Mirrorless Mayhem
A very eventful run to Ballarat took place the morning of shooting for my year 12 media project, as R761 took on Steamrail's first Eureka Express of 2022.
The R was having noticable trouble as it made a short and unplanned stop in Parwan Loop, followed by a relatively slow climb up Ingliston Bank as far as Bank Box Loop. The R then crossed a now-delayed up pass before beginning the rest of the climb up to Ingliston, but soon after leaving the loop, things got far more interesting than first thought!
As the R climbed its way across the bridge at Ironbark Gorge, it was quite clear to those watching on that the rate of the locos exhaust was slowing rapidly without losing its intensity, and even by the time the last carriage had crossed over the bridge, the train had slowed from 20km/h to not much over walking pace, and only seconds later... A stall.
R761 came to a stand with the last carriage barely across the bridge without a single slip of the wheels, and the crew tried to restart the engine up the hill with no success, with the decision eventually made to have the train perform a rare reversing move backwards down the hill to Bank Box Loop.
After some time in the loop to prepare for a second try, the R's next attempt the hill proved more successful, with it putting in a far better performance, lifting the train up the 1-in-48 without much of a struggle at all!
Soon after topping the bank, R761 is back on the move almost an hour behind time as it powers through Ingliston heading for Ballarat on train 8197 and Steamrail’s first Eureka Express of 2022. 11/6/22
Mirrorless Mayhem
A very eventful run to Ballarat took place the morning of shooting for my year 12 media project, as R761 took on Steamrail's first Eureka Express of 2022.
The R was having noticable trouble as it made a short and unplanned stop in Parwan Loop, followed by a relatively slow climb up Ingliston Bank as far as Bank Box Loop. The R then crossed a now-delayed up pass before beginning the rest of the climb up to Ingliston, but soon after leaving the loop, things got far more interesting than first thought!
As the R climbed its way across the bridge at Ironbark Gorge, it was quite clear to those watching on that the rate of the locos exhaust was slowing rapidly without losing its intensity, and even by the time the last carriage had crossed over the bridge, the train had slowed from 20km/h to not much over walking pace, and only seconds later... A stall.
R761 came to a stand with the last carriage barely across the bridge without a single slip of the wheels, and the crew tried to restart the engine up the hill with no success, with the decision eventually made to have the train perform a rare reversing move backwards down the hill to Bank Box Loop.
After some time in the loop to prepare for a second try, the R's next attempt the hill proved more successful, with it putting in a far better performance, lifting the train up the 1-in-48 without much of a struggle at all!
Soon after topping the bank, R761 is back on the move almost an hour behind time as it powers through Ingliston heading for Ballarat on train 8197 and Steamrail’s first Eureka Express of 2022. 11/6/22