Mutterings.....

[Mookie]

Must be Monday:

Mudchicken is back and we have a Lone Byrd - now unless this is Senator Byrd, I may be interested! [dinner]

Sat at the tracks! Hi-lites only - so you don't have to read for an hour!

14 trains - 8:45 to 10:45 and about an hour in the afternoon.

BNSF #'s - 8835/9214....9632/9951.....8623/5280....5697/9792....4104/6816/7268 (FURX) ....2125/2903/2773.........9800/8985....9765/9650.....6199 (Remote Controlled).....9837/8237.....7316/7866/7021......1102/6851.....5639/9471 and
7915/5085 UP/8315 LTEX?

Footnotes: What is LTEX - black and white locomotive. A Lease? From?

Run-through power?

Couldn't see it very well - I was trying to watch it thru a coal train going the same direction. They are on two parallel tracks and would not want to be standing between them - not a lot of room! Moved together like they were glued together!

BNSF 9765 - looked like it was trying to be an old steam engine - lots of icky smelling black smoke. I would have bad ordered it right there, but they were going east with a loaded coal train.

#6199 - Remote control - has two guys on it all the time, but this time, instead of running it from the cab out and back, they both got out of the cab and went to the back to run it from the rear back into the yards. Both had vests.

Question is: Who are they? Engineers, engineer and conductor, or just two guys standing in the yard that wanted a ride on an engine? Well, ok - are they both engineers or not.

Saw parts of a plane - these are like usual - just mid sized ones - probably about 15 windows to a side with their own houses. But they were coming from the north or east. Any guesses as to where they origininated? Usually they come in from the south - but not this one!. It was all taped and tucked and headed west.

This particular train had all the airplaine parts right snug up front and the rest of the train was lots of containers and auto racks. I assume it was to protect the airplane parts to put it up front?

Saw a refrigerated container - how do they run the refrigeration - cross country?
That would take one big battery to keep it running all that time?????

And... the #2903 - was a GP 39E - according to my new locomotive roster book. Kind of an oddity.

Ah - BNSF was running very well this weekend - of course - had no company here! Missed Willy2 by a few minutes. Bad timing!

And the Challenger is coming back thru Nebraska - not that far from Lincoln, so will be off to see it either in May or June - probably the latter, since it will be in Fremont in June heading back home.

Sigh - life is good!

So will now wait for your answers, comments and of course, any criticisms. Mook has tough fur! Usually.... [:X]

[JoeKoh]

Mookie
each boxcar has its own refrigeration unit that runs on a generator.(gas powered) and are you keeping your bnsf units at home?saw alot of up and ns on csx saturday.[}:)]
stay safe
joe

[Mookie]

Joe - it wasn't a boxcar - it was a container! Sitting all by its lonesome - and running up a storm!

No, I sent a slug (no pun intended) to you on Sat! Must be importing them from the west!

[JoeKoh]

yep containers are the same way.have there on generators only smaller.We have plenty of slugs over here.saw one on a ballast train coming from toledo heading for points west.also saw 2 old ge units with rc on the side .looked like they were heading for willard or another yard.should have been with me alot of garage sales!
stay safe
joe

[Anonymous]

Rememeber- Locomotives have massive Generation units-

Arguably, passenger locomotives have massive generation units- Rememebr- Amtrak locomotives Power the cars, Lights, 120 V ACpower outlets, HEAt, AC, So locomotives have massive generators in them

In the ice storm of '98, when power was gone for 24+ days, CN powered entire city blocks with 1 locomotive.

[Nora]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Mookie

Footnotes: What is LTEX - black and white locomotive. A Lease? From?

LTEX is a leaser from Larry's Truck Electric; I see them around here now and again. They're located about 45 minutes from my house in McDonald, OH. They buy TONS of engines; some are scrapped, some are fixed up and leased out. I've driven past there a few times and it's really a neat place. Here's a link to a picture (not taken by me):

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=48678

As for me, I saw an SD90MAC this weekend (UP) which I've never seen before, as well as this BNSF escapee (I love those orange engines! [:D] )

[Nora]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Mookie

And the Challenger is coming back thru Nebraska - not that far from Lincoln, so will be off to see it either in May or June - probably the latter, since it will be in Fremont in June heading back home.

I just looked up the schedule ( http://www.uprr.com/aboutup/excurs/houston.shtml ) and I think I feel a change in our trip plans coming on after we leave Lincoln...

[:D]

[locomutt]

Nora,

Great pictures!!!!!!!!!

[CShaveRR]

Sis, the crewmen are RCOs--Remote Control Operators. If two of them working together is unusual, I suspect that one might be an RCO trainee.

All of our RCOs wear vests with reflectorized stripes on them.

BC--I go back to work today.

[dharmon]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CShaveRR

Sis, the crewmen are RCOs--Remote Control Operators. If two of them working together is unusual, I suspect that one might be an RCO trainee.

All of our RCOs wear vests with reflectorized stripes on them.

BC--I go back to work today.

