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.....
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| A reminder of the weather at our 2019 Gala! E6036 arrives at Toddington as the rain comes down in stair rods!! |
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| 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
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| 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.
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| Photo courtesy of N. Carr. |
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| Photo courtesy of N. Carr. |
