I decided that I should start putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and share some of my experiences. I always enjoyed writing, though I’m not the best at it. I pretty much forgot everything I learned in all my English classes. So if I shift verb tenses here and there (one of my bad habits), please forgive me.I also lost my paragraph indentations in the copy-paste action.
I changed the name of places and trains, to protect the guilty (mainly, me!). But all the other details are as accurate as I can remember them.
If you enjoy this, I may have a couple more I can write up as time allows. Enough of my blathering, time for Vol. 1:
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The Empty Flat Special
by: zug.
I believe it was late afternoon when I got the call a year ago. I was still working the road extra list at the time. I was informed that I was to conduct an extra train to Harpersville. The train carried a special symbol, one reserved for special moves, high and wides, MOW work, anything that isn’t of the norm. My engineer was also off the list, a nice guy, OK to work with, but was also quite a character. Not bad for a trip or two, but not the type I’d want to work with every day. He had a way of attracting attention to himself while I always preferred to be the silent type that flies under the radar.
I showed up at the designated yard where we were to footboard relieve the inbound crew on the mainline. A foot-board relief is the best type. No handbrakes to release, no 3 hour switching exercises with the power, so it was looking to shape up to be a nice trip.
Remember those tie-down chains I mentioned earlier? I was guessing one of them slid off. We brought the train to a safe, controlled stop. The Adamsville yardmaster, hearing the detector, calls us up to tell us that he’s sending a car inspector out to give me a hand. That was nice of him. I grab my light (pitch dark now) and drop down and start walking back. I got to the offending axle and sure enough, a tie down chain not only slid off the flatcar deck, but actually wrapped itself around the cut lever three or four times. I can only imagine what kind of light show that thing was throwing off as it was bouncing along the ground. I was also amazed it didn’t separate the air hoses or even manage to lift the cut lever. At that time the car inspector drives up and gives me a hand in getting the chain secured.
Since the car inspector had his trusty company Ford F250 (even if it’s 2wd… bunch of tightwads) and there was a handy access road along side the main, we drove along the rest of the train to make sure nothing else was dragging. Let me take this time to mention that car inspectors are some of the coolest people on the railroad. Every one I met was always willing to lend a helping hand (or ride).
The car inspector drive me to the head end, and we started to move. The yardmaster told us to pull up near the office where a machinist would meet us. He came aboard, looked around, asked a few questions and told us a pinion gear might need lubed (or something like that). He sad he’d have the engine shopped when it reached Harpersville (in case you forgot, that is where this train is supposed to go). We were given the go ahead to go to the east end of the yard to get our add-on engine. There at the end
Keep 'em coming – you’re almost making me wistful I was back on the console on afternoons instead of living in an airport and answering the Blackberry at 0400 on Sunday.
That must’ve been something to behold!! From behind a barricade!![:O]
There are a few places that the GEXRR still seems to use as wyes—although my not so favourite section is the track that comes out of Goderich harbour via a long grade up the valley, across a bridge on the same grade mind, then doubles back on itself to come east out of that same valley. When I used to visit a client there I’d take pix of the GP40’s used at the time just plodding up the grade with a full cut of cars—probs 50(?)—and just hammering up that grade----I recently got a scanner and am now just starting to put the pix into my computer
BTW—what I’ve seen of your writing I don’t think that you’d have ANY difficulty being a writer. Thanks for reminding us on what RR’ing can involve!!
Ditto to be sure…your story was very captivating and I read each and every word while wondering “what next?”. Please keep your stories coming…especially if others are half as interesting as the first. Thanks