Racing Dog's Kennel Railway Preservation








Back in the mid 90s, what with having two little boys, as they were then, and train sets and so on, I eventually decided I wanted to get back to my love of railways and join a railway preservation society.

Well, we have the Mid-Hants not far away, but that all seemed a bit big, and I've always had preferences for small. So I looked further afield and eventually settled upon the Cholsey & Wallingford Railway. There were a few others in the same general area, but they were just too far from home.

So I joined. It pretty soon became clear that that had been a good decision because in a small society you meet almost everyone, and everyone mucks in when they can at whatever they can.

When I joined, the railway was only operating from Wallingford to halfway to Cholsey. Well, I had only been there a year or two when we came to the A.G.M. at which it was announced that the works were complete and as of the next season we would be running through to Cholsey. Whilst everyone else was busily going yahoo etc., I was quietly looking around the assembled volunteers and thinking, yes, but who is going to look after things at the Cholsey end, you lot all have jobs. So, being of a curious disposition I asked who would be looking after the Cholsey end. That was my big mistake. Everyone turned and looked at me significantly. You know? That well volunteered look!

So, for over 15 years I was the CWR's Station Master cum Booking Clerk at Cholsey. Not that I could be a real Station Master as the station is also on the main-line, so it isn't our station, none the less we needed a presence, and that was usually me. Obviously I missed the 2008 Santa Specials with that damn broken leg, and then I missed some more due to that damned Myeloma. Eventually, the travelling got a bit much and I gave up in 2014.

I suppose here would be a good place to thank those who have helped as Platform Stewards over the years, as well as those who have stood in for me on those occasions that I couldn't be there.

So go and see a nice little railway folks! And don't let me stop you becoming a member. And when you've done that, don't let me stop you from becoming a volunteer, they need all that we can get.


For the benefit of readers outside of the UK it is probably worth explaining why railway preservation is so widespread and active in the UK.

Having invented the dear old steam locomotive and passenger carrying railways, to some extent railways are in our blood. You have to add to that the fact that despite the small size of these islands, at it's height our national rail network extended to some 23,000+ miles of track, that's 23 times the length of the country! Hence railways were much more common per square mile than in most other places. So when the network was pruned back to just over 9,000 miles in the 1960s there was ample oppotunity for disused sites to be taken over by enthusiasts, and a plethora of enthusiats to do so.

Hence today, there are over 150 preservation sites. They are mainly railways, but also include several museums and railway centres. These now cover not just the remnants of the old main line network (standard gauge, 4' 8 1/2"), but also many (some quite lengthy) narrow gauge lines. And if small floats your boat then there are also many miniature railway lines, some of which are also quite lengthy. It is not my purpose here to repeat the work of others, so I have added a number of useful links to the right where further information may be found. But for the benefit of anyone who shares my preference for a longer ride on a standard gauge line, I've collated a useful list of lines that are 2 miles long or longer, not that there is anything wrong with the shorter lines, that's just my preference! Some shorter lines may one day merge into longer lines so let me know if that happens please.

Perhaps the most amazing aspect of the Railway Preservation scene in the UK is the emergence of enthusiast groups dedicated to building brand new standard gauge steam locomotives. To the uninitiated this may seem like wishful thinking, but four projects have already been completed, with a fifth undergoing final tests, including the main line express engine "Tornado" which, unlike most engines certified for main line excursion use, is not limited to 75mph, but has now been approved for 90mph working. It has also, in trials, clocked a recorded 100mph. This is serious engineering! There are a further 22 (yes 22!) such projects currently being worked upon plus 3 more in the planning stage. See this Wikipedia web site for full details, and here for a brief summary.

Useful links