Hopeful Traveller's All Lines Challenges

[moley]

Yeah, if I can get work out of the way for a weekend then I might think about it!

[hopeful traveller]

The un-tweety one.

I tried to adopt the Geoff and Anthony strategy of "Don't tweet, it will give you more focus."
However on the back of my sheet I had

"All Lines" Tube challenge in progress

Follow @TheOtherRB on twitter
#rratt

Nevertheless, I still got quizzed by a man on the Waterloo & City line!

14:48
Last all lines attempt of the year #rratt

It started OK, as for once I actually was early to my destination and had to wait 15 minutes so I could get my scheduled train (letting 8 or 9 go) without the platform announcer noticing! Sadly the train was one minute late and, as such, I got to Green Park (not saying where from!) one minute late, which severely annoyed me, as I had the BIG run now.

I was following the same route that looked so good for me last time, until I got lost as Liverpool Street and ended up on the wrong line.

At Piccadilly Circus, I tried to use that spiral staircase thing - it is still there but it looks very different from the picture Geoff has! Then it's a simple case of Bakerloo northbound to Bakerloo southbound. I did make the train, yes, but I didn't get the train number, and as it was a tight connection (doors closed just after I got in) then I didn't get the right door, giving me a chance to see what the number was when it left at the next station.

Charing Cross.

The nightmare run.

I didn't run into anyone this time but I certainly came close as we all had to avoid a busker! I didn't see him so I leapt OVER his instrument case! The whole episode set me back a bit - I was now down on a slowish schedule by one minute. The only thing that caused me to stick to the route was the ludicrous claims that the schedule was saying (9 minute waits at Liverpool Street in both cases).

But with minor delays on the District Line I was sure there would be no Embankment shenanigans this time. Finally, there was no shenanigans. So much so I'm wearing a green shirt today. Nice 'n' easy change at Westminster (despite the dodgy flooring!). But I was now down on schedule by a full 3 minutes, and with a tight Waterloo & City line connection coming up (and I actually used one of my own tips to get to it!) things did not look good. It was so tiring, the run, that I actually stopped when I had a full escalator to myself at Waterloo! An antagonising 3 minute wait certainly made things look bad. The run at Bank went OK but I was now 7 minutes down on schedule. But all I knew was that if I made the 1545 circle line then I was still in with a shout of a PB. I didn't; I missed it by 7 minutes (later I found that it was departing just as my Central Line train was pulling in), so I got onto a Metropolitan Line train but the top 3 had now gone. A VERY bad change at Aldgate (6 minute wait anyone?) didn't comprehend things, and by the time I got to Liverpool Street I hopped onto a Hammersmith & City to Moorgate. Surely nothing could go wrong now? Yes, something went wrong.

A BTPO was on the train and, whilst he didn't inspect my ticket, he held the train for about a minute as the ruthless Hammersmith & City line driver shut half of the capacity of that train out! The BTPO forced open the doors and that set me back by yet another minute.

There was, though, limited celebration at Moorgate. Somehow I had clawed back some time and I was only 2 minutes down in the end.

53:54
New personal best.

[The Raven]

44mins 18sec on December 17th
My Route:
Barbicain Moorgate Liverpool Street Bank Waterloo Westminster St. James Park Victoria Green Park Piccadilly Cirus Charing Cross Finishing at Leicester Square.

Big thumbs up to the accordian player at Bank who gave me a shout of encouragement.
Big thumbs down to the Picc line whose departure board was blank!

[hopeful traveller]

That's almost exactly what I did on my 57:02!

[hopeful traveller]

I'm thinking of having another go on Friday afternoon. Anyone up for it?

EDIT: Obviously, I'll find the CIN people first...

[The Orange One]

Farringdon Barbican Moorgate Liverpool Street Bank Waterloo Embankment Westminster Green Park Oxford Circus Piccadilly Circus (onwards to either Green Park or Leicester Square - Green Park is better but if Leicester Square comes first...)

