Railroaders' Nostalgia > 16 hours on the Long Haul-Mojave-Bakersfield

I've had more than one old head (1940 or ealier promotion date) tell me what it was like during WW 2  and maybe the Korean war period.
That it took an average of 3 road crews to get a freight from Los Angeles to Bakersfield! Not only that, often a train would be patched on
the hill and the new crew would never move. Trips often resulted in a movement of ONE siding by a patch crew and then your 16 hours was
up! Well back then roads were nothing to bragg about, narrow and slow, so it is believable that a crew sent out to relieve another crew
could  take hours just to reach the train. One, two and three siding moves were something you faced, other than passenger, on a daily basis.
Add the time spent spotting for water, one can realize the difficulty getting over the road. It must have been a tough job.
I think those were the years it took you 10 years to get off the extra board before you had the whiskers to bid a regular job.

ValvePilot Wrote:
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> I've had more than one old head (1940 or ealier
> promotion date) tell me what it was like during WW
> 2  and maybe the Korean war period.
> That it took an average of 3 road crews to get a
> freight from Los Angeles to Bakersfield! Not only
> that, often a train would be patched on
> the hill and the new crew would never move. Trips
> often resulted in a movement of ONE siding by a
> patch crew and then your 16 hours was
> up! Well back then roads were nothing to bragg
> about, narrow and slow, so it is believable that a
> crew sent out to relieve another crew
> could  take hours just to reach the train. One,
> two and three siding moves were something you
> faced, other than passenger, on a daily basis.
> Add the time spent spotting for water, one can
> realize the difficulty getting over the road. It
> must have been a tough job.
> I think those were the years it took you 10 years
> to get off the extra board before you had the
> whiskers to bid a regular job.

If ou worked on the RR you would know this still happens once in a while

My late uncle T.J. (Tom) Gill told similar tales of railroading over Beaumont Pass during WWII.  Recrew a train in the siding, wait 16 hours without turning a wheel, get relieved.  No wonder they were feverishly putting in CTC over the pass then.  He complained about the "submarines", too.

After partying in Indio, one of the brakies leaned against a tree to wait to give a rollby.  He fell asleep and the freight took off without him.  They took siding at the next station, to let the crack Sunset Limited pass them up.  It made a surprising stop, and off hopped the now-wide awake brakie!  

At one of the stations, the operator's young daughter was outside when a passing train popped a knuckle that banged off the station wall, narrowly missing her.  She went inside and said, "Daddy, the trainmen are throwing rocks at the station!"  She was lucky on that one!

As a young trainman, Tom was once sent to El Centro for awhile.  The trainmaster liked to wear a bright, clean Panama hat.  One crew got even by sending a shower of soot up the stack that ruined his favorite hat!

mapboy

I have wondered for years how freight crews crossing Tehachapi pass coordinated a water stop with steam engines leading and helping.  All the 2016 experts say it was by whistle signals.   But, having live in Tehachapi for 6 years back in the 60's I wondered how engineers could hear whistle signals from other engines when the other engine might be around 3 or 4 curves and through a couple tunnels.  And, of course, most engineers were nearly deaf anyway in those days.  I have assumed that it must be by knowing how many cars were between the lead engine and the helper and perhaps by having  a routine of "who controls the brakes."   It must have taken a long time for a water stop.  I don't know when CTC got installed on Tehachapi, but it may have been before or during WW II.  I know they had it on the main freight line through Kansas then.  I had a uncle who was a maintainer on the ATSF in Kansas.

Joe

jdw3460 Wrote:
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> I have wondered for years how freight crews
> crossing Tehachapi pass coordinated a water stop
> with steam engines leading and helping.  All the
> 2016 experts say it was by whistle signals.  
> But, having live in Tehachapi for 6 years back in
> the 60's I wondered how engineers could hear
> whistle signals from other engines when the other
> engine might be around 3 or 4 curves and through a
> couple tunnels.  And, of course, most engineers
> were nearly deaf anyway in those days.  I have
> assumed that it must be by knowing how many cars
> were between the lead engine and the helper and
> perhaps by having  a routine of "who controls the
> brakes."   It must have taken a long time for a
> water stop...
>
> Joe

Info in this thread-  <http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?10,3875138,3875154#msg-3875154&gt;  It also refers to another thread that has more info about helpers and water stops.

mapboy