Question re Bottle Challenge

[RichieG]

Just looking at The Map for a possible stab at the Bottle Challenge, and there are a couple of questions.

As the challenge is based on how the Map does it, therefore making Marylebone and Edgware Road (Bakerloo) part of the challenge, this poses a couple of questions regarding Paddington and KXSP.

First Paddington: Does the pass through for Paddington have to be the Circle / District platforms, or could one, for example, arrive on the Bakerloo and leave on the H&C? (as it happens, my preliminary route doesn't involve doing this, but would like to know!) and similarly with KXSP; would arriving say on the Northern and leaving on the Victoria count, or would one have to use the Circle / District / Met line?

[hwolge]

Tradition says that Marylebone and Edgware Road (Bakerloo) are inside the bottle. Paddington (H&C) is not.

Generally speaking, any stop (or pass through, when temporarily, i.e. not timetabled, closed) will count, regardless of platforms. This is why there is an explicit rule stating that Edgware Road are two distinct stations...

[Going Underground]

This was debated at length here....



http://www.tubeforum.co.uk/forum/viewto ... ?f=4&t=432

[Starkey7]

Lastly taking the Hammersmith and City to Paddington, and then running to Lancaster Gate, would not count as a Paddington visit, and you would be shot.

[RichieG]

Actually, that thread answers neither of my questions as I had already come to the conclusion that The Map was the setting for this challenge therefore Marylebone and Edgware Road (Bakerloo) were both included

I just wasn't sure of the other stations that have some things in or on the circle, yet also have stops outside the circle (namely Paddington (Bakerloo) and KXSP (Northern, Victoria and Piccadilly)) where it is possible to change without being inside the Mapped circle (such as changing from Bakerloo to H&C at Paddington)

[hwolge]

As I think we've established, on-or-inside-the-circle line is the criteria for working out which stations to visit - thereafter the rules are cascaded down from the GWR rules so a stop on any line at a given station is valid (allowing for Pad H&C being a different station)...

Well stated!

[RichieG]

Yes, I am looking at Paddington H&C as being a seperate station - I was really asking after the Bakerloo line station, and that it would indeed be possible to change between Bakerloo and H&C and therefore not be in or on the Circle line.

Well, I've done some route planning for a Circle Bottle Challenge, and, my route currently clocks in at 1hr 15m... taking into consideration late trains, changes, and my own ineptitude, I reckon I can do this within the 2 hours that is currently the record . There're a couple of double-backs, and a couple of changes outside the bottle but it looks fairly solid I think...

I'm probably wrong though (see note above regarding my ineptitude!)

[RichieG]

Actually, having recalculaed it looks more like your time of 1h45; again accounting for late trains and the like means that it could still be under the 2h but probably not...

[Soup Dragon]

I'd double check your route Richie, a couple of years back I spent a couple of months on Bottles running through TfL and the best I came up with was around 1h40m. I don't think 1h15m is possible. Make sure that you've covered stations, a couple are easy to miss, such as Goodge Street and Charing X.

Edit: current record is actually 1:52:55 by John Stark, so you need to be considerably inside two hours. Circle line takes 58mins, which leaves you 54 minutes for the rest!

[RichieG]

Nah - it was a miscalculation converting from minutes into hours/minutes. It is more like 1h45m not 1h15.

I did check to make sure that all stations were covered - I had a map next to me which I crossed off each station as I went round To be honest, it's probably not the best route ever, but like I said it was down to a miscalculation from 1h15 to 1h45, probably more tbh.

I'm quite disappointed really...

[hwolge]

Check this thread for old discussion on The Bottle... There are even a couple of decent routes published if you're interested.

[RichieG]

Question 2: Now that the Circle Line is being extended out to Hammersmith in December, will the Bottle Challenge therefore include those stations on the H&C west of Edgware Road (and therefore include Paddington H&C) and Shepherd's Bush, Holland Park, Baron's Court, West Kensington, Earl's court and Kensington (Olympia)?

[mps247]

Question 2: Now that the Circle Line is being extended out to Hammersmith in December, will the Bottle Challenge therefore include those stations on the H&C west of Edgware Road (and therefore include Paddington H&C) and Shepherd's Bush, Holland Park, Baron's Court, West Kensington, Earl's court and Kensington (Olympia)?

Perhaps this could be the Teacup Challenge!

Although the Northern line is vast, the Mouse Challenge involves visiting the stations within the two central branches. With that in mind, I'm inclined to think that an extension to the Circle line should be treated the same, and hence the Bottle Challenge should remain unchanged.