Gave me 41 minutes 20 seconds. Mostly because:

No nasty waits for the Circle - all the difficult sub-surface lines are at the start
No nasty long runs at Bank
No nasty travelator at Waterloo
The only nice change at Green Park

And perhaps using the nice spiral staircase (carriage 5 door 2 from the southbound Bakerloo - something they don't tell you) you may be able to cut this down.

Or perhaps you have something much better - hope you get a record.

[palkanetoijala31]

I'm thinking of having another go on Friday afternoon. Anyone up for it?

EDIT: Obviously, I'll find the CIN people first...

I SOMEHOW DOUBT ON fnc that we will want to segway off on all lines attempt

[tractakid]

Rhys wasn't suggesting you did.

[The Orange One]

Perhaps you might like to find a FNC route including the Waterloo and City line. Then you can record an All Lines Challenge Time. Also make sure you get a Zone One time, a Bottle time, a Mouse time, a Points of the Compass time and a South of the Thames time.

Perhaps you might like to set up a set of R15 stations (obviously full LU network), with a starting station of your start station. Then you'd get a R15 time as well.

[hopeful traveller]

Surprisingly good signal on the sub-surface, and, amazingly, got a signal on the sub-surface platforms at King's Cross, all of which helped to tweet @TubeRhys.

15:00
Rhys Benjamin is carrying the Tube Rhys flag (available for £9.99) and is about to do another all lines challenge...

Well, went to Farringdon and did a bit of waiting. I only say 'a bit' because a perfect three turned up straightaway!

15:06
Away we go. Lines done: 1/11.

15:08
As luck would have it, it was a perfect three that came straight away...

All three of the sub-surfaces around the top of the Circle were S Stocks! I love a good S Stock, but I don't think people feel as much love for them as I do. S Stocks are just brilliant.

15:09
S STOCK MANIA!!!!

I got to Liverpool Street and headed for the Central line. And it was a fairly non-descript change, arriving at the platform about 5 seconds before the train pulled in. That's decent by my standards.

Now, at Bank, there is a secret corridor, which I had only ever done in reverse (and I swear it's slightly uphill the other way round) from the Central to the Waterloo & City, which is not advertised on the Central line platforms. I got to Bank to see a Waterloo & City line train arriving, but not departing. We sat for two minutes at Bank... and again I got my Waterloo doors completely mixed up! I knew it was one of the ends, and I picked the wrong one. D'oh! This set me back at Waterloo, as I lost two minutes waiting for a Northern line train. Embankment was a REALLY sexy change (no time to speak to the kiosk man here), and then I hurtled down the escalators at Westminster... and had to wait one TFL minute for a Northbound Jubilee line. I was convinced that it was a certain door. But I got it wrong again as I'd picked the Victoria line to perfection and not the Piccadilly line. As the Victoria line ran like clockwork I knew there was no point changing my route. I struggled to the Piccadilly line but didn't lose any time as there was an Arnos Grove train on the platform. Yes please!

I went for the secret stairs at Piccadilly Circus, and amazingly got a little lost in the station (don't know why!) but lost two minutes waiting for a train to Queen's Park. Sexy Oxford Circus... almost. It was going to be a sexy change but a woman held the doors open so the driver re-opened them, allowing this woman to get in, closing them again, and losing about 20 seconds. When you roll up at Warren Street with a time of 00:44:03, you begin to rue those 20 seconds....

[tractakid]

Finally, a decent time.

[tubeguru]

Rhys Benjamin is carrying the Tube Rhys flag (available for £9.99)

Seriously? You've made a flag?

[hopeful traveller]

Rhys Benjamin is carrying the Tube Rhys flag (available for £9.99)

Seriously? You've made a flag?

Yes, you asked this question months ago...

[tubeguru]

Rhys Benjamin is carrying the Tube Rhys flag (available for £9.99)

Seriously? You've made a flag?

Yes, you asked this question months ago...

Obviously the bemusement has yet to wear off.

[hopeful traveller]

Finally, a decent time.

Harsh.