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Window hanging again!

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455driver

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It is stupid, it can be dangerous and we have all done it.

Cant argue with that, although when I used to do it, if I got my head smashed in my parents would have blamed me (for being stupid) rather than blame/sue the railways.
 
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4SRKT

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Of course, and I am entitled to ask why he shouldn't to do it.

Then we go around in circles, ad infinitum. :D
TBF I haven't said he shouldn't do it, but am questioning why he has (again).


 

broomster

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TBF I haven't said he shouldn't do it, but am questioning why he has (again).



Maybe the best place to ask is on the comments section on the video page on YouTube? Judging by the number of views, they seem fairly active on there, and they may not have seen this thread?

You might get a response from the horses mouth rather than asking everyone else :)

Broomster.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2
 

Aldaniti

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We've all done draft things when we were younger. When I was a kid I once took 31235 from Reading to Paddington when 50025 Invincible was on offer in the adjacent platform. His real crime is to seen bashing HST's. :lol:
 

Broken Viking

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I have to confess that - Whenever on an HST run - I'm prone to a bit of cautious heads-out from time to time. However my practise is to stick just an eye out of the window first to check the line ahead for oncoming traffic and obstacles first (If I have a phone with a top-mounted camera on me, I use that for this purpose) and only "Get some air" if I am absolutely certain that there's nothing like a bridge, signal post or blind bend ahead which could pose a risk. My video at http://youtube.com/watch?v=V_Q7FXAkJoI might demonstrate this practise to a degree.

Would anyone say if this method is safe enough for me to enjoy my "Airtime" without posing any notable risk to the railway or myself, or are there other dangers that I might not be taking into adequate account? :?:
 

bronzeonion

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I have to confess that - Whenever on an HST run - I'm prone to a bit of cautious heads-out from time to time. However my practise is to stick just an eye out of the window first to check the line ahead for oncoming traffic and obstacles first (If I have a phone with a top-mounted camera on me, I use that for this purpose) and only "Get some air" if I am absolutely certain that there's nothing like a bridge, signal post or blind bend ahead which could pose a risk. My video at http://youtube.com/watch?v=V_Q7FXAkJoI might demonstrate this practise to a degree.

Would anyone say if this method is safe enough for me to enjoy my "Airtime" without posing any notable risk to the railway or myself, or are there other dangers that I might not be taking into adequate account? :?:

Diesel exhaust fumes, brake dust, sun burn, insect digestion... :p:D
 

Oswyntail

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It is stupid, it can be dangerous and we have all done it.
And, like standing too close to the platform edge, or ignoring boundary fences, to get a good picture, someone sees it, decides that rail enthusiasts do stupid, dangerous things and cannot be trusted on railway property, and bans us.
 

317666

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I occasionally lean out the window when leaving a station if I'm on, say, an HST, purely to hear the noise of the power car. I never do it at high speed, and I always move my head back in if I can see another train coming, a signal post or something like that.

If you ask me the worst thing about the video in the original post is the godawful soundtrack!
 

TheEdge

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I do it every day as part of my job. I am expected to watch trains out of the platform, when I have a droplight (Mk3/170s) then that means hanging out. Normally its only low speeds but on Mk3s they can be going at quite a speed by the time they are out of the platform from certain stations.

And I've done it on preserved lines, all the time and in my younger days I did it at 90mph.
 

ModernRailways

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I personally do it quite often, however I only do it if I know the route and can guarantee another train won't pass anytime soon, for example if a train has just passed, or won't pass at a high speed.
I only tend to do it though when arriving/departing stations as I quite like having the wind in my face. Travelling at more than 40mph though is when it isn't 'fun' and can start to be a pain as you can hardly see or breathe.
I also only have part of my head out and so as soon as I something that may be an obstruction bring my head in.
A few weeks ago as I was departing Newcastle on a HST the guard was at the door right next to me, all he did was ask for my ticket and then had a quick chat about the railways. He told me to be careful and that if I needed him for anything to just go along and see him - I don't know what I could need from him, maybe a cup of tea to warm me up :lol:
Doing so on electric lines with third rail where the trains accelerate/decelerate quite quickly I probably wouldn't do it unless I could be 100% sure another train wouldn't pass!
 