Better be bullet proof reflective vests the way folks feel about RCOs.......

[Mookie]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Nora

QUOTE: Originally posted by Mookie

And the Challenger is coming back thru Nebraska - not that far from Lincoln, so will be off to see it either in May or June - probably the latter, since it will be in Fremont in June heading back home.

I just looked up the schedule ( http://www.uprr.com/aboutup/excurs/houston.shtml ) and I think I feel a change in our trip plans coming on after we leave Lincoln...

[:D]

Or....come back in June - it will be about 50 miles from here! Mookie will be there for sure!

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by dharmon

QUOTE: Originally posted by CShaveRR

Sis, the crewmen are RCOs--Remote Control Operators. If two of them working together is unusual, I suspect that one might be an RCO trainee.

All of our RCOs wear vests with reflectorized stripes on them.

BC--I go back to work today.

Better be bullet proof reflective vests the way folks feel about RCOs.......

On the first day of Christams my true love got for me.. A toothless RCO
On the Second day of christams my true love bought for me, Two punches in the fact, and a toothless RCO.
On the their day of Christmas...

Ya get my drift?

I no like'um RCOs either.

[JoeKoh]

Nora
nice pics
like the green tractors in the background.
stay safe
Joe

[edblysard]

Mookie,
The reefer container has a refridgation unit on one end, runs on diesel, some of thenew ones have a up link/GPS system, lets the container leser check temp and fuel status.
RCOs use two people, one runs the motor, one is the helper.
The contract lets displaced yard engineers have first crack at running the remote, if he chooses not to, the senior switchman/yardmen/conductor gets it.
Most of the time, you never see the helper on a remote job, he is down in the yard, lineing switches and watching shoves.

Ed

[Anonymous]

I've seen a lot of those refrigerated intermodal cars, most of the ones I see have lots of balck around the exhaust vents.

Always weird to be going by an intermodal train and then all of a sudden you've got one with the motor on, feels like someone accidetally left it running.

[corwinda]

K line has generator containers that can power a 5 pack full of refrigerated containers. When I lived in Nevada I would see them going by fairly often. Westbound (on UP) they would be running; bottom position on the center well; eastbound they were shut down and often riding alone.

[Mookie]

QUOTE: Originally posted by macguy

I've seen a lot of those refrigerated intermodal cars, most of the ones I see have lots of balck around the exhaust vents.

Always weird to be going by an intermodal train and then all of a sudden you've got one with the motor on, feels like someone accidetally left it running.

I have that same feeling - it is pretty quiet while the whole train is going by and then suddenly one of the cars is making noise! Little unnerving!

[Mookie]

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

Mookie,
The reefer container has a refridgation unit on one end, runs on diesel, some of thenew ones have a up link/GPS system, lets the container leser check temp and fuel status.
RCOs use two people, one runs the motor, one is the helper.
The contract lets displaced yard engineers have first crack at running the remote, if he chooses not to, the senior switchman/yardmen/conductor gets it.
Most of the time, you never see the helper on a remote job, he is down in the yard, lineing switches and watching shoves.

Ed

Ed - did I read once that they require two people on a RCO if it crosses a major grade? This one does and I never see the RCO w/o two people at this crossing. Of course, it is way out of the yard and to leave your helper standing in the yard wouldn't be very practical, not to mention nice!

Mookie

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

Mookie,

RCOs use two people, one runs the motor, one is the helper.
The contract lets displaced yard engineers have first crack at running the remote, if he chooses not to, the senior switchman/yardmen/conductor gets it.
Most of the time, you never see the helper on a remote job, he is down in the yard, lineing switches and watching shoves.

Ed

Gosh, Ed...back here in the east, the two RCO guys are trainmen. The BLE decided engineers running remotes was beneath our dignity, so it was all or nothing. We got nothing. Every one of those switching jobs had an engineer at one time...we'd had a percentage of the rco's, but NOOOOOOO! Thanks, BLE for looking out for my interests. BTW, Mook. Do you think the crew of BNSF 9765 shopped their engine "...account not pretty..."?

[Mookie]

QUOTE: Originally posted by skeets

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

Mookie,

RCOs use two people, one runs the motor, one is the helper.
The contract lets displaced yard engineers have first crack at running the remote, if he chooses not to, the senior switchman/yardmen/conductor gets it.
Most of the time, you never see the helper on a remote job, he is down in the yard, lineing switches and watching shoves.

Ed

Gosh, Ed...back here in the east, the two RCO guys are trainmen. The BLE decided engineers running remotes was beneath our dignity, so it was all or nothing. We got nothing. Every one of those switching jobs had an engineer at one time...we'd had a percentage of the rco's, but NOOOOOOO! Thanks, BLE for looking out for my interests. BTW, Mook. Do you think the crew of BNSF 9765 shopped their engine "...account not pretty..."?

Mook loves the smell of a good, light cologne and wears a different one each day. Looks aside, this engine definitely didn't have good cologne and I would have shopped it just because of that! Smelled like a really bad cigar!

Smell me?