What I don't get with train/bus/plane spotting is that you don't actually end up with anything tangible, I understand the "thrill of the chase" element, but when all is said and done all you have is list of numbers :shrug:
A bit like most things really...
When I go on holiday I don't actually get anything tangible (unless I buy a dodgy souvenir). When I get to the top of a mountain I don't get to keep it.
I remember speaking to a mate of mine years ago about watching night time rallying. He said you stand there in the silence in the pitch black with your thoughts and then in the distance you hear the sound of car engine fast approaching. You wake up and the excitement builds as you look for the lights in the distance and wait for it to pass so you could experience the power. Same thing really.
Forget the petrolheads with their 600BHP there was a loco 30+yrs ago with 3,300BHP that weighed over 100tons and did over 100mph whilst towing a load of coaches.
Twin engined = 2 x 16cyl 2 stroke
which was a Naval gun boat engine. Look at the animation on this link of the opposed pistons
It doesn't have cylinder heads.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napier_Deltic
Top piece of engineering
When that went past you you knew about it and the stations rattled, the ground shook and people moved away from the platforms.
Imagine standing there 'Behind the yellow line' as it passed you at full chat, at full speed a yard in front of you, finger touching distance, as the wind and turbulence tried to suck you under the wheels of the coaches.
The noise and energy is awesome. Raw power.
Just wanted to speak about a myth that all 'trainspotters' wear anoraks and bobble hats. Like any activity there is your lunatic fringe and yes there are strange people out there, but it is the same with any hobby. Next time you are indulging in your favourite hobby see how many geeks you can spot. (doesn't generally work with the sex one
)
I am a heterosexual male. I am married, I have children. I like boobs (all shapes). I do not have spots. My anorak is gortex lined and I use it when I go mountain climbing in Scotland or Wales not generally when I look at trains. I do not stand at the end of station platforms all day writing down numbers.
I like trains (the old boring diesel ones not the quaint steam or the modern ones) but I like lots of other things as well. There are a lot of people out there just like me, there are probably quite a few lurking reading this thread who can't be ar*sed responding to it.
An example of when two of my hobbies collide.
The photograph below was taken last Monday. It's an old diesel maintained to mainline standards by dedicated volunteers (we are talking £100k min to be able to do this and 1000s of man hrs). It is nearly 50yrs old (about as old as a Ford Prefect 100E, well dated) and was on its way from Holyhead to Durham on a railtour with the coaches filled with its supporters and numerous people like me dotted all over the country waiting for it to pass, most of them quite normal.
This loco is like an old friend. I have been in the coaches behind it as far south as Devon & Southampton and as far north as the top end of Scotland. When I see it I remember all the places I have been whilst looking out of the window, watching the scenery glide by.
On the morning I took this I set up early took a few test shots and then was alone with my thoughts and the waves brushing the pebbles onto the beach below. Very relaxing. Then it just appeared with no warning, although this type you can sometimes hear from a few miles away (like when you can hear the rotors of a Chinook). It was under power, you can tell by the black smoke, and it was shifting.
The guy with his head out of the window is listening to the racket it was making (turbo charged 16cyl 4 stroke diesel & bloody loud) a bit like when you turn to watch and hear a TVR drive past or you blip the throttle on a Porsche.
Specialman & Flash in the pan... Trains I do get