Harlesden

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Maybe the best place to ask is on the comments section on the video page on YouTube? Judging by the number of views, they seem fairly active on there, and they may not have seen this thread?

You might get a response from the horses mouth rather than asking everyone else :)

Broomster.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

There was a rather stern comment on the video yesterday evening, but the uploader apparently decided to remove it as it is gone this morning. Obviously not the type of person who likes to be politely challenged.
 

jon91

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Another thing to think about when window hanging from a HST is their lack of CETs. After all the old git dropping his 'arris onto the track a few carriages ahead combined with the speed and large amounts of water used when flushing will most likely produce a nice watery, bug-laden poop aerosol... :shock:
 

Spaceflower

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I've done it, but only when we were stationary after a fatality.

I, similar to Death, will often relinquish a set of four seats and a table when on a HST just to stand in the vestibule near an open window. I'll do this particularly at night when I seek both air and visual stimulation. I wouldn't put a body part beyond the frame though. A passing train, even standing by the window, if unexpected could be quite enough to send me into grandpa Simpson mode.
 

Lrd

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When on HSTs whilst they are moving, I will never put my head out, I may open the window and look out but never go outside the frame, like said above. If we are stationary then I may pop my head out just to see if anything interesting is happening or if coming into a platform then I may edge my head out slightly to see what side the platform will be.
 

LE Greys

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I'll admit to having done it at speed just north of Thirsk in an attempt to get pictures of Duke of Gloucester which my train was overtaking (note, this also involved facing backwards and required two hands for a manual-focus camera, just to add extra foolhardiness). I'm sure I'm not the only one, but it's nowhere near the most dangerous thing I've ever done for a picture, that involved lying on a 45-degree grass slope atop a 400ft cliff with a 200mm lens on the front to get shots of birds, although I did have someone holding my ankles at the time. I probably shouldn't have done either, and certainly wouldn't condone anyone else doing something similar, but they did work.
 

Temple Meads

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I'll start by being blunt, yes I window lean, yes I enjoy it, and no I'm not going to stop.

I know that will sound both flippant and childish, but that's the way it is I'm afraid but I do understand the risks and I very rarely put any body part out over 60-70mph (and then it would be one side of the face, or a hand, not an a whole arm), and only indulge in the type of leaning in the video on lines I know well or at slow speeds.

The days of droplight stock in normal passenger service are numbered anyway, so it should become even less of an issue. (that is another reason why I'm not going to stop)

PS: I'm pleased at a lack of overt self righteousness in this thread (which I've seen in a very similar thread on another railway forum this week), and just self preservation.
 

Ivo

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I don't window lean and I am of the opinion that the safety factor should easily overthrow the enjoyment of doing so.

At Reading I will sometimes open the window and look outside just enough to see how traffic is moving around the station and to try to determine which platform we would be on, but even then I will never go any further than the frame and will also take my glasses off to do so and put them somewhere safer than being dangled above a railway track. Even then however, I haven't done it since the remodelling began.

I'll start by being blunt, yes I window lean, yes I enjoy it, and no I'm not going to stop.

Even when somewhat strict women XC guards complain about it? ;)
 

Temple Meads

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Even when somewhat strict women XC guards complain about it? ;)

That was an exception to the rule ;)

With regard to glasses, a friend of mine found out the hard (and crunchy!) way that window leaning and wearing glasses doesn't mix! :lol:
 

Giugiaro

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Well. I miss those days were leaning on the window was common practice.

[youtube]CgytGVfNqD4[/youtube]


Until air conditioning came to be.


The only place were such thing can still be done is in the Vouga Line:

[youtube]wpbMW-u9bMQ[/youtube]
 

221129

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That was an exception to the rule ;)

With regard to glasses, a friend of mine found out the hard (and crunchy!) way that window leaning and wearing glasses doesn't mix! :lol:

That was slightly different though wasn't it?!? :roll:

I also share the opinion of Temple Meads here. I generally only do it into stations to open the door or along the Dawlish Sea Wall.
 

LE Greys

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That was an exception to the rule ;)

With regard to glasses, a friend of mine found out the hard (and crunchy!) way that window leaning and wearing glasses doesn't mix! :lol:

Resolved in my case with an elastic strap from a pair of swimming goggles. :D This was necessary for sailing anyway.
 
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