Railroaders' Nostalgia > A Milwaukee Road "record run"

Twenty years ago retired Milwaukee Road conductor Darrel Dewald relayed the following story by the late Bill Denty of a "record run", in late spring of 1972, from Alberton, MT to Deer Lodge on hotshot train 262:

"We left Alberton at 3:25pm and arrived Deer Lodge at 5:15pm, a record running time of 1 hour and 50 minutes for the 111 miles between the two towns. I (Bill Denty) was the engineer, Glen Wilson conductor and the brakemen were Darrel Dewald and Ed Johnson (Ed was the conductor on the very last electric powered eastbound train into Deer Lodge about 2 years later). The locomotives were 2 "Little Joe's" plus a couple of diesels. Everything went perfectly and it had to be to make a run like this. There were no meets with other trains. The BN crossings at Huson and Drummond both had clear signals. There were no hot boxes, and no equipment and locomotive problems. The only real slow part of the trip was the 25mph restriction at Missoula. It was a great trip...on duty Alberton 2:50pm, off duty Deer Lodge at 6:05pm."


Allen



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/22/14 01:13 by bradleymckay.

I wonder if the Milwaukee would have eventually increased the crew districts to avery-deer lodge and deer lodge-Harlowton?

66

goneon66 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I wonder if the Milwaukee would have eventually
> increased the crew districts to avery-deer lodge
> and deer lodge-Harlowton?

Given upgrades to the tracks allowing 55-60 MPH running for freight trains it probably could have been done. Add in some CTC signaling or at least radio-controlled switches at longer passing sidings (like BNSF has on its Dickinson and Jamestown Subs in North Dakota) I have no doubt longer crew districts would be possible.

goneon66 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I wonder if the Milwaukee would have eventually
> increased the crew districts to avery-deer lodge
> and deer lodge-Harlowton?
>

The stumbling block was money to fix the track. With a high-quality track, lots of things would become possible.

Best regards,

Rob L.

I am surprised that they could make a run like this in 1972. At some point in late 1972 or early 1973 the speed limit west of the Twin Cities was lowered to a maximum of fifty from reports that I have,
Dick Eisfeller

Dick Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am surprised that they could make a run like
> this in 1972. At some point in late 1972 or early
> 1973 the speed limit west of the Twin Cities was
> lowered to a maximum of fifty from reports that I
> have.

I believe you are correct, however, there is nothing that prevented them from exceeding "maximum authorized speed" when nobody was looking. I wouldn't doubt they did at least at times. Given the quality of Milwaukee Road trackage at that time, I can guarantee you that the trip was quite "bumpy" to say the least.

BNSF6400 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Dick Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I am surprised that they could make a run like
> > this in 1972. At some point in late 1972 or
> early
> > 1973 the speed limit west of the Twin Cities
> was
> > lowered to a maximum of fifty from reports that
> I
> > have.
>
> I believe you are correct, however, there is
> nothing that prevented them from exceeding
> "maximum authorized speed" when nobody was
> looking. I wouldn't doubt they did at least at
> times. Given the quality of Milwaukee Road
> trackage at that time, I can guarantee you that
> the trip was quite "bumpy" to say the least.

Before Fall of 1972 (my last extensive photo trip to the Rocky Mountain Division was in Sept. 1972), I can testify that the Iowa Division engineers who transferred out to Three Forks and Alberton were pretty aggressive runners. They stretched the speed limits when running the time freights. They loved running a Joe + diesels. They were used to running fast and saw no reason not to do the same over the level and straight portions of their new domain.

Best regards,

Rob L.

Rocky Mountain Div engineers figured out early on how to get maximum speed out the EP-3 Westinghouse Quills. Full rated speed was achieved in notch 17 with both shunts cut in and the combination lever (transition switch) in the third position (three parallel groups of traction motors, each group consisting of four motors in series).

If the engine was then put into regeneration, it weakened the field even more than the two shunts, giving the effect of a third shunt, and thus more speed. The EP-3's could reportedly get a train up to 90 mph on straight level track.

Frowned upon by management, the operators manual clearly specified, "The use of regeneration for the purpose of shunting the traction motor fields through the axle generators in order to increase the speed of the locomotive is strictly prohibited." Yet, in over 35 years of operation no interlock was ever installed on the engines to prevent it.

-John Stein aka Larry Doyle