Post by John on Nov 12, 2009 10:32:44 GMT -5
Those cold winter mornings, roll out of bed as a young apprentice, get yer snap made up, I hated Mum doing mine, I preferred to know what went between my slices of bread!
Off out into the cold street, snap bag over shoulder for the mile walk to the pit, first fag lit, coughing some coal dust up too! Dark still, and hardly a soul stirring, I'm on close personal supervision, helping to get the new manrider operational, and it's 4-30 in the morning.
Another few minutes and pit will be in sight, light another fag up, could be several hours before I reload up on me nicotine again! Numb from the cold and wisps of light fog coming off the River Trent on my left.
Pit gates looming up, can almost feel the hot humid air in the changing rooms, won't be long now.
In me pit rags now, pick my lamp up, rescuers haven't come on the scene yet, so up to the electric shop on the same level as pit bank , throw me ciggies and lighter in me tool cupboard, smoking my last fag before I catch the chair for the early shift riders.
"Ding, ding ding" manriding! ding ding ding comes the reply from the onsetter, OK say's the Banksman as he starts to collect our checks as we climb into the cage.
Gates closed, Ding, Ding he rings on the signals, up a few inches, keps pulled out and we are off, dark and darker, as we leave pit bank, all one can hear is the "whoosh" of the noise of air rising up the shaft and the noise of the cage on the well oiled guide ropes, plus the occasional fart! from one of the early shift miners.
Slowing down, nearly at pit bottom, starting to get lighter from the lights around the shaft bottom area. Stopped, the onsetter opens the gates, "morning George, morning ben, morning fred etc, whats whether like up top??
Of we goes for the long walk to work. Through the air doors, now going down the long Stone Head Drift, down at 1in 4 and 1in6, 3/4 of a mile through the great Trent fault until we arrive back in the same seam as we were in at pit bottom, passed the new manrider haulage engine house, take the left fork along 42's main road, couple of hundred yards and here we are the man rider station. I'll be spending the day with the electrician I'm assigned with for the shift. Funny, been nearly an hour now and not even thinking of a ciggie.
Off out into the cold street, snap bag over shoulder for the mile walk to the pit, first fag lit, coughing some coal dust up too! Dark still, and hardly a soul stirring, I'm on close personal supervision, helping to get the new manrider operational, and it's 4-30 in the morning.
Another few minutes and pit will be in sight, light another fag up, could be several hours before I reload up on me nicotine again! Numb from the cold and wisps of light fog coming off the River Trent on my left.
Pit gates looming up, can almost feel the hot humid air in the changing rooms, won't be long now.
In me pit rags now, pick my lamp up, rescuers haven't come on the scene yet, so up to the electric shop on the same level as pit bank , throw me ciggies and lighter in me tool cupboard, smoking my last fag before I catch the chair for the early shift riders.
"Ding, ding ding" manriding! ding ding ding comes the reply from the onsetter, OK say's the Banksman as he starts to collect our checks as we climb into the cage.
Gates closed, Ding, Ding he rings on the signals, up a few inches, keps pulled out and we are off, dark and darker, as we leave pit bank, all one can hear is the "whoosh" of the noise of air rising up the shaft and the noise of the cage on the well oiled guide ropes, plus the occasional fart! from one of the early shift miners.
Slowing down, nearly at pit bottom, starting to get lighter from the lights around the shaft bottom area. Stopped, the onsetter opens the gates, "morning George, morning ben, morning fred etc, whats whether like up top??
Of we goes for the long walk to work. Through the air doors, now going down the long Stone Head Drift, down at 1in 4 and 1in6, 3/4 of a mile through the great Trent fault until we arrive back in the same seam as we were in at pit bottom, passed the new manrider haulage engine house, take the left fork along 42's main road, couple of hundred yards and here we are the man rider station. I'll be spending the day with the electrician I'm assigned with for the shift. Funny, been nearly an hour now and not even thinking of a ciggie.
