Railroaders' Nostalgia > whatever you do...don't crash

Back when the railroads were ran like they had been for over a hundred years....I got to personally experience what used to go on behind the scenes usually.   I was called to deadhead on a hot train, which was late out of Kansas City, so my conductor and I were riding the second unit.    I glanced at my watch when we started moving, and then things started happening.  I could tell we were running hot, really hot, like at least 10 mph over everywhere on curves and switches.   There were a couple of curves we went around that you would have had a hard time standing up on in the cab of an engine.   When we finally pulled up at the yard office in Wellington, I looked at my watch again and realized we had shaved at least 40 minutes off the average time for any hotshot train on this run.   I saw the engineer at the motel and assured Tom(the engineer that was running) that his record was safe, no way was I ever going to come anywhere close to his time this trip.  
     A few years later, I finally found out that Tom had received a phone call that night from a friend that was the chief dispatcher who knew Tom could run them fast.   He told Tom that his train was 40 minutes late, and that they really needed to make up the time.   If they promised not to look at his speed tapes, could he make up the time?  Sure, Tom said.  His friend said good but "whatever you do, don't crash".

Well ain't that railroading in a nutshell!

EO

A lot more fun pre-event recorders.

Well said, that's how railroading used to be when it was move freight. If a hotshot was late and an engineer would make up time do it!!!!!!  Now there's too many ways to get caught and too many officials looking to catch somebody so he'll look good.
In other words don't do favors.

Sam

Even in those deays wasn't all rules written in blood?

PTC would go berserko today. LOL

trainjunkie Wrote:
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> PTC would go berserko today. LOL

It goes berserko even when you're in compliance!
 

Classic tale! And I can only think of a dozen retired/deceased Middle Division engineers who might be a "Tom"... ;^)

Lance

JLY Wrote:
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> Even in those deays wasn't all rules written in
> blood?

Hey, hey!  Bill Lynch, you're back, welcome!  

Not sure how he could make up much time from Emporia to Wellington, a fast trip on a 9 symbol Z train was usually 1'50 minutes, if you exceeded a little maybe 1'45. And unless the overspeed was cut out, 73 mph was about it. About the same from Argentine to Emporia. Usually anybody could out run the dispatcher.

Posted from Android

crackerjackhoghead Wrote:
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> It goes berserko even when you're in compliance!

Well yeah, there's that too. LOL

Even now a dispatcher will ask you if you can make it to Podunk which is 50 miles away and you've got like 30 minutes to work and several slow orders...if you say yes...he will clear a path for you but you better not crash...and somehow not break any rules.....but we know how that works....if you DO make it eyes will be looking the other way. 

engineerinvirginia Wrote:
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> Even now a dispatcher will ask you if you can make
> it to Podunk which is 50 miles away and you've got
> like 30 minutes to work and several slow
> orders...

That is not a train dispatcher, it is an occupant of a train dispatcher chair.

TAW

TAW Wrote:
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> engineerinvirginia Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Even now a dispatcher will ask you if you can
> make
> > it to Podunk which is 50 miles away and you've
> got
> > like 30 minutes to work and several slow
> > orders...
>
> That is not a train dispatcher, it is an occupant
> of a train dispatcher chair.
>
> TAW

Well, maybe...he should know well you can't make it...but he's going to throw you a bone if you will take it. The example  I gave  is extreme, but I was running quite short on time and was figuring on a particular siding 65 miles short of destination here recently.....dispacher proposed a double track 20 miles from destination....and I said...."we can't stop if we are to make that..." he said...'skin her back I got you lit up'......we stopped on double track....just as our time ran out.....it's teamwork 100%, if he gives you a realistic yet diificult goal and you reach for it, you can do it. Incidentally, we had two running meets that didn't require us to slow down that day....but they made me sweat!

TAW Wrote:
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> engineerinvirginia Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> 
> That is not a train dispatcher, it is an occupant
> of a train dispatcher chair.
>Yes. Here's one on the job now.

---

TAW always talks about the 98.6 degree train dispatcher.  This one probably doesn't even meet that criteria. 

:)

 

FWIW: I have paced BNSF freights at 79 mph along US 177 (between BNSF waypoints Cassoday and Chelsea)


LocoPilot750 Wrote:
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> Not sure how he could make up much time from
> Emporia to Wellington, a fast trip on a 9 symbol Z
> train was usually 1'50 minutes, if you exceeded a
> little maybe 1'45. And unless the overspeed was
> cut out, 73 mph was about it. About the same from
> Argentine to Emporia. Usually anybody could out
> run the dispatcher.
>
> Posted from Android

Maybe in the Super C days, but top speed there now is 70, engine overspeeds are set for 72-73.

Posted from Android

LocoPilot750 Wrote:
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> Maybe in the Super C days, but top speed there now
> is 70, engine overspeeds are set for 72-73.
>
> Posted from Android

It only trips if you are in 8 notch, for that is where the alternator runs plum out of juice....the traction motors could fly apart but they should be more robust than that for safety's sake.

On the Santa Fe, if you got much over 70, the little whistle would start blowing. And if it persisted, it would trip the PC, and start blowing the brake pipe down, and you had to move the automatic to suppression and keep it there until it reset, slowing you down drastically of course. Units used on the Super C trains had higher gearing if I remember.

Posted from Android