Personal Track Safety - day 1
June 25th, 2007
Rail track
I won’t bore you with too many details about this course, but a short report from the first day of my track safety course.
- I need to do this course because the company I work for does a lot of work for the rail industry (filming and taking photos). And every person that needs to get close to trains and tracks needs to pass this exam. It’s 2 days training, and I have my exam tomorrow.
- I am in a class with 6 men, I am the only girl. This is no problem as they all are very very nice guys. Very.
- I am really not a train freak but I like trains and I find this course quite interesting. In my class I have people from DLR (Docklands Light Railway) (mostly overland trains without drivers that bring you from Bank to Canary Wharf, Greenwich, the Thames Barrier and further). And there are people from the London Underground who know everything about the tube. I could talk with them for days and not get bored.
- I have learned how to step over a rail when crossing one without getting electrified.
- I have learned how to protect an unsafe train line by placing an alert on the rails.
- I have learned how to place explosives (yeah baby yeah) to warn approaching trains for danger.
- I have looked ridiculous in my orange vest and white helmet and monstrous kick some ass boots. But on the other hand so did the others.
- While walking along the track trains have been sounding their horn for us. And we had to raise our hand so they knew we heard them. Funky!
- And now I need to study some stuff for tomorrow, hoping that I pass the exam. One thing I have to pump into my head is the phonetic alphabet. But there is lots more I need to find out. Lots. F.ex. things like have I seen Pirates 9 or 10 times now ? I can’t quite remember.
Wow, that sounds scary! I always had a morbid fear of the electricity lines since I was a kid!!
Good luck with the exam and remember if in doubt think “What would Bravo India Lima Lima do?” ;)))
I hereby give you the award for comment of the week. :-)
“What would Bravo India Lima Lima do?”
That’s BILLiant.
Might be a good way to learn that alphabet by the way. Spelling Bill film titles.
(Oh I have the same morbid fear for electricity by the way, with good reason).
They teach you how to say explosives?? Brave of them!! ;)
Well, and I was going to say that the Golf-India-Romeo-Lima rocks… but one can’t beat Bill, I know ;)
Ooo, I remember that reason ;-(
Wow, you’re getting out and about, aren’t you? It’s really exciting to read all these things you get to experience. I had no idea it was so such work and training just to film near trains.
Good luck on the exam. And explosives, huh? Fantastic.
Sounds very very very cool. I like trains very very very much.
I hope you’ll pass your exam tomorrow. Then the real work can start.
I’ve noticed that the UK phonetic alphabet is different from the dutch one.
(”say” explosives?? sorry, “place”, I meant)
I’m starting to get a bit curious what happened with you and the POWER from the sockets.
I fell down a slope once and hit an iron pole halfway that was wired against rabbits. To kill them !!! That same week the building I was taking a shower in got hit by lightning just while I pushed the hot water button. That Sierra-Utah-Charlie-Kilo-Sierra ;o)
I’m twice as old now, so I don’t think God really really hated me….
Oh cool … I have never seen the phonetic alphabet before. dangerous that … now I can picture wandering around humming these words.
I can almost picture you talking to the underground people … what amazing things you are learning.