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Pathfinder Tours Review of 1987 - 1988 Buck Soft Cover 1989 Many photos Locos
Pathfinder Tours Review of 1987 - 1988 By Martin Buck Soft Cover 1989 Many photos of locomotives. 90? Pages, pages not numbered.
Introduction
PATHFINDER TOURS was launched on January 1st 1987, under the Directorship of Martin Buck and Peter Watts, with the intention of establishing the Company as a dominant force in the charter train market.
With many rail enthusiasts in the country we realised that there was a definite need for a programme of special trains incorporating the various interests within the movement, such as freight line travel and steam/diesel haulage, for example. There was also a further demand, especially from the general public, for special trains over scenic routes and to interesting destinations.
So, with this in mind, we embarked on a wide programme of special trains to cater for, primarily, the people living in the Mid-West, Severnside and West Midlands area of the country. Of course, as our product became known and established, people living in other areas travelled to join our tours, from as far and wide as Penzance, Dover and Edinburgh, which gives you an idea of the widespread appeal of Pathfinder Tours.
Now, two years later and with approaching 40 special trains under our belt, we feel the time is right to look back and 'Review' our 1987-1988 operation. The main reasons for doing this are to provide our passengers with a comprehensive, illustrated record of all the special trains on which they may have participated and to reflect on how the charter train scene has changed and will change in the future.
All the special trains covered in this title are, what I would class as, `railtours' because they include a combination of features - haulage behind specific motive power, travel over scenic routes/freight lines and offer optional activities for passengers, which are sacrosanct with such a tour. For this reason, the October 17 1987, 'Blackpool Illuminator', charter from Bristol to Blackpool, has not been included because it was merely an excursion, containing none of the above mentioned features.
As a charter train operator, we endeavoured to provide interesting and unusual tours, which featured, for example, taking certain classes of locomotive to unfamiliar territory. It may well be that we achieved many 'firsts', such as the visit of 45110 to Fishguard Harbour but, as this would involve extensive research and might be difficult to substantiate, I will leave this aspect for you to decide.
The 'On-Train' service is also an important aspect of a `railtour' and we have provided a wide range of services to our passengers, which we consider essential. These include, friendly and helpful coach stewards, catering facilities, sales-stand and a raffle in aid of a recognised charity or transport preservation group. Many people and organisations have assisted in providing these services and, as they are too numerous to mention individually, I would like to extend my thanks to them collectively for their help and dedication.
Pathfinder Tours, not unlike any other business, has experienced its share of problems and disappointments, many of which affect you, our passengers. These include, for example, those railtours which were advertised in good faith and bookings received for but, late in the day, had to be cancelled due to operational difficulties beyond our control - like the proposed 'Southern Vectis Venturer' and 'Class 27' railtours in 1987.
We have established a good working relationship with British Rail - the Inter-City Charter Train Unit, based in London, with whom we initially liaise to confirm our proposals and agree the charter fees and the B.R. 'originating' Region for a tour, with whom we coordinate the details and check progress. This, in effect, is our main channel of communication in planning tours and if we receive charter train information from them quickly and precisely, we can provide you with a first class and efficient service.
It is true to say that the charter train operation has had to change by decree over the last two years and, if Pathfinder Tours was to remain a viable operation, it was also important that we too changed our approach and adopted the new guidelines laid down by British Rail. Well, what were the changes? .. .
Basically, the main change concerned motive power. During 1987, we could request the majority of passenger rated and Railfreight locomotives to haul our trains but, from January 1988, the rules changed and Railfreight locomotives became unavailable to haul charter trains. This decision may seem rather ironic to many people, if you consider that such locomotives were regularly diagrammed to work certain 'Summer Dated' passenger services on B.R., like class 20 and 37 locomotives on the Skegness and Cambrian routes, respectively, in particular. Whilst this apparent anomaly remains, it can do nothing but cause confusion and disappointment to the railtouring public.
From January 1989, the rules and guidelines change again in that 'requested' motive power should be restricted to the use of 45106 (later changed to 45128) and 37350, when diesel hauled charters are concerned - if these two are unacceptable, then haulage must be behind the ubiquitous class 47 locomotive. We must, therefore, wait and see how this situation develops.
Additionally, there is the problem of route availability, which is restricted to train driver traction and route knowledge, thus reducing the costly need of pilotmen. A further factor is increasing charter fees, which can be prohibitive and restrictive, especially on long distance tours and we may see the 'Son 0' Skirl' type tour becoming a thing of the past.
It is for this reason, we ran the 'Pennine Executives', late in 1988, to test the market for luxury dining trains, to see if these could supplement a conventional railtour programme, in the light of these new changes. I am pleased to say they were a total success and we see these dining trains becoming the core of our business, plus a number of selected diesel and steam hauled special trains, in 1989 and beyond.
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