Nostalgia & History > Meet Monday from the seat . . .

.   .   .   Leaving San Bernardino, about to head up Cajon Pass, Fifth Street was the big twenty mph curve just past the Amtrak station. Here in MAR '90, a westbound UP is negotiating the curve at the proper twenty mph speed, having just descended Cajon Pass. I don't recall the date of the incident but, around this time period a UP westbound stack train ran away starting around the old station of GISH, on the south main between Summit and Cajon. It started when the engineer of the westbound UP, put his train in emergency because of speed concerns and released it before the brake system fully recharged. Unlike other incidents like this one that made the news and, of course all the railfan outlets, UP got completely away with this one. The reason, I'm sure, is because no one got hurt and there was no damage, except maybe to the CNW and UP locomotives leading the train. The train reached speeds above seventy mph and amazingly took this twenty mph curve at forty two mph finally getting stopped near old west yard, just a little over a mile ahead. IF my recollections are correct, the engineer had been restricted to yard service for years and this was his first road trip. A lot of mistakes were made and, I believe, he went right back into yard service, never going out on the road again? The trains slow deceleration is credited to a Santa Fe mechanical person who instructed the UP engineer to put the power into reverse, which caused similar action that the DB's would have. Among other factors, a westbound Santa Fe train ahead, which the UP train was rapidly catching up to,  was authorized to exceed the thirty five mph maximum speed limit, taking his train up to sixty mph as well as negotiating this curve at around thirty mph. Had the UP caught, and collided with the Santa Fe train, a very different ending. Maybe a former UP engineer can add or subtract something?
JB

---

Good photo and story.  I remember reading about the incident; I'll bet it was quite a ride down the hill.  Especially coming up on the curve.

Andy

Great photo, and I too have heard most of the story of the UP run-away.
This begs the question: Where was the Road Foreman of Engines?
I thing good leadership would have assigned a supervisor for this "first trip" over such severe grade territory.

Daylight trip and clean air in the pass!

I'll add a bit more info to this incident. Other UP members here might contribute more details too. This occurred sometime in the mid-1990's, I don't remember the date.
The engineer was fully qualified on the territory. The "South Track" as it was then known is a steep and unforgiving piece of track between Summit and Station Cajon.
The train was put into emergency and lost all dynamic brakes.
This particular train had a CNW SD50 or SD60 as lead engine.
UP locomotives were set up to hold Dynamic Brake Amperage if you experienced a Penalty or Emergency Brake Application. CNW engines (and others) were not. So when the train was placed into emergency, retarding force from the consist went to zero and the entire rolling weight of the power started pulling downgrade.
Full independent brakes on the locos were probably not enough to decelerate the train on the steep and as momentum and velocity increased past the point of no return, you have a runaway.
Contributing factors were bad power consists Westbound out of North Platte, Omaha, or Chicago. Adequate and okay for most of the railroad until Yermo, where the train would have to be made compliant to ATSF Rules for the Cajon Subdivision by Dynamic Brake axles, Tons Per Operative Brake, maximum permitted decending speeds, drawbar maximums, need for helpers, etc.
Complicating this were some units had no dynamics, meaning you must add 200 free rolling downgrade tons to your train for that unit, or standard range dynamic brakes. All UP's had extended range and did well on the slow, steep South Track at 10-15 MPH. Standard Range dynamics were fading out under 20, right when you needed them for slower speeds.
MP units were standard range and I think Katy units were standard also.
Hopefully all units worked in your consist. It was a good practice to check them after departing Yermo, I liked to try them at Daggett, and many conductors would walk the consist checking the ammeters for dynamic brake operation.
Other contributing factors were there were few trains in front of the runaway between it and San Bernardino.
Another huge factor was the ATSF dispatcher on duty, perhaps one of the best ever highly regarded by all UP crews. Dispatcher "CQP."
Also known for his nickname on the UP as "God."
The 20 MPH curve there at 5th Street was no joke. If you released your air too soon above San Bernardino to recharge and prevent bogging down, the whole train was pushing down on your dynamics so you had to be ready to go after more air in time to pinch speed down for the curve. It may have been good for faster as the runaway made it through, but I would never want to try it.
Maybe a few more UP brothers will add more details?

Sure looks different there now.

Adam (born there...1966)

My memory is just as bad, but I thought it was a welded rail train with a C&NW leader, and the low center of gravity of those cars is one reason why it didn't topple on that curve. (Or I'm thnking of a different incident).

JB, 

Excellent shot and a good story.  I remember that when it happened.

Thanks for posting the details.

RC Lundgren
 

I seem to remember reading about this incident in one of my train magazines (CTC, PRN or Trains).  If I remember, one detail may have been the engineer put the engines in reverse to try to slow the train.  At the end of the ride the engineers got off and needed oxygen and the traction motors were toast.  The article I remember ended with: Sometimes you get the bear, sometimes the bear gets you; this time it seems, the bear will have to wait.

Now I'm going to have to go dig out my train mags at home.
 

I too remember this incident.   One of the main parts that stuck in my head was reading, "... and as the train made its way around the curve, the containers were leaning in their wells..."