Edition 184 RAIL LINK October 2019 News and information from the Wensleydale Railway Association (Trust) and Wensleydale Railway plc DATES FOR YOUR DIARY NORTHALLERTON BRANCH MEETINGS - held at the Cricket Club, Farndale Avenue, Mondays at 19.30. Everyone is welcome. You do not need to be a WRA(T) member to attend. Monday 16 th September – Details to be confirmed Monday 21 st October is the next meeting when an old friend of the Railway, John Young, will tell us about the work carried out at Richmond Station to refurbish it and restore it to its present condition. Monday 18 th November sees the return of Christine Hallas who will talk about the Railway Manias & Outcomes in theNorthern Dales, 1840s to 1912. Monday 12 th December will be our Christmas Lunch at The Coore Arms, Scruton. Menu will be available in October. Monday 20 th January 2020 , Phil Roser “Life in the front line of the RAF” February to May - schedule yet to be finalised. TRAIN SERVICES – During October there will be services every Saturday and Sunday plus Fridays 4 th and 11 th and Tuesday 29 th October. See the railway website for details. The 2019 railway advertising leaflet can be downloaded from - https://wr-rail-link.co.uk/download/2019-WR-Timetable.pdf PIE AND ALE TRAIN - Come aboard on October 12 th for a Pie and Ale Train in partnership with our friendly neighbours The Vale of Mowbray. The train will depart Bedale Station at 7pm and will return at approximately 9.45pm. Once on board you will enjoy two different ales and a delicious Vale of Mowbray picnic hamper which includes: A standard Vale Pork Pie, A Flavoured Pork Pie (either Piccalilli or Cheese & Pickle), A bag of Yorkshire Crisps and Nuts, A bar of Yorkshire Flapjack. The pies and nibbles go perfectly with your ales. If ales aren’t your thing don’t worry you can purchase a hamper only ticket. There will be a Vale of Mowbray pie expert on board to tell you all about the history of pies and how they are made and they will have a selection of produce that can be purchased to take home at the end of the evening. We will also have a full bar on board so addition drinks will be available throughout your journey. Pie and Ale 18+ – £29.50. Pie only – £25.00 For more details and to book see https://www.wensleydalerail.com/future-events/ or phone the admin team on 01677 425805. AUTUMNAL AFTERNOON TEA - On the 20 th of October Enjoy a scenic journey through the Yorkshire Dales and marvel at the crisp autumnal scenery, all whilst enjoying an afternoon tea served at your table in the warmth of one of our heritage carriages. The afternoon tea will consist of a selection of locally produced sandwiches, pastries and cakes served on delicate vintage china. You will be served with unlimited tea and coffee with a bar for additional drinks. The train departs from Leeming Bar Station at 14:15 and is due to return around 17:00 approximately. Please arrive at least 15 minutes prior to departure. Tickets are: Adult £32.50, Child (14 years and under) £17.50, Under 3s Free (please note food will not be provided). For more details and to book see https://www.wensleydalerail.com/future-events/ or phone the admin team on 01677 425805. HALLOWEEN MURDER MYSTERY - Join us on October 26 th for a spooktacular murder mystery event like no other! One thing is for certain, not everyone will survive! Come aboard if you dare…. Gladys and Frank Lee are celebrating their lottery win with their new neighbours – a Halloween masked ball on The Wensleydale Railway which will give everyone the chance to get to know them! But behind the scary masks it’s easier to get away with murder. Dress up, don your Halloween masks and see if you can work out whodunit. Tickets are £25 which includes: Return rail ticket; Welcome drink; An evening of 5 start entertainment from the cast at Tall Tale Mysteries. ). For more details and to book see https://www.wensleydalerail.com/future-events/ or phone the admin team on 01677 425805. BEDALE BONFIRE EXPRESS - It’s approaching that time of year again when the annual Bedale Bonfire Express departs, bringing people from across The Yorkshire Dales to the Bedale Bonfire celebrations! The Train will be departing on 2nd November from Redmire at 17.05 and Leyburn at 17.26 arriving into Bedale at 18.00 where it is a short 10 min walk to the bonfire. The return service from Bedale departs at 20.20. There will be a bar on board selling a variety of hot, cold and alcoholic drinks. Adult – £7, Child (5-15) – £3, Under 5s – Free. For more details and to book see https://www.wensleydalerail.com/future-events/ or phone the admin team on 01677 425805. THE POLAR EXPRESS™ Train Ride at Wensleydale - Join us at The Polar Express Yorkshire for a magical Christmas Experience. We