Birthday Challenge V2

[tractakid]

Interesting route.

[The Orange One]

Well, that was tiring, but fun, though I did a lot of waiting (Cannon Street, then Elephant and Castle, then King's Cross - 9, 13 and 13 respectively)

[tractakid]

Results are as follows:

6:Nick Gardner: 4:52:14 Wembley Stadium to Ealing Broadway
5:Tom Cooling 4:39:47 Wembley Stadium to Ealing Broadway
4:Glen Bryant 4:21:18 Wembley Stadium to Ealing Broadway
=2:Orange One 4:06:04 Wembley Stadium to Ealing Broadway
=2:Andrew Chilcraft 4:06:04 Wembley Stadium to Ealing Broadway
1: Kevin Brown and Damian Cook 3:49:59 Acton Main Line to Kings Cross

I'll post my route and anecdotes once I am back home. But for now I will say I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge.

[Going Underground]

This was tough, tiring and interesting to say the least

Myself and Nozza managed to get lost in two shopping centres, took a train in the wrong direction from Euston and had to double back Camden Town. Our route of exactly 4 hours was 12 mins down early doors but some incredible seat of the pants changes and a bit of knowledge on the train times from Waterloo and some ball busting runs saw us somehow get the time back and get a train up on the penultimate change to see us come home 10 mins ahead of schedule

Happy birthday Andrew and thanks for coming up with such a great challenge

[tractakid]

Here's my timetable- the only things that happened that were different were arriving into Marylebone nice and early, (and on a nice platform!) making the connection at Victoria more lax. Might have just made an earlier train at Victoria had I had platform information, as it's removed from the screens when the train is close to departure. Learned from Hugo that it's a good idea to have information for trains before and after you plan to get- especially if approaching a station underground with no phone signal.

Then at Charing Cross a late running train meant I could depart earlier, which reduced the wait I had timetabled. (This effectively just meant longer waiting at Fenchurch Street).

Was a tube train down after a slow trip from Cannon Street to London Bridge, which ate up into the wait I had at Elephant and Castle. I also got a bit lost and ended up doing a bit of a tour of the underground station, but caught my intended train after running through the shopping centre.

The timetabled tight connection at Euston was helped immensely by a swift change onto the Northern Line at Moorgate, meaning I had more than the 2 minutes.



I was with Hugo from the start to Waterloo, I joined Glen from Fenchurch Street to Hoxton and again from Bethnal Green to Liverpool Street, then I discover that Hugo and Tom had been on the same London Overground train from Euston and then after I had gotten ahead of them again at Paddington, the same train from Paddington to finish.

I was thrilled to have made 3 connections in particular- the one minute at Hoxton, the 5 minute run from to Bethnal Green from Whitechapel, and the connection onto the LO at Euston. I couldn't believe that I was still on timetable more and more as the challenge progressed, and I am pretty gutted not to have obtained my first victory. I was annoyed when Hugo popped his head up at Ealing, then to hear Kev and Nozza's story just left me disgusted! hahaha

Oh well, there are still plenty more challenges to try and get that goal.

[palkanetoijala31]

IF it makes you feel better it took me two years to get my first victory in a random 15

[The Orange One]

I started at Wembley Stadium on the 1244 with Glen, Nick and tractakid. Straight down onto the Bakerloo at Marylebone, followed by tractakid, and continued onto the Victoria at Oxford Circus. At Victoria, I reached Platform 15 to see the 1306 (which I wasn't planning to make) pulling away. So onto the 1313 with tractakid, where upon discussion I switched a questionable change at Clapham Junction for a far more lax one at Battersea Park to Queenstown Road Battersea. SWT to Waterloo, where me and tractakid split up, and the Drain was very slow, resulting in missing the 1340 at Cannon Street. So I had to wait 7 minutes for the next one, which turned into 9. I was not happy, but the extra 2 minutes were gained back on the way to Charing Cross with a late running train.

Took the Bakerloo to Elephant and Castle (it's a long way at Charing Cross). It's also a long way at Elephant and Castle, made even longer by running along the street instead of through the shopping centre - my bus travels meant I knew where the station was but didn't know the fastest way there. 13 minutes at Elephant and Castle for a train that waited at Blackfriars and Farringdon before finally arriving at St. Pancras International. Reached King's Cross for yet another 13 minute wait for the 1453.

