Diesel Group

Llangollen's Class 26, 5310, arrives at Toddington for repairs on 4th June 2019. (Photo courtesy of A. Durham)

With lockdown eased, and repairs completed, Monday 6th July was agreed and the low loader booked. After being at Toddington for over a year, with its repairs completed, the McRat was returning to its home base. The photos below were both taken on the 6th July 2020 by Neil Carr, GWsR Ops Manager, who oversaw the loading and departure. 

Photo courtesy of N. Carr.

Photo courtesy of N. Carr.