tree68Getting stuff ready for NORAC Rules class tomorrow - an annual rite of passage if one wants to run on the railroad. Fortunately, the GVT companies also run under NORAC, or we'd be going through two sets of rules...
NORAC is a breeze. I am qualified on it as well as my carrier's rule book, since we also run on some NORAC railroads. NORAC is the one few things that the railroads ever did that made sense. So many of the rules are just plain common sense. The other rule book I work under.....ehhhh....not so much.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.
Thundersnizzle in the Mile High City....Just fertilized the yard with Greeley's finest....springtime in da Rockies. Hoping for green by May....now back to pushin' paper.
I arrived back in the Crossroads of the West only a minute or so late last night. There ws no evidence left of the snow that came here Wednesday night. The temperature here this morning was in the fifties.
Friday morning, I tried to get on line in the Metropolitan lounge in Chicago, but the only outlet I could plug in to was in a dead corner, so far as the lounge's wireless was concerned--and the other outlet was monopolized by a dog in the manger who, with his female friend, stayed at the table by i t even though they were not working on line) as long as I was in there. I did find a supply of cards which could be used for making suggestions about the station--and I sent my thoughts to the powers that be there.
Katie is setting up to keep bees; she now has an occupied hive in the back yard; I may no longer have to buy honey for baking bread. She is also moving her garden to beside the driveway so that her vegetables will get more sun--she has the frames for the beds built and will next move the good earth she has bought into them.
Mookie, I hope you did not come down to wave at me yesterday morning--the bedrooms in both cars were not on the platform side of the train--and I erred when I told you I would be in D, for I was in E, fast asleep.
Odds and ends: I saw a well-worn BAR engine and two Housatonic engines in Pittsfield Friday. I also saw (somewhere between Boston and Rensselaer, I think) several gondolas marked NGPX (who is that) with dark gray matter in them; I wonder if they are dedicated to a particular service. Somewhere along the way, I saw a bright red Burlington Jct. engine.
Yesterday, we were held east of Glenwood Springs for #6, which was a little over an hour late--that train was a little over two hours late leaving Grand Junction, and over three hours late leaving here.
Having sorted my mail and thrown the junk out, I have only to get my newspapers in the proper order so I can read the comics properly--and finish unpacking.
Johnny
Technically, I think we now have a grandpuppy? Our son Ben just got a dog, named Blanche. She's looks to be sort of a mix between a corgie and a chihuahua. Does that make her a corgihuahua? Personally, I think she looks like a furry armadillo, because she's kind of tubby, but who am I to talk? Blanche is sort of a double rescue dog, as our local Humane Society got her from an affiliate in Oklahoma that sends all their dogs and cats to the gallows. So far, Blanche the dog and George the cat are getting along. That's probably because Goerge-butt thinks he's a dog anyway. On a related note, I have a brother who has a pet squirrel, Chelsea, living in his kitchen. Does that somehow make me a monkey's uncle or some such?
Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.
Johnny, I can't find anything out about NGPX in my usual sources; I still have an anenue or three to explore.
I'll bet your Burlington Junction unit was in Burlington. There are other possibilities, though (come to think of it, I recall seeing one somewhere, and we didn't go through Burlington).Sorry we couldn't meet you in Chicago this time; we're kind of tied up.On that front, a little good news...Linda and her dad (moi) walked to the corner bakery this morning. It was the first time she'd been out of the apartment since she returned home from the hospital nearly a week ago, and it was about a block each way. She had her brace on, but was otherwise unassisted.News almost as good: Linus finally trusts his grandma and grandpa to put him in the swing at the nearby park; he had a grand time and didn't want to get out.Tomorrow is another dose of chemo for Linda, and we'll see what happens after that...otherwise a walk to the park (at least twice as far as the bakery, in the opposite direction) is next on our agenda.
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
Rules out of the way (class, anyhow) for another year. After dinner with some fellow volunteers I rushed back to the TV station and spent several hours hawking donated merchandise whilst representing the railroad. Things went pretty well, but all-in-all it was a l-o-n-g day.
Was back at the station Sunday night to run camera - ended up "selling" a couple of tables at the end of the night besides. I'll be back there Monday and Tuesday as well.
It's been fire weather here - lots of people apparently still haven't heard there's a state-wide ban on open fires until mid-May. The annual ban has been in effect for about five years now... We've managed to stay "in the station," but there have been several significant grass/brush fires around the area.
Rain overnight and several weather systems coming through should help keep that to a minimum.
