Steam Railway (UK)

AN EPIC CLIMB TO WHITEBALL

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Two weeks earlier, on June 3, Clan Line worked the ‘Torbay Express’ and fortunatel­y my colleague Bill Long was on the train to witness a record climb to Whiteball with a 12-coach load grossing 455 tons.

With DB Cargo men Driver Graham Ward, Fireman Dave Proctor and Traction Inspector Tom Rees on the footplate, No. 35028 achieved a time of 28 mins 18 secs from passing St Davids at 45mph to the Taunton stop (30.75 miles) – an average of 65.19mph. Speeds were 75mph at Hele & Bradninch, 77 at Cullompton, 72 (minimum) up the 2 miles at 1-in-155 to Tiverton Junction, 76½ at Tiverton Parkway and 68mph minimum at Whiteball summit.

My colleague David Pawson has kindly provided some power output details of this performanc­e. He calculates that the ‘Merchant Navy’ was putting out some 2,370ihp/1,840edbhp for 15 mins between Milepost 192 and Whiteball summit (Milepost 174) while over the 4 mins from Milepost 179 to the summit the power output was 2,600ihp/2,040edbhp. A sterling effort indeed, fit to go alongside the exceptiona­l performanc­es between Exeter and Taunton which I compared in SR459, Table 4 (‘Outstandin­g performanc­es of Modern Times’).

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