25/07/2016 - Tech Won't Be Outdone
You won't believe it, but I've gone for something other than a musical reference this time! This week [next week I'm not out on Monday, stay tuned! - Ed] I reference to Dynasty Warriors 3, a PlayStation 2 game, the series based on The Three Kingdoms. It's a lot to go into here, so let's dive straight to the point. During battle, morale boosts come from fellow warriors and the commander in the form of a rally, my favourite of which is "We mustn't be outdone, fight harder!" and yes, I do appreciate you'll have needed to have played the game to truely get the reference. Much in the way one of my favourite pieces of music comes from Dynasty Tactics 2, but without playing the game it's not so relatable if that makes sense.
Anyway, back to the latest entry of my autobiography [aren't I good to you all, saving you buying it when it comes out in hardback!
- Ed] and I was off on another trip. I was seriously into shack scoring, but I also wanted to get the red pen out too. This was proving difficult to do without spending a fortune, as within my stomping grounds there was not much left to get in terms of winners. 4 Midland Metro trams, several Chiltern needs and nothing else in the Midlands, save for 5 166s which have potential to turn up on the 0821 Paddington to Hereford and 12:bungle return. After that, I'd have to go to Crewe for hourly EMT services, and even then there's only a handful of 153s and 156s I need with them, so not entirely likely to turn up. Shacks wise, however, I still need a ton of them across the ATW network, mostly Mid and North Wales with a handful in West Wales to get. There was also preserved lines to go after, but that was a dead end as the ones I wanted were either too awkward to do or not open! Back to the drawing board it was until the evening of 21st July, when I saw a news story on BBC Midlands Today celebrating Chiltern's accomplishments over the last 20 years. What do they show arriving at Leamington Spa in one clip? Forum celebrity 68008, which I still need and the desire to get it in the book suddenly becomes quite real!
So after not hitting the hay until around 0030, unsurprisingly I'm not keen on getting up and I seriously considered staying in bed, going later for a Heart of Wales shack score. I remember, however, the hashtag and the spirits are rallied before I head out to the bus with a travel mug of Tech's Fuel of Champions! Tech's Mobile Disco has been off for the last couple of days, so it was some most welcome Nightcore this morning too. I can't help thinking I might have bowled myself out mind, as it's meant to rain this afternoon in the Midlands. My coat was still drying this morning, so I'm taking a chance with the forecast being wrong! No gen available on 68008 left me deciding to say stuff it and not risk it today. Shack scoring became the name of the game, but which ones?
I decide upon a day return to Shrewsbury first which got me plenty of time for a large coffee. Just as well as the queue was quite long! With that sourced, I go back and forth on the options, of which I must have had at least 6 by the time I was leaving Pumpkin. 175003 arrives for a mileage boost and after an hour of deciding I could only knock it down to 3 options. All of which were still debatable and had their pros and cons, so a look at the boards on arrival in Shrewsbury was to decide it! A decision finally made to do the Crewe locals as those shacks had been annoying me for a long time. Sadly one would have to remain due to the way things work out, but hey ho! Super Dud 150240 rolls up to take me to winner shack Nantwich, where I carry out a supply raid in the nearby Morrisons.
150240 is soon back to take me to the day's winner shack, Prees. The village itself is discovered to be a mile away, nah I can't be bothered to walk to it. The map suggests nothing of interest there anyway. With a +51 here I have very little to do so I crack open a bottle of cider!
The step off the train was enormous here, and I swear some of the shacks I've done this year on the Heart of Wales have been more interesting than Prees! Time for Tech's Mobile Disco to kill the fester! Most of you won't be able to appreciate the weirdness of playing tunes like Nightcore - Raver's Fantasy or Ravers in the UK at such a remote location, take it from me that such upbeat tunes while waiting for 175s to pass, so they can be added to the observations file, is just plain bizarre. As was seeing 150257 pass through without stopping towards Shrewsbury, didn't even see the barriers go down and I have no idea what service it was on!
150240 is back after 56 minutes, and I get my stop at winner shack Wrenbury requested. I'm going to have a decent bit of mileage off this 150 today, let alone whatever I 9had off it before! Only Yorton remains between Holmes Chapel and Milford Haven to be visited, eventually the others in the way [Chelford and Goostrey - Ed] will one day soon get visited to clear Manchester Piccadilly to Milford Haven for shacks! Those of you who follow the action on Twitter will have noticed a huge gap in tweets during the afternoon, I feel obligated to point out this was due to having no data signal for a large amount of the day. Another cider and, of course, Tech's Mobile Disco fill the time at Wrenbury, this time starting with Cascada's Evacuate the Dancefloor [the eagle-eyed of you will note I referenced this on a Liverpool bash earlier in 2016 - Ed], Nightcore version of course, followed by the same version of Cascada's Bad Boy and Miracle, ending with another previously referenced Nightcore tune, Jump Jump, one of my Top Tunes 2016!
It's a different guard to the previous one now, and I request a stop at Yorton. I think it was a bit of a surprise to him to be honest! 150240 is unsurprisingly back to cart me off to winner shack Yorton, and I have a different guard now who was surprised to have Yorton requested. A count of required ATW shacks was now undertaken, 78 [or was it 77? - Ed] remain with the vast majority north of Shrewsbury. It won't come as a surprise to learn I'm planning to spend a week going after a large number of these!
Yorton is the final shack score today, however the plan falls apart here, as I find myself talking to the owner of The Railway Inn and discover it's closed! My options are the shop a mile away in each direction, along non-pavement roads, or go to Wem where I'm promised there's plenty of places to get food from. I'm not willing to do that walk, so it's to the Crewe bound platform to await 150240 yet again for a short hop to Wem. The final alternative of staying hungry and festering until 1605 for the next Shrewsbury-bound service, was deemed completely unacceptable! The choice was very limited in Wem, and after not being served within an acceptable timescale in my choice of pub, I left and got some reduced hot food from the nearby Co-Op. Not that I was pleased with them, as the 3 for a fiver offer on the beer didn't come off. I was too hungry to argue and left unamused, devouring food on the short walk back to the Shrewsbury-bound platform.
The food was OK, and filled a gap, but I could have happily devoured a doner meat, chips, pitta bread and BBQ sauce and still been hungry! The beers are all from Hobsons, a Shropshire brewery, and it won't be a surprise to anyone that I got Tech's Mobile Disco on again after a while! 150240 is done for the last time back to Shrewsbury, and I finally have mobile data signal again. Cue a massive update on Untappd and on Twitter, again my apologies for the lack of tweets, Shropshire is dire for mobile data signal. By the time the 150 arrived I was more than ready to be going home, happy I've had 4 shack scores today but annoyed at myself too for not going after potential winners!
175109 takes me forward to Hereford, after a revolting but winner brew in The Bulls Head, Shrewsbury. I'm not going to lie to any of you, I'm worried about how much I've had today. How the SVR put their name to Hobsons' Hoppy Ale is beyond me, it's not nice! Off for the bus home now, and I'll be glad to get home and have a good feed as that food from Co-Op only filled a gap! 9 days left until I head to London, and a majorly tough week lies in wait...
