Railroaders' Nostalgia > SP Pool 3 at Bayshore and the TBX's.

I don't know when Baysore lost most of it's business but thru the 60's it was one hell of a busy yard. Wasn't there a Pool 3 that operated Bayshore to Tracy, Oakland and san Jose "over the bridge"?
At the Bayshore RH, right in front of the Bldg, was a large Blackboard, kept current with everything dispatched  for that day. It was done in chalk and always had  six or seven trains posted for departure.
On the TBX's it wasn't guaranteed that once arriving Oakland that you would turn and work back right away.  As a result of this, some conductors kept a car there, and one of the trainmen would DH back
to Bayshore in order to pick up the remaining crew that worked back. I guess the on duty point was at Mission yard or 3rd & Townsend?? If you worked to Tracy, Pool 3 could work to San Jose the back way.
And of course then maybe back up to Bayshore via the penninsula.
Wasn't there an old head hogger named Kern or Kerns on that pool that passed away on the seat box while on duty?
Things were really busy back in every direction. On the bridge, SP  had a operator on duty. You would get flimsies right there on the middle of the span!
Bayshore was a special place. It personified the SP. Bayshore was the SP. SP was Bayshore . Bayshore was the Coast. The Coast was the heartbeat of the SP.
I know, there were bigger yards and bigger places but none was quite like Bayshore.
Opinions??

Get your firecreakers ready! And M-80's too!

Pool 2 was home terminal San Francisco and away from home terminals of Oakland and Tracy. Sometimes you'd work San Francisco to Oakland and turn back right away, other times you'd get rest or deadhead back to San Francisco. Trips to Tracy involved tying up there and then working back to San Francisco (Bayshore); San Jose wasn't involved in Pool 2.

Pool 1 had home terminal of Oakland and away from home terminals of Tracy and San Jose. That was the pool where you could catch a train from Tracy to San Jose, the dreaded triangle trip.

BTW, Pool 3 was the Cal-P, Oakland to Roseville, and Pool 4 was the interdivisional pool Oakland to Watsonville. 



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 06/12/23 13:07 by Railbaron.

ApproachCircuit Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I don't know when Baysore lost most of it's
> business but thru the 60's it was one hell of a
> busy yard. Wasn't there a Pool 3 that operated
> Bayshore to Tracy, Oakland and san Jose "over the
> bridge"?
> At the Bayshore RH, right in front of the Bldg,
> was a large Blackboard, kept current with
> everything dispatched  for that day. It was done
> in chalk and always had  six or seven trains
> posted for departure.
> On the TBX's it wasn't guaranteed that once
> arriving Oakland that you would turn and work back
> right away.  As a result of this, some conductors
> kept a car there, and one of the trainmen would DH
> back
> to Bayshore in order to pick up the remaining crew
> that worked back. I guess the on duty point was at
> Mission yard or 3rd & Townsend?? If you worked to
> Tracy, Pool 3 could work to San Jose the back
> way.
> And of course then maybe back up to Bayshore via
> the penninsula.
> Wasn't there an old head hogger named Kern or
> Kerns on that pool that passed away on the seat
> box while on duty?
> Things were really busy back in every direction.
> On the bridge, SP  had a operator on duty. You
> would get flimsies right there on the middle of
> the span!
> Bayshore was a special place. It personified the
> SP. Bayshore was the SP. SP was Bayshore .
> Bayshore was the Coast. The Coast was the
> heartbeat of the SP.
> I know, there were bigger yards and bigger places
> but none was quite like Bayshore.
> Opinions??
>
> Get your firecreakers ready! And M-80's to

Bayshore traffic died after 1978. Closing of the Dunbarton bridge was the nail in the coffin in 1982

I worked Pool 2 in the 70s, first as a fireman to get my road days in before going to the simulator school in Cerritos, then a few times as an engineer off the extra board.
A straight shot around the bay from Oakland to Bayshore was what everyone wanted. At the other end of the spectrum was the dreaded Tracy job: 1:30 a.m. on duty at Bayshore. Work all night to Tracy, lay over all day at the non air conditioned Tracy Inn, then work all night back to Bayshore. Chances are you’d fall right back into it the next night.

Posted from iPhone

CPCoyote Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I worked Pool 2 in the 70s, first as a fireman to
> get my road days in before going to the simulator
> school in Cerritos, then a few times as an
> engineer off the extra board.
> A straight shot around the bay from Oakland to
> Bayshore was what everyone wanted. At the other
> end of the spectrum was the dreaded Tracy job:
> 1:30 a.m. on duty at Bayshore. Work all night to
> Tracy, lay over all day at the non air conditioned
> Tracy Inn, then work all night back to Bayshore.
> Chances are you’d fall right back into it the
> next night.
>
> Posted from iPhone
That would have been Job 472, Tracy Rock and the companion return trip with the rock p/u at Radium

WAF Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> CPCoyote Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I worked Pool 2 in the 70s, first as a fireman
> to
> > get my road days in before going to the
> simulator
> > school in Cerritos, then a few times as an
> > engineer off the extra board.
> > A straight shot around the bay from Oakland to
> > Bayshore was what everyone wanted. At the other
> > end of the spectrum was the dreaded Tracy job:
> > 1:30 a.m. on duty at Bayshore. Work all night
> to
> > Tracy, lay over all day at the non air
> conditioned
> > Tracy Inn, then work all night back to
> Bayshore.
> > Chances are you’d fall right back into it the
> > next night.
> >
> > Posted from iPhone
> That would have been Job 472, Tracy Rock and the
> companion return trip with the rock p/u at Radium

Yes. Job 472.

Because there was a lot of construction on the peninsula in the 70's and into the 80's they also ran an East Pleasanton Turn off the pool at times. It's only duty was to take empty rock hoppers up to East Pleasanton and bring the loads back. Then for a while they had a local out of Bayshore that did pretty much the same thing although they did do some industry work up there as well. After doing that for a while they turned it around and had the turn start out of East Pleasanton and turn at Bayshore instead (mileage balancing). Eventually that rock traffic all but disappeared.

1985 when the rock ended

Posted from iPhone

Was there another pool for crews that would deliver trains to the NWP at Schellville?

Posted from Android

DFWJIM Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Was there another pool for crews that would
> deliver trains to the NWP at Schellville?
>
> Posted from Android

Cal-P (Pool 3) crews did the honors for that.

Railbaron Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> DFWJIM Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Was there another pool for crews that would
> > deliver trains to the NWP at Schellville?
> >
> > Posted from Android
>
> Cal-P (Pool 3) crews did the honors for that.
Ran a OLRSW  Long day, especially after doubling Cordelia Hill eastbound



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/19/23 18:15 by WAF.