Random 15 Championship - Round 3 - 28th November

[Going Underground]

The journey from Feltham Clapham Common should have been a leisurely doddle... Mrs GU dropped me off with 10 mins to spare for the 11:05 which was showing as due 11:08 so time for a comfort break and after this the train was now due at 11:12

Rammed with people and 1st class totally empty I stood up to Clapham Junction and a wait of over 10 mins to get to Balham... Up to Clapham Common only beating the 12:00 deadline by 2 mins

I had already agreed to team up with Soup Dragon when Starkey arrived and said he would like to join us (just to get some more obscure quotes in all probability )

We didn't even open the envelope until we had ambled down to the platform and a very quick look as a northbound pulled in made our minds up to take this...

We chewed over routes for several minutes cahnging this at least 3 time as we travelled northbound on the Viccie after a Stockwell change...

All sorted in our minds we changed at Green Park for westbound Picc then Earls Court out to Stamford Brook with an Eastbound pulling away as our doors opened.. OK a 7 or 8 minute wait here now, but it wasn't and we topped our suntans up in the glorious December sunshine with a 22 minute wait here My joker wasn't going to get played today I decided....
Back to Earls Court and down to East Putney where 1 train passed us shortly before we got there, followed closely by another one arriving as we did... We tried to run around but to no avail and had an 8 minute wait here...

Upto NHG then Queensway where I put the after burners on for the run to Bayswater overtaking 2 cycles and leaving Starkey in my wake
Then to Edgware Rd (D & C) where leaving the station last I then took over the lead of the run again following the "short cut" to Edgware Rd(Bak)
Antony spotted Tom and Steve and we managed to hide from them for several stations, he he such fun
Both teams doubled back at Kilburn Park and we waved them goodbye at Edgware Rd as we stayed on to Regents Park to run to GPS, without getting run over by the stream of traffic that was delaying us crossing the road...
From then it was Moorgate Borough London Bridge North Greenwich...

Now how to get back to the pub We stayed on to West Ham to get an H & C but a C2C came in 1st so we run round for that went into Fenchurch Street and walked to Aldgate East, did we get ahead of an H & C doing this? Probably not but I grabbed and quickly drank a can of cider from Cost Cutters...

Then finally one of those bizzare coincidences, changing carriages at Liverpool Street we bumped straight into Jamie & Ryan who had not done the R15 but were heading to the pub....

Some good darts and some avearge darts ensued, I won't dwell on how the evening ended but we spent a few quid in the Rising Sun including meals and they are obviously doing very well in the current recession to turn away trade like that Needless to say we will NOT be returning to that venue

[Starkey7]

My journey to Clapham Common had plenty of slack time built in, and I arrived at Earls Court in plenty of time to nip down to West Brompton and take the train to Clapham Junction. Which never came.* Since the next train was twenty-four minutes away, I had to go the long way round via Green Park! That's why I was a bit on the late side. Sorry, everyone.

GU has written an excellent account of things, so I'll just chime in with a few other points. We had a great session of route planning on the Victoria line up from Stockwell, and are getting very good at our team decision making now. The Green Park change was bizarre - getting down to the Piccadilly level was fine, but we had to prise the gates open to get to the platforms themselves...

In spite of our twenty-two minute wait at Stamford Brook, I couldn't choose a better place to wait, and I enjoyed a nice spot of lunch in the glorious November sunshine.

GU astonished me with his running. I was left in his dust-cloud!

*In actual fact it was still at Milton Keynes Central!

[Going Underground]

Oh yes we are stil in Novemer of course, so it wouldn't have been December sunshine just yet

[tangy]

I left home in time to get the 1051 "ONE" train from St. James Street to LST. As it pulled in I noted it was rather well loaded, okay what's going on here I thought. Transpired the Victoria line had been suspended up this end, good job I didn't walk up to Central!

Into LST and down onto the Central line to go one stop to Bank, poor connection onto the Northern line (saw one pull away) to get into Clapham Comon at just after 1130, no one else about so did some bus spotting until others arrived.