are the ONLY licensed Polar Express in Yorkshire. This Christmas experience is unlike any other. Brought to you by the organisers of the number 1 voted Polar Express in the World, Wensleydale Railway hosts The Polar Express Yorkshire new for 2019. For more details and to book see https://yorkshiredalesthepolarexpressride.com/ ------------------------------------ Page 1 of 5 NEWS FROM THE WR PLC BOARD At the September Board meeting, the Board approved and signed the annual accounts for 2018/19, which have been audited and sent to all shareholders. They show an improved financial position on the previous year and the current year so far has continued that improvement, especially due to Tornado, events and on board catering. However, August has been disappointing in passenger numbers, seeming to reflect the experience of other tourism businesses. There was considerable discussion over the General Manager’s report relating to plans for steam for 2020 and subsequent years; there are some exciting possibilities on the horizon! Plans for Polar Express were also discussed further. Safety issues include necessary actions to reduce risks from passengers leaning out of windows, following a tragedy on a main line train and subsequent increased interest from the Rail Regulator. This has included a full survey of the line to see where risks of fixed structures, other railway stock and vegetation may be particularly dangerous. Also relating to safety, a full survey of crossing gates has been undertaken and “mind the gap” signs are being painted on to the platforms at Bedale and Redmire, which are lower and therefore provide greater risks. Reports from Events, Volunteer, Training and Heritage & Education were discussed. It was noted with sadness that this was the final report from Virginia Arrowsmith as she takes up her new job; a replacement is being sought. The Trust has now agreed the conditions for the National Lottery grant for the Leeming Bar Station House refurbishment and it is expected that this will now proceed, including an improved new power supply and new toilets; connection has now been made to the main sewer, although Leases Road will have to be closed at some point to cross the road with both power and sewer links. There has been excellent progress with Total/Elf negotiations. The company has agreed to supply all WR lubricants free for a period of 5 years in the first instance and there are hopes of their support in other respects, including possibly resurfacing the platform at Leeming Bar. The Board has identified a possible new Board Member and is also seeking to a new Secretary, following my “retirement” from the position. Phil Smith RAILWAY NEWS FROM THE VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR Summer fundraising The Summer Raffle which was run from Tornado’s arrival in May until 1 September raised £3900 and the winners have been notified and are listed on our website. This Raffle is in addition to the Tornado Raffle held in February, which raised £1700 demonstrating the huge benefits to the Trust coffers of unrestricted fundraising via raffles. Thanks to all of you who bought and sold tickets. One lesson learnt for the future is to price each individual ticket at £2 so £10 for a book as £5/ticket was too expensive. We shall run the next raffle in spring 2020. Small change donation envelopes have been developed this season which are the size of a small seed packet and have been handed out when passengers bought their tickets. These envelopes are also part of the small donation Gift Aid scheme so the Trust receives 25% back from the Government. They are proving an additional easy stream of income too. Thank you and goodbye A slightly belated thank you to Alan and Sandra Broadfoot who have moved back home to Scotland from Bedale. Alan was an active member of the Bedale Station Group and both Alan and Sandra helped with Rebekah’s events; they also enjoyed and were very competitive in the Bedale quiz nights! We wish you well with your life back in Scotland with your families but don’t forget where we are. Yorkshire Post article The fantastic article on Sue Threadgold, as our first female guard at the Railway in Saturday 24 th August’s Yorkshire Post Weekend magazine was brilliant. Furthermore we didn’t realise until we saw a paper copy but we were also in the editorial of the main newspaper and that the article was 3 full colour pages long with photos of the Railway and Sue in action. For the article the journalist chatted to Robert Carter and I in the office whilst he waited for Sue on the 1 st train service to return to Leeming Bar; little did we realise that would feature in the article too so all about the Railway’s history, volunteering and events.