Random 15 Championship 2025/26: Round 2

[tangy]

Apologies for the late announcement.

Round 2 of the 2025/26 Random 15 Championship is a normal round, 15 LU only stations in zone 1 and 2 to be visited in the fastest time using standard Tube Challenge rules.

We will be starting from Queen's Park (London - not Glasgow) at 12:30 UK local time. Please gather the street side of the ticket barriers in good time for the challenge to start promptly.

Post challenge meet up will be as usual at the Blue Posts pub, Newman Street, W1T 3EU.

Please respond if you are attending. Thanks.

(This is just a summary post to announce the start station, full details to follow).

[Oggm]

Attending:

Oggm+1 (not post meet-up)

[RJSRdg]

Hoping to be there.

[Going Underground]

Sadly not - Music festival Great Yarmouth

[Rhys1995]

I'll be there. FNC attempt the day before plus this, I'm ready to be knackered!

[Lunaticonthegrass]

Sorry, already busy.

(Slightly annoyed at myself as I knew about this when Tangy asked about dates for the current championship, but I hadn't put it in my diary, so failed to mention it!)

Hope y'all have a great time.

[Lunaticonthegrass]

Queen's Park (London - not Glasgow)

Thank goodness for that. A R15 on the clockwork orange would be a tad dull.

[JamesWright]

I’ll be there, looking forward to it.

[miklcct]

I'll be there.

[Sachef]

Planning to be there with a friend, should be fun!

[miklcct]

Btw will there be a Random 15 in Glasgow Subway?

[ANDY_JS]

Attending.

[tangy]

Following a discussion amongst challengers present at the pub after the previous round, it is requested that challengers refrain from using AI or similar apps to plan large chunks or the whole of their route, this should be done using your own knowledge. However it is still permitted to use apps or websites like Google Maps, Real Time Trains or bus trackers at any time to assist you during the challenge.

This policy will be kept under review.

Tangy.
BERC.

[hopeful traveller]

Attending (probably)

[RJSRdg]

From Queens Park I headed south down the Bakerloo, via Maida Vale and Warwick Avenue to Baker Street. Here I somewhat bizarrely narrowly avoided colliding with Rhys J who was running in the opposite direction to me! Up two flights of stairs to the Met, behind Andy JS, only to just miss a departing train and have to cross to the other side of the station for a 4 minute wait. Up to Finchley Road where Milo and friend, Peter S and several others were waiting for a southbound train. Back through Baker Street then down via Regent's Park to Piccadilly Circus (Milo & friend bailed at Oxford Circus). West on the Picc to Baron's Court, where a District Line train had its doors open in the opposite platform. I hopped out, the District's doors closed and I got back on the Picc to Hammersmith where the District Line train was again on the other side, and again the doors closed before I could board. Five minute wait for the next one, in which time Rhys B joined me. One stop to Ravenscourt Park where a westbound service was pulling in on the other side, Rhys ran for it, I didn't have much hope of catching it but did a sprint I no longer knew I had in me through the passageway, Up the stairs and a trademark leap through closing doors to board the train, where Rhys said he'd considered holding the doors for me but decide to be "competitive". Back all the way up the Picc (where I got chatting to a couple with a dog which they told me shi-tzu/poodle cross - I'll leave you to imagine what that particular cross is called!) to Russell Square, and double back to Holborn, where another challenger (sorry, I forgot the name) raced past me, I tried to keep up but just missed the eastbound Central Line train they caught.
Through Chancery Lane and St Paul's to Stratford. I crossed back to the westbound Central Line platform and boarded a train, only to notice as the doors were closing that an Elizabeth Line train was pulling in on the other platform face, but it was too late to disembark. This could prove crucial!
Down to Mile End, jumped on to the S stock on the other platform, which unfortunately was a Hammersmith train, so I hopped back off at Whitechapel and caught the District Train behind. Round to Monument, probably now a train down on where I would have been had I caught the EL from Stratford.
At Monument I disembarked from Coach 1 Door 1 as per First Off the Tube, only to find that exit blocked and have to go back several coaches along the platform and through a separate set of escalators and the DLR platforms to the Northern Line. Then down the Northern via Borough to Oval in 2:30:29, which sadly was only good enough for 11th (would probably have been tenth had I caught the EL earlier), so no points for me in the first two rounds.

The disappointment in the Challenge was made up for by two wins in the darts, including a spectacular Double 1 checkout that didn't touch the wires!

Thanks once again to Tangy for organising.

However (slight moan here), can I request that finishers try to get back to the pub promptly. Several of us hung around for best part of 2 hours after finishing before people who had completed faster than us turned up. The sooner Tangy is able to tell us the results, the sooner we can get on with the darts!