Carl - great news on daughter. Let's hope for continuing progress!
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
afternoon
amtraks capitol passed a westbound this morning when I got to work.after work a track inspector was rolling westbound.Everything else was clear.Chores to do.
stay safe
Joe
Deshler Ohio-crossroads of the B&O Matt eats your fries.YUM! Clinton st viaduct undefeated against too tall trucks!!!(voted to be called the "Clinton St. can opener").
Joe - we saw the CZ heading eb about 3-4 hours late. Usually they saunter into town on time or late. He was really moving when he passed us sitting very close to the depot. (obviously he either didn't have to stop or they just threw someone off the train!)
She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw
Mookie Joe - we saw the CZ heading eb about 3-4 hours late. Usually they saunter into town on time or late. He was really moving when he passed us sitting very close to the depot. (obviously he either didn't have to stop or they just threw someone off the train!)
Would that passenger look anything like Gene Wilder?
Zugmann's law of railroading #4782
Whenever you are running a train in the rain - you will have the worst possible wipers. Dash-9 had them adjusted in such an awesome way that they slammed into the lip of the windshiled gasket with each swipe. And of course it was pouring down.
So the trip home was swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK.
zugmann Zugmann's law of railroading #4782 Whenever you are running a train in the rain - you will have the worst possible wipers. Dash-9 had them adjusted in such an awesome way that they slammed into the lip of the windshiled gasket with each swipe. And of course it was pouring down. So the trip home was swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK.
A word!
Rain-X
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
zugmannZugmann's law of railroading #4782 Whenever you are running a train in the rain - you will have the worst possible wipers.
Air operated? Try, just try to find the "sweet spot" where they're running at a reasonable speed... Usually they're either running so fast you thing they're going to destroy them selves, or hardly moving at all....
BaltACD zugmann Zugmann's law of railroading #4782 Whenever you are running a train in the rain - you will have the worst possible wipers. Dash-9 had them adjusted in such an awesome way that they slammed into the lip of the windshiled gasket with each swipe. And of course it was pouring down. So the trip home was swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK,swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK, swipe, SMACK. A word! Rain-X
Ns had some empties uptown at work.When I got home got a call that CSX had a traction motor go bad in the yard at Defiance.Hulcher was dispatched to change it out.I decided since mother nature was air drying the yard today I would mow the swamp.More chores to do.
Saw some retired former IC Highliner bi-levels sitting on a spur near Landers on the ride home from work. It doesn't seem like that long ago when they were new and just being placed into service. 1971 wasn't that long ago, was it??
CSSHEGEWISCH Saw some retired former IC Highliner bi-levels sitting on a spur near Landers on the ride home from work. It doesn't seem like that long ago when they were new and just being placed into service. 1971 wasn't that long ago, was it??
saw the capitol this morning at work.After work ns had some empties uptown.Saw some white stuff blowing outside after lunch.Will wait until tomorrow for the outside chores.Have plenty of chores inside.
tree68Air operated? Try, just try to find the "sweet spot" where they're running at a reasonable speed... Usually they're either running so fast you thing they're going to destroy them selves, or hardly moving at all....
Newer wide cabs aren't like the older engines. They have some kind of regulator that only allows 2 speeds if you are lucky.
$2million+ locomotive and you can't have electric-powered wipers. Not like there's a power generator right there or anything....
chores and errands to do.Ns had a westbound in the siding when I left work.tomorrow is Friday.
Calling hours for a friend's grandfather this afternoon, then an EMS class tonight, to be followed by two more days of EMS classes.
And evenings running camera at the local PBS merchandise auction.
Busy, busy, busy.
And it snowed today, too. No accumulation at my house, but it snowed...
Yesterday Linda and I drove down to a park by the main line at Surf (the Amtrak stop for Lompoc), and walked a little before fatigue and a very cold ocean breeze drove us back to town. She walked again today with Chris, a couple of blocks.A couple of close friends of Linda and Chris are coming in tonight to be with them over the weekend (these are the couple who will eventually replace us when they can move back to the U.S. permanently). But Pat and I are taking advantage of a weekend to go to Tehachapi, where rumor has it that there is a quilt store and a hobby shop. The main line and the main drag parallel each other, so we don't have to get too loopy in order to see trains (we went to the Loop on our previous trip out). I'm hoping to go further up the coast toward SLO tomorrow before cutting across the mountains to Bakersfield and Tehachapi, then coming home via Bakersfield and Santa Maria. We know the pastors of a church in Bakersfield, so we might pop in on them.Joe, did you know that there's a Kohnen's Bakery in Tehachapi? It has to be right by the tracks. It looks like a place where a meal could be purchased; if so, you'll hear about it!
