Scarborough does very well for steam during the summer months as, in addition to the Scarborough Flyer, heard elsewhere, we also get the Scarborough Spa Express running three days each week from the end of July to the end of August.
The first of these trains for the 2009 season ran on 21st July 2009 with ex LMS Black 5 4-6-0 45407 as motive power for this 12 coach train and two days later I decided to have a ride.
Over the years that the SSE has run, the evening ride round the circle has always been the part of the day that has interested students of locomotive performance (as well as those interested in noise) beginning with, hopefully, a fast run from York to Leeds. However, for some reason this year, the SSE is routed from Colton South Jc. to Church Fenton along what we used to call the slow lines. To me, this seemed like a pointless exercise as nothing was booked to overtake us on this section but, if it's programmed into the computer, that's what happens.
I thought that this was rather a pity as, while the crossover at Colton Jc. is a high speed one, crossing over at Church Fenton was always a leisurely affair and gave no opportunity for a run at Leeds Bank beyond. However, I had forgotten that during the winter there had been extensive engineering work at Church Fenton which had included upgrading the turnouts on the crossover to high speed ones and thus, on this particular evening, were able to cross back to the Leeds line at the Black 5's maximum permitted speed of 60 mph.
Once onto the curve beyond the regulator was opened a little and speed rose very slightly before we started on the climb.
A little later, as this recording begins, our driver decides that we are going to have a proper run at the bank and produces sounds from the Five that I haven't heard the like of for quite some time!
Approaching Micklefield everything is looking good for a very fast time to Leeds but, alas, it was not to be as we had caught up with a preceding train and the regulator has to be shut.
Back in the 80s on an SSE with a load of 10 coaches we always thought that we were doing well if our minimum speed on the bank stayed above 40 mph, on this run with 2 coaches more we had only just dipped below 50 passing Micklefield; a remarkable performance, such a shame that it wasn't allowed to continue right to the top of the climb!
Later, I was told by another passenger that when he had spoken to the driver, David Blair, commenting that he had never heard a Black 5 worked as hard as that, the reply was that the loco had only been in 45% with full second valve. ONLY 45%!