It was at Finsbury Park that my luck started to improve. A Moorgate train arrived as I reached the platform (the 1459), which flew down my new favourite stretch of line, the Northern City line, and a Hammersmith and City Line in 3 minutes at Moorgate meant I took the faster option of Northern to Bank and Circle to Tower Hill. Still ended up leaving Fenchurch Street 5 minutes behind schedule, but as this was direct to West Ham a Jubilee immediately could put me back on track. I missed the immediate Jubilee. Waited 3 minutes for another, got to Stratford believing I was 2 trains behind schedule.

At Stratford, the 1539 was 2 minutes late. This meant I was just 1 train behind schedule. Then as the train flew down towards Liverpool Street, it overtook the train I had originally hoped to catch. And then it overtook a second, even earlier train to arrive at Liverpool Street at 1547, 5 minutes ahead. A 135 bus to Shoreditch High Street put me on the 1556, 15 minutes up, and then a Victoria Line train and a mad dash later, I was on the 1617 out of Euston (that's one Overground train, or 20 minutes up). I knew my final time would be around 4:05:??, and I took the Bakerloo at Queen's Park (I felt too tired to attempt Kilburn High Road to Kilburn Park for a train I'd never make at Paddington) to Paddington for the 1642, arriving Ealing Broadway at 1650 for a time of 04:06:04.

I was shocked to hear about the Kev/Nozza start which worked so well for them, so a challenge I'd like to do again. Especially with a start outside the window...

[TC95]

I was reasonably optimistic at the start yesterday with the route I had planned. I believe I was the only one on the 1210 from Wembley Stadium as opposed to the 1244. The 1210 arrived nearly 3 minutes early at Marylebone! I was spoilt with choice for my bus up to Boundary Road (I got the 113, although a 13 was right behind), a short brisk walk downhill lead me to South Hampstead with 1.5 minutes to spare. Luckily, the 1241 LO to Euston was on time. An early arrival at Euston put me ahead of schedule, however despite aiming for the northbound Victoria line platform I somehow ended up on the southbound Northern line platform!!

I find it quicker to get to St Pancras by following signs for King's Cross when departing deep level tubes at KCSP. Better knowledge of the Thameslink timetable would have put me on the 1300 departure, which I missed by only half a minute! I was right on my schedule, but the first regret of the day...

I was working on schedule all the way up until Victoria where another early arrival left me two trains up on the Victoria line. Following A2's helpful advice on finding the departure board for London Waterloo via Exit 1 at Vauxhall, as opposed to the signposted way from Exit 2, I was able to stay 1 train ahead when departing Vauxhall for Waterloo. Unlike when I last researched this bit, my train did not sit outside Waterloo, instead a smooth journey had me 4 minutes up at Waterloo. Almost perfect placement left me with a short dash directly across to the up escalator to Waterloo East. Second regret on the day, I just missed the 1403 to Charing Cross which must have been at least 3 minutes late by again, no more than half a minute. My 1410 was advertised as being 1 minute late.

This is where my month of careful route planning started to unravel itself. The late running of the 1410 meant I was unlikely to make my 2 minute connection for the 1415 at Charing Cross. This left as I arrived
Taking the 1417 meant my connection at London Bridge was going to be very tight. A quick search on National Rail Enquires showed that my 1428 (which was train I was supposed to be on according to my timetable) was nowhere, and I was stuck with a 1424 or a 1431. The 1417 was supposed to arrive at LB at 1423 so the 1424 was also unlikely until I found that it was running 1 minute late. A quick cross platform interchange was on suddenly on
Disaster, for some reason it had left early at 1423 grr!!
The 1431, which would put me 4 minutes behind schedule, made the connection for the 1440 train at Fenchurch Street also looking unlikely. The 1431 was 2 minutes late by the time it had departed London Bridge. It was 1442 by the time I arrived at Tower Hill. A 2 minute walk to Fenchurch Street put me on the 1450 instead, with incredible ease.