Once the moment arrived to start the challenge I just opened the envelope and starting running down to the platform. I had a quick glance and decided to head northwards. On way up I decided against changing at Stockwell but instead continue to Bridge (via BOROUGH). Unusual for me, I was totally in the wrong coach thus had a real battle to get through the crowds to the Jubilee line, fortanately I hadn't missed one as Joy54 and Edgemaster were also waiting.

I stayed with them through BERMONDSEY and onto NORTH GREENWICH, again me being somewhat way out with my exit position! Made my way over to the westbound platform and it was here the teams split as I headed towards the front of the train to make a quick bail out at Canary Wharf. Dashed across to Heron Quays DLR only to miss a Bank train by 10 seconds! 5 minutes lost here awaiting the next one.

During this time I had several routes running through my head, each visiting the remaining stations slightly differently. The next DLR duly came 5 minutes later and whisked me to Bank, where I had a choice... chance the Drain or do the Central? I chose the former, knowing I was risking a potential 5-6 minute wait. Ran down the corridor and onto platform... one in with a green signal, lovely! Four minutes later I was at Waterloo.

At WAT it was off to PUT, and I was hoping for one of the semi-fasts but the next one out was a class 455 all station stopper. Got on it anyway, ignoring all the rail enthusiats gathered round a steam loco in the opposite platform (give me a diesel anyday)! At PUT I got off and noticed half the road towards East Putney was blocked off by roadworks which was helpfull as I literally ran down the road and into EAST PUTNEY.

Ascended the stairs and was greeted with a rather packed platform (so knew there hadn't been a train for ages) and 3 minutes on the board. The C stock pulled in and all the passengers somehow squeezed themselves on. At PUTNEY BRIDGE even more passengers got on board. Nobody stood at chance Fulham Bdy or West Brompton!! With this is mind I decided not to bail at ECT but stay on until NHG. Transferred to the Central line for one stop to QUEENSWAY where I had a brilliant cross platform- in and out in less than 30 seconds!

Heading westwards I alighted at Shep Bush and ran (more like fast walked) across the Green to Goldhawk Road with the destination being Stamford Brook, but instead of going via Hamm I took bus 237 direct to STAMFORD BROOK. This turned out to be a brilliant move, as soon as I was at the top of the stairs I noted a D stock trundle in, said "yes" rather loudly and punched the air. Perfect!

Got on the D stock as far as Hamm and transferred to a waiting Picc. in the opposite platform. At ECT, the train just filled up with passengers from the District. Continued eastwards through KNIGHTSBRIDGE to alight two stops further at Green Park. Only to find the long passageway connection between the Picc and Vic closed off, so had to go up the escalators to the concourse to go back down again! Luckily the Vic line is very frequent so was not held up too much by this. Down to VICTORIA where I did a U turn to return northbound to OXC.

At OXC, I had a poor cross platform with the northbound B'loo (saw the doors close) and 2 minutes for the next, only to go one stop to REGENTS PARK. Exited the station and ran all the way to EUSTON SQUARE totally ignoring GPS. This being the only way I could think of to visit the remaining stations with the least numbers of changes or without a long double back. Despite the fact there was extra trains on the H&C, I still had to wait 5 minutes for one to appear, which I duly took to EDGWARE ROAD (Circle)

Ran across to EDGWARE ROAD (B'loo) with a two minute wait to take me to the finish at KILBURN PARK in a time of 03:16:06. Poor cross platform heading back south to alight at Regents Park (again), this time though I exited the station and walked to GPS for a H&C onwards to Barbican.

[jbom]

So no-one went south to Balham?

[Going Underground]

So no-one went south to Balham?

No but it was very much an option had a Northbound train not come in 1st....

[Soup Dragon]

Another snippet of footage discovered on my video, the results of R15 Round Three, from The Rising Sun (I miss that pub)
The video is now on YouTube: Random 15 - Round Three