Well the weather certainly proved a bit taxing over the last few weeks and copious amounts of tea had to be consumed to keep the chaps going. The ‘Medstead Irregulars’ have still manged to keep busy up and down the line with a number of jobs both large and small in spite of the series of heatwaves
At Ropley two teams have been busy completing a couple of the on-going building schemes. The first team have now completed the exterior repairs and re-paint of the Burnham on Sea signal box. The new slate roof and gloss painted cladding now look really smart from how the box appeared on its arrival and will protect the structure for the future. The team then moved inside- out of the sun- and started to renovate that part of the building. A lot of old wiring and disused shelving needed to be removed and the ceiling and walls cleaned off before any renovation work could start, however fortunately there was little actual repair work required. The internal re-paint being completed the fit out can now be undertaken by the S&D Steam Trust to create a proposed interactive/interpretive attraction for visitors/education visits at Ropley during their stopover and refreshment break at the station.
Another team was tasked with laying a base in the bench seat recess near the Burnham box. The brick recess was built by contractors, which replaced a former sleeper construction, and a concrete slab base was then needed to finish the job to provide a neat and easy to maintain surface. The bench seat overlooks the loco yard and provides a comfortable spot to sit and watch the operations and movements going on in the yard. Some landscaping is now needed to finish off the appearance of this area to match the rest of the work on the picnic area and T Junction frontages. Further along this part of the station another length of fencing has been fabricated and installed on the sleeper wall in front of the locomotive playground. This is both decorative and also provides a barrier between the playground and the main pathway to the T Junction and Handyside Bridge, which can be very busy during events.
At Alresford a new ramp has been fabricated in house and installed outside the kitchen at the West Country Buffet. This replaces a life expired wooden version that was no longer suitable for trolley access when replenishing the dining trains and RAT (Real Ale Train) services that are coming back into service. Aluminium chequer plate was used this time to provide a safer and more level surface for kitchen staff to negotiate-every little helps.
The workshop at Medstead has been busy as well with the making of replacement notice boards for Ropley to display heritage posters and event announcements. Whilst we were at it, the floor of the Railway’s truck was stripped out and replaced with new marine plywood sheets. The previous floor had seen many years of hard work transporting all sorts of loads up and down to the Railways stations and also many trips taking and picking up stuff, sometimes at some distance from the Railway. Another task undertaken here has been the refurbishment of a lamp post to be installed at Ropley in the station car park entrance. A concrete base with retaining studs and ducting for electrical supply has been laid in the location near the mobile booking office and the post will be erected in due course when the concrete has cured sufficiently to give firm support. Flood lights will be fitted to provide added site security and for additional illumination for staff in the darker hours, particularly during winter months.
Bob Brooks