The interchange at Limehouse saw me meet up with Kev & Nozza who entered my carriage from further up the train. I then followed them to just after Hoxton, although I wasn't really recognised until my mad dash at Shadwell to catch the 1503 to Dalston Junction. My bus app showed a 2 minute connection for a bus at Hoxton Station towards Cambridge Heath with had a estimated arrival time of 1517 setting up a very tight connection for the 1518 service into Liverpool Street. Maybe the prospect of getting back on schedule was too much for me given the disappointments earlier in the day. My first of two runs put me on the 48, which Kev & Nozza just missed. However, bad traffic had my itching to get off the bus, especially after Kev & Nozza had overtaken me. At the next stop I decided to get off and run with them, but as I got off, they got on. Then the bad traffic suddenly disappeared and the bus sailed through to the station where I can only assume they made the connection. Despite my best attempts at running, I was very behind (that's the last time I run anywhere!).

The rest of the route felt more like a anti-climax. The 1533 was 2 minutes late. A swift connection to a Metropolitan train at Liverpool Street, with 2 pigeons on-board(!), put me on the 1550 north from Moorgate, only 10 minutes behind schedule now. However more disruptions at Finsbury Park set me back further, the 1612 was originally 8 minutes late, then halved to 4 minutes before ending up 6 minutes late. However, this train managed to arrive on time at King's Cross at 1626, (although I should have been departing Paddington at this time according to my schedule!). A quick connection onto a westbound Circle line put me on the 1642 train to Reading at Paddington where I met Hugo. Getting off at Ealing Broadway we saw tractakid, as mentioned above.

My time of 4:39:47 was 16 minutes later than if I would have got around without any problems.

So my full route was:
Wembley Stadium Marylebone 113 from Dorset Sq to Boundary Road (D) South Hampstead Euston St Pancras Herne Hill Victoria Vauxhall Waterloo Waterloo East Charing Cross London Bridge Cannon Street Tower Hill Fenchurch Street Limehouse Shadwell Hoxton 48 from Hoxton Station (HG) Cambridge Heath Liverpool Street Moorgate Finsbury Park King's Cross Paddington Ealing Broadway

And with actual timings:
Wembley Stadium d1210
Marylebone a1220
113 from Dorset Sq d1225 to Boundary Road (D) a1235
South Hampstead d1241
Euston a1249 d1254
St Pancras a1256 d1304
Herne Hill a1327 d 1338
Victoria a1345 d1350
Vauxhall a1353 d1357
Waterloo a1401
Waterloo East a1405 d1411
Charing Cross a1414 d1417
London Bridge a1424 d1433
Cannon Street a1437 d1439
Tower Hill a1442
Fenchurch Street a1444 d1450
Limehouse a1454 d1457
Shadwell a1459 d1503
Hoxton a1509
48 from Hoxton Station (HG) d1511
Cambridge Heath a1523 d1535
Liverpool Street a1542 d1544
Moorgate a1546 d1550
Finsbury Park a1602 d1618
King's Cross a1626 d1628
Paddington a1638 d1642
Ealing Broadway a1650


I would definitely love to do this challenge again...

[Going Underground]

My first of two runs put me on the 48, which Kev & Nozza just missed. However, bad traffic had my itching to get off the bus, especially after Kev & Nozza had overtaken me. At the next stop I decided to get off and run with them, but as I got off, they got on. Then the bad traffic suddenly disappeared at the bus sailed through to the station where I can only assume they made the connection. Despite my best attempts at running, I was very behind (that's the last time I run anywhere!).

Although we were chasing the bus we didn't decide to actually board it until we got to the next stop and could cleary see that the hold up was only due to traffic lights and the road ahead was looking clear and defintely quicker.... We were very surprised to see you get off (assume you were downstairs and couldn't see this?)
Anyway we did feel a bit sorry for you and our intention was to hold the train (which was actually slightly late) for you if we saw you dashing up the stairs.....

[TC95]

My first of two runs put me on the 48, which Kev & Nozza just missed. However, bad traffic had my itching to get off the bus, especially after Kev & Nozza had overtaken me. At the next stop I decided to get off and run with them, but as I got off, they got on. Then the bad traffic suddenly disappeared and the bus sailed through to the station where I can only assume they made the connection. Despite my best attempts at running, I was very behind (that's the last time I run anywhere!).