CShaveRRJoe, did you know that there's a Kohnen's Bakery in Tehachapi? It has to be right by the tracks. It looks like a place where a meal could be purchased; if so, you'll hear about it!
Sandwiches, at least, plus a lot of tempting but forbidden to us treats in the cases. Right west of the depot museum in the center of downtown.
Don't know about the weekend, but MOW folks out this morning because I heard a westbound stack train giving warning toots this morning about where Tucker Road goes over the tracks on the way to Highway 58. No UP trucks parked at the motel last night, though, which has been unusual this year on the previous stays.
And check the house on the NW corner of East F street and S. Hayes Street for a chuckle at the house number display. (F street is one block south of Tehachapi Blvd and Hayes Street is where the Red House BBQ joint is on the boulevard at the east end of downtown.)
evening
Carl my uncle was out in California and had a family out there.Have met our"cousins" a couple of times.Could be possible.Ns had a up led frieght going in the siding when I got to work.It was gone afterwork but we saw a citirail led westbound.Did errands at home and CSX's q 500 had an air hose problem.They had to set the car out at the county line(grain elevator siding).We gave the conductor and trainee a ride back to the head end.They got rolling and said thanks again as they passed us at the next road.cold and chilly with rain tomorrow.Going to stay inside.
We'll have to give it a try, then.Thank you, Chuck, for the interesting details, which we'll also be looking at. I'm not sure we're up for barbecue (we've been eating too well the last couple of days), but I'll check out that house.Our trip yesterday took us up as far north as Atascadero before we crossed over no-man's-land to get to Bakersfield. The most interesting thing we saw, train-wise, on that part of the trip was the power of the San Joaquin Valley Railroad.We are now down in Tehachapi, waiting for things to open up (stores at 10, museum at 11). It was rainy earlier in the morning, but the sun's out now. Nonetheless, it's cold and windy here--we may not break 50 today. Yet they're talking 90s later in the week. Pat is out now trying to buy herself a hoodie, because we plan on walking downtown later in the day. We've located two fabric stores, but I've so far missed the hobby shop...eyes on the road, and all that.
Our hotel room has a poor view--but a view nonetheless--of the main line. I much prefer to go downstairs and cross the highway to get closer to the trains. When they're climbing the hill, I don't miss too much of them between the time I first see them and when I can get over there. It's been busy this morning, mostly BNSF, and mostly coming up the hill. The summit is apparently right in town, because the trains pick up speed noticeably before the hind end gets past.
CShaveRRI'm not sure we're up for barbecue (we've been eating too well the last couple of days), but I'll check out that house.
We tried the BBQ joint in January; it was OK but not really great. The red cabbage coleslaw was a little too intense for me.
I think the main line is kind of level from about the K-Mart east to at least Monolith (big cement plant) or maybe a little farther before the tracks start falling towards Mojave. It used to be that BNSF would go through in the day and UP at night, but that hasn't seemed to be so rigid the past year or so. Of course, in January, nobody was coming through during daylight because the MOW folks were out in force on the west side of town. Usually the last train through around dawn was blowing a lot for the workers.
An oddity when we were coming up on Wednesday was an EB UP train on the BNSF line between Barstow and Mojave, with a good string of hoppers, just west of the junction of US 395 and CAL 58. I think that was the first time I have ever seen a UP train on that line. Usually, between Kramer Junction and Mojave, at least one BNSF train will be observed, sometimes two, when driving on CAL 58.
Oh, and almost exactly a year ago, we came through Tehachapi with snow on the hills, 37° high with a steady 25 mph wind, then came back through about five days later and it was 82° with hardly any wind. (That hardly-any-wind condition is actually pretty rare there.)
Too bad you are too late to see the green hills west of Keene and down to the valley; they were pretty nice last month. This month, not so green.
Chuck, we enjoyed the lamp at the house on the corner when we saw it. Also agree with your assessment of the Red House, and of the bakery. It seems that every place in Tehachapi is intended to satisfy appetites far bigger than ours (or what they should be!).
