Well folks, I survived my first solo turn.

It was a bit weird being in the cab all on my own. I found that I kept looking over to the secondman’s seat expecting a comment or remark only to find it empty. It wasn’t just the cab that seemed empty, as the messrooms had a similar feel too. I also seemed to spend an awful lot of time talking and singing to myself, which is worrying. Then again, when there’s no-one else around you can’t feel embarrassed about it.

At the risk of sounding immodest, I didn’t feel as nervous as I thought I might. I made sure that I didn’t rush about and gave myself plenty of time to change ends so that things didn’t get forgotten or otherwise overlooked, and I drove as I always had done when with my minder (but then, I know no other way). This, combined with being in my own little bubble insulated from the rest of the world, actually made for a surprisingly relaxing day. That said, I did have a scare on my second trip when the cab radio went wonky and I had to stop and get instructions from the signaller via a signalpost phone. That certainly got the old heart pumping as I mentally scrabbled around trying to remember if I was doing the right thing.

All in all I had a really great day and I’m looking forward to my next turn of duty on Monday. I don’t expect that every day will be as cushy, so I’m enjoying it while it lasts.