2025-01 - Blog Posts

I sighted this Vectron at Karlsruhe: a Dual Mode, which can move either with its Diesel engine or getting its energy from the overhead wires (German 15 kV AC only for now). However, it only delivers a third of the power of a standard all-electric Vectron, and is therefore not designed for main line hauling, and is expected to be more at home near sorting yards. Deutsche Bahn have also bought some of these as ICE rescue locomotives, serving when a train breaks down.

For Vectron!

Produced since 2010 by Siemens, the Vectron is a modular locomotive platform with various engine options - AC electric, quad-voltage for use across Europe, "last-mile Diesel" option for parking, Diesel motors, dual mode/hybrid... It hauls both freight and passenger trains. But the main reason I've wanted to mention the Vectron is...

this Mitchell and Webb sketch!

This is from series 3 of That Mitchell and Webb Look, which was aired in 2009. The Siemens Vectron was officially launched in 2010, so it's fair to say that the name appearing in both is a coincidence. However, when I see a Vectron, it reminds me of this sketch, so it's harder for me to take this train seriously!

But it is serious business, as it is one of the most common locos in continental Europe. Only Iberia (due to using a different gauge) and France (because if it ain't Alstom, they'll oust 'em) don't see much of them. The examples shown here are from Germany, Switzerland and Slovakia, and were all pictured in the same area of Germany. The quad-voltage version in particular allows companies to carry freight all over Europe, they're virtually borderless.

Yet here I am, still snickering at the name, by Vectron's beard!

ICE 3 (Gen.1)

After visiting Karlsruhe Palace, I had a bit of time while waiting for a (packed) regional train South to wander around the station. There was quite a lot going on, as on top of the local traffic from S-Bahns to REs, busy intercity lines to Freiburg and Basel, Stuttgart and Munich, Mannheim and Frankfurt meet here. A chance to see my favourite German high-speed train: the Baureihe 403 ICE 3.

Entering service in 2000, over 10 years after the first InterCity Expresses, the ICE 3 was a revolution in European high-speed rail. These were the first 300 km/h-capable trains that weren't of a "power car & carriages" layout, using distributed traction (motors all along the unit) like Shinkansen trains. And a sleek shape to boot! They were designed by Alexander Neumeister, who also penned the 500 Series Shinkansen. Hmm, maybe that's why.

The ICE 3 would be the first example of Siemens's Velaro series, which would be an export hit: the Netherlands, Spain, China and Russia purchased this model. The type received a redesign in the late 2000s that I could only describe as "more beefy": the Velaro D was taken up by Germany, Turkey and Eurostar.

Karlsruhe Palace

Thought I'd pop up to Karlsruhe today; it's not very far and I'd never been. It was... well, OK for a light outing. There's a lot of construction work going on in town, and it wasn't very animated being late January. Still, the weather was good enough for a pleasant walk around the centrepiece, the Palace, which houses the history museum of the State of Baden.

Karlsruhe is a relatively young town, by European history standards, as it was founded in 1715 as a new seat of power for the Margrave of Baden. A symmetric living building with a rear wing mounted by a tower was surrounded by vast gardens, and streets radiated out from the palace - a rather original urban arrangement, I don't remember seeing it in other places. Following French invasion in the late 18th century, Emperor Napoleon granted Baden the status of Grand Duchy: the ruler gained access to more riches and symbols such as a crown, a throne...

The Grand Duchy was briefly overthrown in a revolution in 1849, and abolished entirely following the fall of the German Empire in 1918. The region of Baden, stretching from Mannheim and Karlsruhe in the North, along the East side of the Rhine down to Freiburg and Konstanz, became a Republic within the Weimar Republic, and merged with neighbouring Württemberg, the area around Stuttgart, into the Land of Baden-Württemberg we have today in 1952. Baden was the smaller of the two former Grand Duchies, and was more reticent to the merger, as this poster in the museum shows.

"This is what the merger will be like!"

Ultimately, the merger wasn't as bad a deal as feared: when a Baden-only referendum was held in 1970, a return to a split was emphatically rejected. Still, it is not rare to see the yellow and red flag of Baden in the South-West corner of Germany - I've seen it outside a drinks hut near Oberkirch (bottom left picture) and on several castle ruins. It naturally flies atop the Karlsruhe Palace tower.

More views of Schonach

A quick post today as I don't have much time... So here are some views around the ski jumping hill and cross-country skiing venue for this weekend's Schwarzwaldpokal.

Schwarzwaldpokal!

Finally, as someone who used to watch a lot of it, I've been to a ski jumping event in person! And it wasn't just jumping, it was nordic combined, which sees a jump followed by cross-country skiing; the same people, doing both. It happened today at Schonach, in the Black Forest, next to Triberg and all those cuckoo clocks.

The hill was built in October 1924, and is therefore celebrating its 100th anniversary, hence the big "100" on the knoll. Much younger is the concept of the Womens' Nordic Combined World Cup - it only exists since 2020! Ski jumping has been the final frontier for women in winter sport, so it was great to see men and women compete.

The longest jump of the day was 102 m, twice, for Norway's Jarl Magnus Riiber and Austria's Thomas Rettenegger. In the womens' contest, Germany's Maria Gerboth took the lead with 95 m.

The competitions follow the Gundersen format, in which the jump comes first, and the gaps in points after that equate to time handicaps at the start of the cross-country race. Above left are the time penalties for some in the womens' race, and right, the start, with the top three starting almost together, while the others must wait. The race is effectively a pursuit, with the athlete crossing the line first being the winner.

In the end, Norway were unbeatable today. Despite starting with a 25-second handicap, Ida Marie Hagen took the lead of the womens' 4 km race in the middle of the first lap and didn't look back, celebrating her upcoming win in the final corner (left picture)! Nathalie Armbruster got the host nation's only podium of the day, ahead of the Kasai twins from Japan.

The mens' race was longer, at 10 km, and required more effort management. On the final lap, Jarl Magnus Riiber lost his long-held lead to Jens Luras Oftebro (right picture), who would defeat Austria's Johannes Lamparter in the final sprint to the finish.

All in all, a great day. Fresh in the morning, especially with the hill in shade, which also made photos more difficult, nice in the sunshine in the afternoon, the races were easy to follow (it was surprising how much of the cross-country course we could see), the atmosphere was really pleasant, and I wasn't going it alone for a change!