The train-watching day there was marred by rain, wind, and cold. However, we walked from our hotel to the downtown, and visited one quilt shop, the hobby shop, and the Depot Museum before having lunch at the bakery. They were good sandwiches, but we didn't find out until afterwards that we could have had half sandwiches. After lunch we visited the second quilt store, then went back to the bakery for some of the forbidden items in the display cases, which we brought back to the hotel with us, facing into the wind and rain. Keep in mind that for this excursion we never left Tehachapi Boulevard, so all of the trains that went by were very visible, and it was no problem to get a little closer to the tracks when necessary. We drove out to the Red House in the evening, and fueled the car for the trip back to Lompoc.As for hotels, I think we picked a winner with the Best Western Plus Country Park hotel. The staff was great, and fair views could be had across Tehachapi Boulevard. I would recommend that if you use that hotel, request room 301, 303, 305, 307, or 309 for the best open views of the track. They have us room 311, which was too close to the carport for much of a view, though I could see the trains as they approached, then get down the stairs, out the door, and across the boulevard before too much had passed. This also gave me much-needed exercise.This morning we headed down 58 for Bakersfield, actually catching a train going down at the Loop. For some reason the trip down the hill made more of an impression on the size of the grade than the trip up had made. Most trains are moving slowly at Tehachapi. The ones coming upgrade are usually working when they reach the town, but pick up speed noticeably while passing, as Tehachapi is the summit. Trains starting down are taking it slowly to maintain control. Most noticeable in this respect was "the Worm", a BNSF grain train (so named because of the red-oxide color of most of the curved-side covered hoppers that make up the train). It was tiptoeing the whole way, with all nine units (four on the point, three mid-train DPUs, and two more DPs on the hind end) blowing off dynamic-brake heat.
Carl, it sounds like you had a pretty neat visit, excuse the weather, to Tehachapi. Lately we have been staying just west of the BW at the Fairfield, but we have stayed a number of times at the BW as well. A trackside third floor room in either property is a good viewing point, though the Fairfield has a mini-storage obstructing some of the view. Both places have pretty good sound-proofing, but it's not enough to prevent hearing the trains or deciding whether the head-end power is GE or EMD if you have a trackside room.
Last year, maybe, I saw the worm come through with the exact power configuration you described, while dining at the Village Grill, which is just next door to the BBQ joint. The Village Grill has been good in the past, but last year it seemed to be slipping a little bit, at least for dinner, so we have been going elsewhere the last couple of visits. Like the Apple Shed across the street, if you are in the right section, the train watching view is fairly decent.
We'll get to town tomorrow, where the weather forecast is in the seventies and (stop me if you've heard this before) breezy. I guess that's why all the wind generators are on the hills east of town and down to Mojave.
Carl,
I just want to offer my sympathies. Like Pat, my wife was heavy into anything tha included needle and thread or yarn. I think I spent more time in fabric stores than elsewhere. OTOH, Vicki never crabbed about sitting and watching trains so I guess it was a fair trade.
Norm
Norm, I'm essential to Pat's visits to the fabric stores. I'm the "color" to her play-by-play. Saturday I talked her into material for a new shirt/blouse that she absolutely wouldn't have bought on her own. But I know that she'd look great in those colors! (True story: she pointed out that this material had many of the same colors as a jacket she made and likes...I had to remind her that it was I who had to persuade her to do that one, and it grew on her once she received compliments on it!)Pat brings knitting and/or a book when there's a chance we'll be somewhere for train-watching. Thing is, sitting and waiting for trains is not my preference, either. If I'm going to do that around home, I don't take her with me.Chuck, we went to the Village Grill Friday night when we got into town. I can imagine that it has had better days. I did, however, get a seafood platter (something they could just heat up, I suspect) that was filling to excess, and we were where the trains could be seen.We didn't go to the Apple Barn this time. It was good enough (though expensive) eight years ago when we went, but I'd heard rumors about it being under new management that was not the best for its workers, so I passed. Ironically, one of the servers at the Red House was wearing an Apple Barn t-shirt. When we asked her about that, she said that she works for both places, and I think she said that they're under the same management. Kind of hard to visualize when one compares interior decor.That same storage place blocked a lot of the view to the west from our room, so I concentrated on the view to the east. There was enough of a view over the sheds to see the type of train, so I could decide whether I wanted to go down and check it out.I wouldn't have minded going back for another day of Tehachapi yesterday afternoon (after church in Bakersfield), but we had to get back to Lompoc. For anyone who has to make the trip to Tehachapi from the coast, I'd say that 161 is a far better and more interesting road to take than 58, though both are spectacularly desolate.
Ns was clear when I left work.They were working on replacing the nyc signals in edgerton yesterday.Missed the CNW unit on the point of q 171.Going to be trackwork west of Garrett through the summer.Time to get supper and do chores.
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