SA Footy

I am tipping that this Video would bring back a few memories for some of our posters!

I wish they were still going, yet considering you could open both the doors and the windows while she was moving I suppose that would be considered a safety issue these days!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5-pdtdJ ... re=related

I remember seeing the Red Hen, and the interstate version the Blue Bird, at a staff and family afternoon at Islington, just before they were put on the rails.
My father worked for SAR at Islington.

I think it was around 1985 when we all got excited about the new "super trains"... i too had a special place for the red hens... was great on a hot day to bags a door seat and sit with it open for the whole trip...

Psyber wrote:I remember seeing the Red Hen, and the interstate version the Blue Bird, at a staff and family afternoon at Islington, just before they were put on the rails.
My father worked for SAR at Islington.

The blue bird was intra state, not interstate.

Mt Gambier to Adelaide, and Peterborough to Adelaide

The red hens demise came after the last 3000 3100 class train was delivered. Public safety was also considered because of the doors and poor fuel economy. Also age was considered with this as well. On the bluebirds AN decided that intrastate trains and scrapped all services. At the same time they scrapped most of the GM class locos and nearly all 930's.

Lunchcutter wrote:I think it was around 1985 when we all got excited about the new "super trains"... i too had a special place for the red hens... was great on a hot day to bags a door seat and sit with it open for the whole trip...

can clearly remember the smell of the air brakes, with the doors open

Strawb07 wrote:The red hens demise came after the last 3000 3100 class train was delivered. Public safety was also considered because of the doors and poor fuel economy. Also age was considered with this as well. On the bluebirds AN decided that intrastate trains and scrapped all services. At the same time they scrapped most of the GM class locos and nearly all 930's.

Still see the odd GM around. Not bad thinking that theyve well and truely brought up 50 years service

Had to catch the Gawler Central to get to high school every morning, and yep, every Red Hen door was always open. Super Trains, too.

When I was in year 8/9 there was this year 11 kid called Jim who would hang onto the hand-straps and swing out of the carriage like a trapeze artist.

Then everyone would do dumb stuff like hop off a moving train as it came into the station.

And toss someone's bag onto the track as the incoming train powered into Salisbury Interchange. Of course they'd jump down off the platform to get their bag. Then nobody would let them back up.

We all thought it was hilarious at the time.

But when I look back and think about all the near misses...

Ian wrote:

Psyber wrote:I remember seeing the Red Hen, and the interstate version the Blue Bird, at a staff and family afternoon at Islington, just before they were put on the rails.
My father worked for SAR at Islington.

The blue bird was intra state, not interstate. Mt Gambier to Adelaide, and Peterborough to Adelaide

Ahh.. I'd assumed the Blue birds had also replaced the old green and yellow trains I remembered going to Broken Hill on as a kid.

Psyber wrote:

Ian wrote:

Psyber wrote:I remember seeing the Red Hen, and the interstate version the Blue Bird, at a staff and family afternoon at Islington, just before they were put on the rails.
My father worked for SAR at Islington.

The blue bird was intra state, not interstate. Mt Gambier to Adelaide, and Peterborough to Adelaide

Ahh.. I'd assumed the Blue birds had also replaced the old green and yellow trains I remembered going to Broken Hill on as a kid.

In 68 I used to catch the old Green and Yellow trains from Adelaide RS to Kapunda. I remember the Bluebird being the last word in speed and comfort, only caught it a few times usually the express fairly late on Sunday afternoons. What was most interesting for a 23 year old was the "speedo" in some carriages it maxed out at 60mph. The green and yellow jobs sometimes seemed to wander along at fast bicycle speeds.

Magpiespower wrote:Had to catch the Gawler Central to get to high school every morning, and yep, every Red Hen door was always open. Super Trains, too.

When I was in year 8/9 there was this year 11 kid called Jim who would hang onto the hand-straps and swing out of the carriage like a trapeze artist.

Then everyone would do dumb stuff like hop off a moving train as it came into the station.

And toss someone's bag onto the track as the incoming train powered into Salisbury Interchange. Of course they'd jump down off the platform to get their bag. Then nobody would let them back up.

We all thought it was hilarious at the time.

But when I look back and think about all the near misses...

Sounds like many of my trips on the Red Hen!
Crazy stuff.

Lunchcutter wrote:I think it was around 1985 when we all got excited about the new "super trains"... i too had a special place for the red hens... was great on a hot day to bags a door seat and sit with it open for the whole trip...

They looked dated pretty quickly.

Magpiespower wrote:...
We all thought it was hilarious at the time.

I used to catch the train from Oaklands to Ascot Park (old SHC junior schoolboy). Every now and then the Mitchell Park HS kids would gather in the baggage carriage of the red hen. As the train pulled into Marion station, they would swing open the outer door and train the fire extinguisher upon the Westminster kids crossing the pedestrian overpass. Hilarity!

ahh the old red hens.

Lunchcutter wrote:I think it was around 1985 when we all got excited about the new "super trains"... i too had a special place for the red hens... was great on a hot day to bags a door seat and sit with it open for the whole trip...

i remember a time around then..i would have been about 3 or 4 when dad took me to work one day and we took the train, a red hen, from lizbef into work...well on the way back, dad was talking about these super trains and how they are going to go faster than the red hens...well i cracked the shits thinking that it was going to be too fast for me so i had a little tantrum on the platform and caused us to miss about 2 trains...looking back now, its terribly funny and slightly embarrassing!!

my dad used to drive in adelaide so i know about all these trains. When i was little i used to go work with him. Which is funny now we work different jobs but both on the railways