AALS Convention
Easter 2009 Updates
- CMR will host the 2009 AALS convention form April 9
- 12. Over the coming months the convention page will be
progressively updated to help those planning to attend.
-
-
Please note that the
Easter 2009 AALS convention is a private event and is open only
to registered CMR and AALS members. AALS guidelines do not allow
the general public to attend these events.
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For some convention visitors a totally enclosed ashpan is not a
viable option when operating a steam locomotive. However
drivers should be aware of the possibility of a very dry
parkland area at CMR and therefore take all due care to ensure
that ash and / or hot coal does not drop / fall from the ashpan
of their locomotive when driving at Castledare.
The use of spark arrestors for all steam locomotives operating
at CMR is mandatory.
Latest News
The Tuesday immediately after the Easter weekend,
April 14, has been set aside for convention delegates to visit
Whiteman Park to ride on the the Bennett Brook Railway and the
tramway system operated by the Perth Electric Tramway Society (PETS)
and also visit the motor museum and the historical bus collection.
There will be a nominal charge to cover costs of operating the bus
or buses from Castledare and no fee for visiting the facilities
there and riding on a train and tram. See details below on Bennett
Brook Railway and PETS. Tour bus operator and PETS member Bob Pearce
said pick-up from Castledare would be at 9am and return by 4pm.
Delegates visiting Whiteman Park on this day will be provided with
either a lunch box or a BBQ lunch at the park cafe. Whiteman Park is
about 15km north of the Perth CBD.
Perth Electric Tramway Society,
PETS’ invite to convention delegates
PETS will open its depot at
Whiteman Park for AALS convention delegates on Easter Tuesday, April
14, 2009, from either 9.30am or 10am. Two or more PETS members will
be available to show delegates around the workshops and to provide
free tram rides over the system and also entry into the Revolutions
Transport display. There will be continual free rides on the service
tram for the day (delegates must have ID linking them to Castledare
and/or the AALS convention). The Bus Preservation Society of WA
(BPSWA) has indicated that, subject to confirmation, it will also be
happy to see visitors on the same day. Those facilities are located
directly behind the Carbarn and associated PETS complex. Depending
upon numbers, delegates could be divided into two, one being shown
through the PETS complex while the other is taken by tram to
Revolutions and a guided tour of that facility. The two groups will
then change over (each group travelling by tram). After completion
of thee tours, the groups can then visit the BPSWA, the Motor Museum,
and the Bennett Brook Railway facility, as arranged between
Castledare and those groups.
BENNETT BROOK RAILWAY
Convention delegates will have the chance to ride behind the largest
2ft gauge non-articulated loco ever built if they take up the option
of a planned trip to the Bennett Brook Railway at Whiteman Park.
Railway
secretary Bob Baker said it was planned to fire up the NG15 loco
“Fremantle”, which weighed in at 67 tonnes, and operate it as far
along the track as weather conditions allowed. If the threat of
bushfires is great, it may be just a short run before delegates are
transferred to a diesel-hauled train.
The
Belgian-built loco is one of two identical models owned by the
railway, the other is the German-built “Elizabeth”.
The names represent the ports at which the two locos arrived from South Africa.
Fremantle was bought in the 1980s for the scrap value of $1500 – but
it cost considerably more to get it to Perth.
More details on the
Whiteman
Park tour, which includes
a ride on a Perth Electric Tramway car, will be posted on this
website when details have been finalised.
NO SMOKING PLEASE
Convention delegates are advised that Western Australian legislation
prohibits smoking in the station area, clubrooms and all enclosed
areas and on trains. However, there is plenty of open space for
those who feel they must indulge. Sorry guys and gals, but that’s
the law!
For
wives and partners of convention delegates who are interested in
craft work, we will have a local craft group waiting to entertain
you on the Saturday, so please bring along your patchwork, quilt,
sewing, knitting, crocheting or whatever with you.
Loco transport arrangements confirmed
Arrangements have been made with freight carrier
Allied Express to accept loco consignments from the eastern states
for shipment to Perth for the 2009 AALS convention. As previously
indicated, Castledare Miniature Railway has not tried to make
specific arrangements for loco consignments, rather set up a
framework to make it easier for delegates to book their locos for
transhipment. There is also an indication of cost and, as you will
see, it is cheaper to return locos to the eastern states than to
bring them over the Perth -- something to do with less demand on
space. The framework has been put in place by Tony Taylor, State AOE
Operations Manager, Warehouse & Logistics Manager, WA. However, all
bookings will need to be channeled through Allied’s Perth branch
Customer Service Manager Nicci Carpenter, on (08), 9352 9400 or
nicci.carpenter@alliedexpress.com.au
All bookings would need to be paid for at the time
of booking by credit card.
The following prices are a guide only, as the convention is still
some time away. They are based on normal pallet sizes of 1.2m
X 1.2m. Therefore, locos taking less space will be cheaper and locos
outside these dimensions will be dearer. Weight is not a factor. The
locos, suitably packed, must be dropped off and picked up from the
Allied Express depots and are exclusive of fuel levy and GST. The
current fuel levy is 12.50 per cent. However, this changes on a
weekly basis.
The prices are:
·*Ex NSW $395.00
* Ex MEL $320.00
* Ex BRI $425.00
* Ex ADL $310.00
PERTH TO:
* NSW $330.00
* MEL $285.00
* BRI $375.00
* ADL $250.00
DEPOT ADDRESSES:
·*NSW – 2 Unwin Street Rosehill
·*MEL - Bld 1, Cnr Woodboard & Salmon Streets Port
Melbourne
·*BRI - 57 Ashover Road Rocklea
* ADL - 30-36 Birralee Road Regency Park
·*PER – 24 Miles Road Kewdale
More club invites
CMR appreciates many delegates will be
travelling long distances to get to the 2009 AALS convention,
so we are trying to provide as much operational variety as possible.