Although we were chasing the bus we didn't decide to actually board it until we got to the next stop and could cleary see that the hold up was only due to traffic lights and the road ahead was looking clear and defintely quicker.... We were very surprised to see you get off (assume you were downstairs and couldn't see this?)
Anyway we did feel a bit sorry for you and our intention was to hold the train (which was actually slightly late) for you if we saw you dashing up the stairs.....

I was downstairs, and yes, I couldn't see what the road ahead was like. The only reason why I got off was because of the preceding traffic conditions (now obviously due to the traffic lights). With the speed the bus was moving at, and the ease in which both of you overtook me while I was on the bus, I thought that I could get to the station quicker on foot, in the company of you two.
Old
Thanks for the offer but I was miles behind. I saw a train go over at about 1516, and thinking that that was the 1518, stopped running to eat up some of the time I would be waiting for the 1533. Then about 3-4 minutes later, another train crossed the bridge in the direction of Liverpool Street, the delayed 1518 as it turned out. Had I of realised that there were two slow and two fast lines, and that the first was not the early 1518, I may still have kept on running...

Had I of kept of running would I have made the delayed 1518? Possibly but unlikely. In the end, did missing that train had a huge bearing on the final standings? No, not really. I would only have finished 1 place higher...

[TC95]

I discover that Hugo and Tom had been on the same London Overground train from Euston and then after I had gotten ahead of them again at Paddington, the same train from Paddington to finish.

I don't believe I was on your LO service out of Euston with Hugo. I'd gone the other direction much earlier in the day.
I was, however, on the same final train as you, with Hugo...

[tractakid]

I discover that Hugo and Tom had been on the same London Overground train from Euston and then after I had gotten ahead of them again at Paddington, the same train from Paddington to finish.

I don't believe I was on your LO service out of Euston with Hugo. I'd gone the other direction much earlier in the day.
I was, however, on the same final train as you, with Hugo...

Oh right. I must have been a bit confused.

[TC95]

I discover that Hugo and Tom had been on the same London Overground train from Euston and then after I had gotten ahead of them again at Paddington, the same train from Paddington to finish.

I don't believe I was on your LO service out of Euston with Hugo. I'd gone the other direction much earlier in the day.
I was, however, on the same final train as you, with Hugo...

Oh right. I must have been a bit confused.

I was leaving Finsbury Park at that point. Maybe it was someone who looked a lot like me?

[tractakid]

I didn't see Hugo at all on the train, I was in the door position for Kilburn High Road. When typing the post I must have assumed the last bit of the route was the same.

[DrainBrain]

Here's my route:

12:44 from Wembley Stadium Marylebone Oxford Circus Finsbury Park Moorgate Liverpool Street (by foot) Cambridge Heath Hoxton (foot/bus) Shadwell Limehouse Fenchurch Street Tower Hill (foot) Cannon Street London Bridge Charing Cross Embankment (foot) Victoria Clapham Junction Waterloo Elephant & Castle St. Pancras International King's Cross Finsbury Park (again!) Euston Kilburn High Road Kilburn Park (foot) Paddington Ealing Broadway

I had intended to go: Finsbury Park King's Cross Old Street Moorgate

but the train at FPK was delayed so I "winged it" and got on a train to Moorgate that was already at the opposite platform. Between Cambridge Heath and Hoxton I managed to catch a bus for one whole stop. Later, I got to Limehouse just in time for the 14:16, only for that train to be 12 minutes late. A brief dalliance to help a nice young lady find her way at E&C cost me some time, and I eventually arrived at STP at 16:10. However, the next King's Cross train was at 16:22, after which I couldn't get back to Euston in time for the 16:37, arriving 3 minutes later and having to wait 17 minutes for the 16:57. Carried on around to Paddington and caught a ridiculously slow-moving train to end at Ealing Broadway.

My roughly planned time was 4h 39m vs actual 4h 52m. Allowing for the delay at Limehouse and the disastrous Euston wait, I actually did pretty well.

This is a really fun challenge and the key to a good time is catching the infrequent services at just the right time. This, of course, I completely failed to do by leaving King's Cross and Euston until near the end.