Spotting Customs

[HMS Ark Royal]

I was wondering if anybody here had any particular customs or traditions they do when on a spotting session.

I, myself, always raise my hat or salute Hull Paragon box on my way out, play track 5 from the Wrath of Khan sound track and track 3 from the Undiscovered Country one, doff my hat when thanking a member of staff, sit in the leading end of a unit - easy to do in a 153!

Be interesting to see if anyone else has certain habits or customs

 

[MidnightFlyer]

The only thing I ever do without fail is stop whatever I'm doing when passing Quintinshill. There are things I try and look out for whenever I'm passing by certain places, but not customs per se.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

The only thing I ever do without fail is stop whatever I'm doing when passing Quintinshill. There are things I try and look out for whenever I'm passing by certain places, but not customs per se.

I always used to do similar at Clapham, but it's ages since I went down that way.

 

[TheEdge]

I tend to keep an eye out for the Mallard sign on Stoke Bank. And since my little jolly in April I like to wait for a certain pair of Breckland crossings to pass without incident.

 

[Cowley]

I tend to keep an eye out for the Mallard sign on Stoke Bank. And since my little jolly in April I like to wait for a certain pair of Breckland crossings to pass without incident.

What happened there in April The Edge?

I don't really have any specific things that I do other than if I'm on a loco hauled train I like to be as near to the front as I can be.
Also I suppose another one is looking out the window on mainline journeys to imagine how things used to be, like stations that have modern housing estates built around them where there used to be goods yards etc. I can happily gaze out of the window of a train for a whole day watching the world go by.

 

[TheEdge]

What happened there in April The Edge?

I don't really have any specific things that I do other than if I'm on a loco hauled train I like to be as near to the front as I can be.
Also I suppose another one is looking out the window on mainline journeys to imagine how things used to be, like stations that have modern housing estates built around them where there used to be goods yards etc. I can happily gaze out of the window of a train for a whole day watching the world go by.

I was the conductor on the train that hit the tractor near Thetford.

I'm glad I'm not the only person who likes to think what it used to look like back in the day...

 

[Cowley]

I was the conductor on the train that hit the tractor near Thetford.

I'm glad I'm not the only person who likes to think what it used to look like back in the day...

Oh blimey that must have been horrible.

Yes I've got a good imagination when it comes to picturing how things must have been. I can usually sense old railways or old railway land quite easily. I think because I'm into model railways as well of real I'm always looking out for detail.

 

[507021]

I don't really have any "customs" as such, but whenever I complete a unit class I always buy myself a bottle of Coca Cola and a Twix bar at the first available opportunity. It sounds odd, but that's what I had at the time when I boarded the last Class 314 I needed to complete the class, so I've done it ever since.

 

[martinsh]

Whenever I grice new track, I say "track" and when I start back on track I've already been on, I yawn artificially.

Dates back to my schooldays of 40 years ago ...

 

[Springs Branch]

When travelling north on the WCML, I always pause for a good look out of the window when we pass Acton Grange Junction and the viaduct over the Manchester Ship Canal.

The reason is this point (together with the Thelwall Viaduct on the M6) is where "The North" starts, according to my personal definition.

I've done this for many years, whether looking out from a Mk2, Mk3 or Pendolino - although if I'm traveling on a VT Advance, my seat will probably be hard against a solid pillar so this milestone will then pass unobserved.

 

[tsr]

I think being seated at the leading end of a train is a fairly widespread enthusiasts' custom. It certainly also seems to be the default position that many TOC employees take if travelling for leisure, even if it's the busier or otherwise more inconvenient end of the train!

I'm not a "spotter" but I have various customs when around trains even when off duty or travelling "pass" - for example, checking the tail lamps are on. You'll also find me occasionally murmuring the aspect of the signal I have just seen - a reflex from dispatching and shunting at high-risk locations where risk-focussed commentary is encouraged. So if you hear someone standing at some random London station in the dead of night muttering "double yellow", it might be me... or it might be someone who's even weirder than me who you actually need to avoid...

 

[backontrack]

I will stop whatever I'm doing at Oxenholme Lake District/Carlisle and just gaze out of the window for the distance between the two.

 

[TheEdge]

I'm not a "spotter" but I have various customs when around trains even when off duty or travelling "pass" - for example, checking the tail lamps are on. You'll also find me occasionally murmuring the aspect of the signal I have just seen - a reflex from dispatching and shunting at high-risk locations where risk-focussed commentary is encouraged. So if you hear someone standing at some random London station in the dead of night muttering "double yellow", it might be me... or it might be someone who's even weirder than me who you actually need to avoid...

Yes, damn conditioning. Sat on a platform checking dispatch is safe. Is the guard in their position till the train has left the platform. A total inability to walk along a Mk3 set without checking doors.

That and yesterday I found myself asking the traffic lights to come off before I got to them!

 

[HMS Ark Royal]

I don't really have any "customs" as such, but whenever I complete a unit class I always buy myself a bottle of Coca Cola and a Twix bar at the first available opportunity. It sounds odd, but that's what I had at the time when I boarded the last Class 314 I needed to complete the class, so I've done it ever since.

That counts...

 

[507021]

That counts...

I definitely don't see it as a custom, personally, more of a nod to a fond memory.

 

[krus_aragon]

This one's not a custom I do on the railway, but it is railway-related: When driving along the A470 through Llandinam, I always give a little nod/salute to the statue of the railway magnate David Davies (of Barry Railway fame). The identical statue at Barry Docks gets the same treatment, but it's a long time since I was down that way.

 

[tsr]

Yes, damn conditioning. Sat on a platform checking dispatch is safe. Is the guard in their position till the train has left the platform. A total inability to walk along a Mk3 set without checking doors.

That and yesterday I found myself asking the traffic lights to come off before I got to them!

Car door handles are just weird. I mean, whoever builds vehicles where the egresses are silver and sideways?

(That, and trying to lean forward and push the door release buttons before getting out and going indoors...)

Probably less off-topic, I tend to also listen for the "click" or "clonk" associated with the doors being unlocked or the electronics detecting interlock being lost (exact specifications being very much something which is stock dependent) as part of door release, fractionally before the actual "door release" chime/beep/hustle.

 

[DarloRich]

None - I cant abide affectations ( and don't go spotting )