Unfortunately, there is no way we can reduce the distances of
some of these tracks from Perth.
We have made arrangements with Northern
Districts Model Engineers at Balcatta, Perth (5in gauge), South West
Model Engineers at Bunbury, 200km south or Perth (5 and 7 1/4
gauges) and Katanning Miniature Railway, 295 south-east of Perth
(7 1/4). These clubs will be open to AALS delegates in the week
following the convention. For more specific details, including
contacts, see below.
Also, we have arranged with the Perth
Electric Tram Society and the Bennett Brook Railway for trams and
2ft gauge steam trains to operate over the Easter weekend.
NORTHERN DISTRICTS MODEL ENGINEERING SOCIETY:
Will open its 5in gauge track to convention delegates on Easter
Monday and Tuesday, from 8.30am and also at other times in the week
following Easter on request. The track is in Vasto Place (off
Balcatta Road), Balcatta. For more details, call club secretary
Andrew Manning on (08) 9446 4825.
SOUTH-WEST MODEL ENGINEERS (Bunbury): Track
will be open for convention delegates from Tuesday 13th April to
Sunday 18th April inclusive from 10 AM - 4PM each day. Sunday 18th
April is our public run day. There will be no catering but shops are
close. Morning and afternoon tea will be provided. The club has 1200m of 5 and 7 1/4 track. For more details, call club
secretary Ian Morrison on (08) 9725 2206.
KATANNING MINIATURE RAILWAY: Track is 295km
south-east of Perth on the South-West Highway. It will be open to
convention delegates on Wednesday and Thursday, April 15 and 16. The
club has 800m of continuous 7 1/4 track, with turntable and
unloading bays. The club will also be open the following weekend
(April 18/19). For more details, call club president Tony Stock on
(08) 9821 4390 or mobile 0458 214 390.
BATAVIA COAST MINIATURE RAILWAY at Geraldton,
420km north of Perth, will open for convention delegates on request
in the week after the Convention. The club has 600m of
7 1/4 track. For more details, call club president Daryl
Morris on (08) 9921 3584.
CASTLEDARE
Miniature Railway is inviting all AALS members throughout Australia and New
Zealand to “ride the rails” on the biggest
miniature railway in
Australia
(track length) when it hosts the 2009 AALS convention next Easter,
from April 9-12.
We will be delighted to have your company, with or without locos
(preferably with!), and to show you some traditional Western
hospitality.
Work has been
underway for the event since the 2007 convention, when we were
“given the nod”. And in the months following the excellent Cobden
convention we have had firm pledges to attend from enthusiasts in
all Australian states and New Zealand.
Since many of
you last visited Castledare in 1993, considerable work has been
carried out, with about 80 per cent of our six km of track now on
plastic sleepers. Most of the work has been centred on the track
through the Canning
River
wetlands to Wilson Park, where a new station costing $250,000 was
opened in 2006.
By the time
you arrive, the 5in track will have been refurbished along the banks
of the Canning River, a new steam-up bay and traverser, principally
for 5in locos, will have been built and club facilities improved,
including the canteen.
In the last
five years, we have also built a new large brick workshop on the
site of the former 5in shelter.
While you will
not get the full benefit of the new electronic signalling, due to
the impracticality of using signal-controlled block sections with so
many locos in use, you can be assured the system is working
excellently, at both the main Niana station and at Wilson Park.
With
much of our track running alongside the
Canning River, there is plenty of opportunity to
operate steam and other powered boats adjacent to the main picnic
area at Castledare and also at the Kent Street Weir adjacent to
Wilson Park station.
We also have
tours arranged to the Swan
Valley
where, we maintain, you can buy the best wines in Australia from a myriad of wineries.
Also take advantage of the many cheese and wine tastings. At Whiteman Park,
adjacent to the Swan
Valley and about 40
minutes from Castledare, 2ft gauge steam trains and electric
trams will be operating for convention delegates.
We are in the
process of arranging for a road freight company to accept locos at
depots in the eastern states for shipment to
Perth. While we will not “book in” your loco,
we will provide you with details of the framework we have arranged.
The conference
will kick off early on Thursday evening with an official welcome by
the Mayor of Canning, Dr Mick Lekias, who just happens to be our
patron and an ardent supporter (without his help and the help of senior
City of Canning officers, we wouldn’t now be enjoying the excellent
station facilities at Wilson Park).
We will
have up to 35 camping sites adjacent to the track, with power to
about 20. We also have a full accommodation listing (categorised in
travel times from Castledare) listed on this convention web
page. You are encouraged to act quickly if you want to make
bookings, as this is Easter after all and there is always a heavy
demand for all types of accommodation in the West.
Remember, if
you are bringing a steam loco, please don’t forget your boiler
certificate, for without it you will not be allowed off the steam-up
bay! Another important requirement is the fitting of spark arresters
and enclosed ash pans, as our track is surrounded by bushland and,
if we have had a dry lead-up to Easter, the risk of fire will be
great.
During the convention, a large marquee will be erected for meals,
meetings and a Sunday morning non-denominational church service on
Easter Day morning.
For those of
you who are just itching to get to Castledare, we will be open for
convention delegates on the weekend prior to Easter (April 4/5),
with public running on the Sunday. The Northern Districts Model
Engineers' 5in track in Perth and the dual track at Bunbury will also
be open for convention delegates (specific days and times to be
announced).
So, get ready
to pack your bags (and locos) for the trip west. Its been a long
time between drinks so you're assured of a big western welcome.