Steam & Excursion > NKP 765 - Back in The Fort

I caught NKP 765 making her way to the FWRRHS grounds east of New Haven, IN on my way home from work this evening. What a beautiful machine. I hope you enjoy this even half as much as I did.

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Nice way to finish a day at work.

Just like the NS trips, it looks like all the vestibule doors were closed :( What exactly is the point of riding a steam excursion if you can't see, hear and smell the loco? Might as well be riding behind a diesel. Too bad the lawyers have screwed things up.

Just for the sake of accuracy, this was a deadhead move AND it was raining, so they likely would have been closed anyway, but I agree not being able to hang out the vestibules is a sad thing. Glad I got to do it once at least.

junctiontower Wrote:
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> Just for the sake of accuracy, this was a deadhead
> move AND it was raining, so they likely would have
> been closed anyway, but I agree not being able to
> hang out the vestibules is a sad thing. Glad I
> got to do it once at least.


What started this whole thing about "hanging out the baggage doors or vestibules" happened on our SP4449 trip to the NRHS Convention in Tacoma, about 3 years ago. Some idiot with a fairly large video camera setup, was hanging out of the baggage door, at the point we entered the double track near Auburn, WA. One of those 75MPH passenger trains went past on the outside main, and the camera angle plus the telephoto lens gave the viewer the prospective of "closeness", plus the idiot also yells something to the effect that "He just missed it!". When THAT showed up on YouTube that evening, someone at Amtrak saw that and blew a gasket! The Amtrak folks then called the manager at BNSF that handles all Amtrak "business" and was VERY upset about the whole thing.

To make a long story short, the managers at BNSF FINALLY got the Amtrak folks calmed done, and also explained that the tracks are separated VERY far apart at that interlocking, plus the idiot with the camera was ACTUALLY upset that he "MISSED THE SHOT!", and not what the Amtrak folks thought. As result, subsequent "excursions" under Amtrak do NOT allow baggage doors, or vestibule doors, to be open on the side of the train with a live track. Thus, on single track, we were OK, but even going into a passing siding, everything must be "closed up" on the live rail side of the train. I'm sure all this has progressed to the NS Risk Management folks as well.

I know on the 765 excursions on NS, it is not allowed at any time. I'm not totally sure about events on non-NS trackage. On a curious side note, the 765 crew in the tool car regularily hang out the side door and wave. I got to ride in the vestibule for HOURS on a NKP 587 trip in 1993, and it was GREAT, but I was shocked then that we were allowed to do it. Truthfully, with liability and insurance issues being what they are, I'm amazed it was ever allowed ANYWHERE.

I got a cinder in the eye once, not a happy thing. Can't really blame anyone because 99% of people sue anymore.

Bill Miller
Galt, ON

After my experience, I picked cinders out of my eyes for two days, and out of my ears for two weeks, and that was with the goggles I bought at the on board gift shop!

Thanks for the background Jack. Shame some people have to ruin it for everyone
else.

Thank goodness I rode the 4449 New Orleans special in 1984 from Sacramento to San Francisco. I stood in a vestibule all the way. Some video, but as we turned north toward San Francisco just opposite the Santa Clara station, the engineer got a High Ball signal over the radio. At that point he opened it up, and I was just too speechless from then on, to think of anything like recording video.

Of course now, I'd like to have that video...