I've been hooked on railways since earlier in my life than I can remember, thanks to dad's influence. During the 80s I was taken along on several quality railtours and our Sunday family outings generally included at least one rail-mounted item of some description being viewed. In my schooling era most weekends were spent trainspotting around Manchester or Warrington, and I was also into planespotting for a couple of years. Upon starting college circa 1994 the enthusiasm for trains and planes tailed off, replaced by enthusiasm for 'other things' shall we say...
And thus I was 'out of the loop' for the best part of 10 years, missing what was essentially the final fling of locomotive usage in the UK almost completely. I've come to accept I will probably never get over that! Then in mid-2003 I was casually browsing the railway mags in A Well-Known High Street Newsagents when I noticed a spurious (as it turned out) report that the withdrawal of the Class 87s - my favourite electric locos - was imminent. Before I knew it I had bought a digital camera, a Coast & Peaks Rover and was well and truly 'back in the habit'.
I soon realised that the railways of Britain had already changed beyond my recognition; any illusions that I had 'kept up' with the times were quickly and ruthlessly dismissed. Viewing the rows of stored locomotives around this time I couldn't help thinking, 'So this is how they felt in 1968?'
Being very much a glass-half-empty person I have struggled with finding much to like about the modern rail scene, with just the one predominant Class of freight loco which never breaks down and is always making the same annoying noise, and the Multiple Units on everything else, and the confounding tortures of privatisation.
However!! As the old saying goes, one who looks over his shoulder forever only gains a sore neck. Since getting back into the hobby I have met some top people, made new friends and re-acquainted with old ones. We're very fortunate in the UK to have such a strong preservation scene, which will hopefully survive the vagaries of fuel and metal prices for the foreseeable future.
With the inexorable modernisation of the Network I have found my area of interest shifting away from the rolling stock which now plies the rails and more towards railway technology, infrastructure and operations.
I am currently working in the rail industry, but in my spare time I try to avail myself of heritage traction, music, buses, model railways, airliners, countryside (less so in hay fever season), ale and Home Made Cakes™ as often as possible!
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