P-Way and "Track-Bolt Tennis"

[Deleted]

this isn't explicitally LU related but i was wondering if LU guys do the same.

A few months ago Notwork Rail completly closed the entire Windsor Branch of the GWML for a week to re-lay the track. so Monday and Tuesday it looks as if the P-Way guys are doing there job and getting on with it. but wednesday i get to the Station after school about 15:30 and there are 4 guys in orange Balfour Beatty Jackets playing tennis with track bolts and a couple of spades. Now two questions:

1. isn't that the most idiotic waste of time ever
2. do LU guys ever d the same sort of things?

[Chris M]

1. It certainly sounds like a waste of time (although they could have been on a break or something), but I doubt it is, strictly speaking, the most idiotic.

2. I'm sure the answer is "Not officially". If they did, and anyone on this forum knew about it, I would be suprised if they would say it happened as it probably breaches about a dozen health and safety rules and regs.
I suspect that the most likely situation is that those who post on here don't know whether it happens or not, and so couldn't truthfully say "No".
The only exception to this I can think of is someone like Q8 commenting on an occurence of this 20+ years ago.

Chris

[Tomcakes]

awkward42 said:

(although they could have been on a break or something),

Break or not, still very unprofessional. Most people on this forum will understand that you may need time to re-lay track, but if a steaming punter walked off a replacement bus having missed a connection and saw platelayers playing tennis with bits of track (which, incidentally, one hopes were for scrap and not about to be used )... could you imagine the reaction?

[Chris M]

I agree completely. My point was that they may not, strictly, be wasting time by doing it.

[Deleted]

well it was funny to watch...

[igelkotten]

Generally speaking, when you are on a worksite or testsite, you sometimes end up in situation where you have nothing to do but to wait for someone or something to finsih thier work, before you can start yours. It is very much a "hurry up and wait" situation.

As for your questions:

1) I'd say watching 22 people running around chasing an inflated synthetic pig's bladder is even more idiotic. Besides, a bit of excercise is good for you.

2) You wouldn't believe the things we get up to here in Stockholm. Also, see the "Boredom" thread.

[Tom]

I have known people to play football on embankments while waiting for another team to finish. Me, I always used to either go to sleep, take photographs or try and keep out of the rain.

[Deleted]

that explains the footballs lodged into the pos rail....

[Christopher J]

jn114 said:

there are 4 guys in orange Balfour Beatty Jackets playing tennis with track bolts and a couple of spades.

Is Windsor doubling up as Wimbledon now? ;D

What next? Javelin with Juice Rails? The Discus throw with Signal Lenses?

[Tomcakes]

christopherjolly said:

jn114 said:

there are 4 guys in orange Balfour Beatty Jackets playing tennis with track bolts and a couple of spades.

Is Windsor doubling up as Wimbledon now? ;D

What next? Javelin with Juice Rails? The Discus throw with Signal Lenses?

So that's what they'll be doing at these olympics then... .

[yellowsignal]

guys,
as a civil engineer i can tell you this is break-behavior. When working hard all day, this sounds like a fun passtime.
I remember a time where we used our helmets (on our heads) to try to keep a 1 inch diameter pebble in the air for as long as possible. I believe the record stood at 20, we got new helmets after that...
As you can imagine there are balls on the site, but not the ones you should kick

Edit: the guys out there don't care who's watching (maybe except when HSE people or suits are around).

[Tom]

Sounds like an interesting use for safety helmets!

My trick used to involve a safety helmet, a jar of vaseline and a polystyrene cup...

[igelkotten]

Whilst not P/Way, some bored shunters have been known to try to form trains out of consecutively numbered cars, and then place them on trains that would run through the city consecutively. For example, form train 19/37 out of cars 1162-1163....1169, and then train 17/22 which will follow 19/37 for most of the day out of 1170...1177.

Train Tetris is another amusing activity to be engaged in whilst in depots.

[Phil]

igelkotten said:

Train Tetris is another amusing activity to be engaged in whilst in depots.

Please explain......

[Tomcakes]

igelkotten said:

Train Tetris is another amusing activity to be engaged in whilst in depots.

Now *that* would be fun! I wonder if LU would let us take over Upminster or Northfields for the day ?

[jimmy]

A shunter I know on the Oslo tramway once set up his trams for the morning first services in ascending order. Trams are allocated train-numbers according to the line number and the number of the tram on that line. So:

Train 1201 consisted of tram 101, 1202->102 and so forth, then for the next line for instance 1301->111 and upwards. In the end he had trams 101-116 all leaving the depot in order within a few minutes of each other, with 117 being the first unavailable unit for service. Stuff like this happens now and again...

But train tetris?

[boxboy]

We struggle to get train set numbers in the correct order, so I don't think we'd be able to keep car numbers in consecutive order somehow!

[Phil]

rbruce1314 said:

igelkotten said:

Train Tetris is another amusing activity to be engaged in whilst in depots.

Please explain......

Please, Igelkotten, we are longing to know.....