Re: Pendennis Castle

[pcc@ocean.com.au (Les Brown)]

steam4me@enternet.com.au (Yuri J  Sos/Melbourne AUS) wrote in
aus.rail:

>On 7 Oct 1998 14:58:39 +1000, "Werris Creek" <WerrisCreek@bigpond.com>
>wrote, and I selectively quote:
>
>>give loco to a local group that is capable of maintaining loco perhaps with
>>some financial support from current owner. 
>>Both options will involve moving the loco from Karratha hence the transport
>>quote.
>>No decision has been made yet.
>
>Come on, West Coast Railway, you've grabbed just about every other
>steam loco going..... how about a nice SG loco to add to your
>collection?
>
>Then when you take over Victorian passenger services, run a Saturday
>day return to Albury.......
>
>Imagine PC on a pass on platform 2, R711 on adjacent platform 3....
>side by side...... mmmmmmmm........aaaaaaaah....... 
> <SLAP!> Snaps awake <g!>
>
>We can dream <sigh!>

Yeh, we can all dream. The poms, no doubt, will be dreaming about
Pendennis Castle at Paddington on a welcome back special to Didcot and
who can blame them? Pendennis Castle has always resembled a fish out
of water to me. Send her back to the U.K. where she belongs.  Karratha
not the place for a Castle, how much steam shows on this loco in 40
Celsius? And neither is anywhere else in Australia, so let her be
where history placed her for most of her working life. Whilst a Castle
might look pretty good beside an R or a 38, it will look a whole lot
better beside a King or a Manor or even another Castle. Spare parts
aren't so readily available here and neither is the expertise. 

I'm totally in favour of this loco back in the U.K. That's where she
belongs.

If Karratha wants something really exotic, I'm sure Thirlmere can
spare a 50-class or something. I'd even settle for a 60!.

Les Brown