Odd encounters with non-railfans

[jockellis]

The pizza story was the best I've read. It should be sent it in to Trains. This wasn't real funny, but I worked for a sign company and two of us had to go down to the railyard in Gainesville, Ga to get to the place we were supposed to fix a sign. We came up to a weed-filled track, two tracks, actually, with a cut of boxcars on the first track to the right of the grade crossing. I started talking about railroads and the driver said something about it never being used and started to cross. I started screaming for him to stop. I think he jammed on the brakes more from the fear of my voice than anything else. But as soon as we stopped, a switcher appeared out of nowhere from behind the boxcars. I nearly wet my pants because it had been such a close call.
Jock Ellis
Cumming, GA US of A

[martin.knoepfel]

In France, the more sofisticated steam-engines had assigned crews.

Many non-railfans - and some railfans too - ignore the fact that catenary can be energized even if there is no train coming. They believe, elctricity is flowing from the power station to the locomotive, same way water would flow.

[Old Limey]

Going back to my old friend the engine driver on the Southern Region who up until quite recently drove special steam trips for various reasons.He took a load of 'Toffs' out of a London station on a circular route on New Years Eve sometime back and during his duty a rather well dressed lady in a white ball gown pleaded with him to be allowed on the footplate at one of the stops made.He obliged her and assisted her up in to the cab.
Little did she know that she carried two coal dust & oil hand prints on her backside the rest of the evening/night.

[jeaton]

WHAT??? DO YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT THE 3985 ISN'T PLASTIC??? How in the world do they get all the fancy parts made of something else?

Jay (Still laughing)

[Anonymous]

Last year I was in Palestine, Tx. watching and shooting the 3985 as she had water put in her tender. I was standing in my denim wearing all sorts of UP items and some guy with a few teeth walks up to me and says " You know that thing is made of plastic" referring to the 3985. I looked over at him and gave him an explanation. I told him it was one large iron tube with lots of other smaller tubes packed inside. I also told him it burned oil in a fire that reached temps of 3000 degrees.
I went on and on about other tidbits of info. When I ended he asked if I worked for the railroad.

Generally though all I usually get from most people is "do you work for the railroad"

[chad thomas]

Up in the Hinkle, Or. yard there is a tall pole with a nest on top. They didn't mind people coming on rr property to take pictures of the birds. But they frowned on taking pictures of the trains. So I had to pretend to be interested in the birds so I wasn't run off.

[MP57313]

When I'm out and around taking pictures, sometimes people will ask if I'm taking pictures of the birds, or the trees, or whatever. When I tell them I am taking pictures of the trains, some are ok with it, but occasionally I get a reaction like "Why would anybody do that?" Well....maybe they have a point.

Recently I took a picture of the L A Junction RR bridge over a freeway (no train), with some of the local industries in the background. A passerby told me "you're getting pictures of trash!" Sure there was some litter scattered around, but it was not the main point of interest in the area.

As for hotels, I've asked for trackside views sometimes. Unfortunately they are usually the smoking rooms so I have to pass {hack} {wheeze}

[edblysard]

My class hired out in 96.
Out of the 18 in the group, 16 made it through training and got over their derail.
Four of us are still here railroading, and only 2 out of the 4 are in T&E service, The other 2 are yardmaster trainees...

Ed

[ValleyX]

It's always surprised me how many older people have asked me if we still have any steam. Never heard the question from younger people, younger people have no clue what steam is or might have been.

If you're a working rail, don't even try to explain that you have no set schedule if you work the road, people just can't grasp that at all.

Some younger guys in my neck of the woods do have a passion for it and others don't. It amazes me how many people they go through to find a few that stick it out more than a couple of years. We've got more than one here who, when you ask them how many are still working from the group they hired with, they'll answer that they're the only one or maybe there's only one other person who is still working.

[edblysard]

I hope he does...
way too many of the new hires we have picked up just consider this a job, and only a job
The passion for railroading dosnt seem to be there for them, like it was for me...
Sad, these are the guys who will inherit our railroads.

Ed

QUOTE: Originally posted by canazar

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

Odd encounter, eh?






This guy had the time of his life, he freaked out when he grabbed notch 8 for a second, was amazed something that big and bulky could take off that fast...

After about 30 minutes, his cell phone rings, his boss is scared we killed his driver over three late pizzas!

We let him run it back up to his where his car was parked...he is so jazzed he is vibrating...

The next week, when we were out there late again, I think we got the fastest, (and major overstuffed) pizzas ever delivered.

That kid just about had his POS on two wheels coming around the corner of the guard shack!

I saw him again last year...he quit pizza delivery, and went to work for KCS...so it all good in the end!

Ed

Ed,
Thats a great Story. I was lauging and cracking up (A freind of mine had one of those fords back in the day, when it was new). Thats cool you gave him such a thrill and got him with job he most likely loves. Maybe he will pass the torch too... Glad I read that

[bbrant]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Pokemon Fanatic 999

We do have many clueless people out there.

Just curios....Has anyone ever been asked how much air the tires on a train will hold or if they ever get a leak in them?

I've never been asked this but based on the responses that have been posted I'd have to think that some non-railfan out there has pondered this. Like Pokemon Fanatic said, there are a lot of clueless people out there.

[canazar]

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

Odd encounter, eh?






This guy had the time of his life, he freaked out when he grabbed notch 8 for a second, was amazed something that big and bulky could take off that fast...

After about 30 minutes, his cell phone rings, his boss is scared we killed his driver over three late pizzas!

We let him run it back up to his where his car was parked...he is so jazzed he is vibrating...

The next week, when we were out there late again, I think we got the fastest, (and major overstuffed) pizzas ever delivered.

That kid just about had his POS on two wheels coming around the corner of the guard shack!

I saw him again last year...he quit pizza delivery, and went to work for KCS...so it all good in the end!

Ed

Ed,
Thats a great Story. I was lauging and cracking up (A freind of mine had one of those fords back in the day, when it was new). Thats cool you gave him such a thrill and got him with job he most likely loves. Maybe he will pass the torch too... Glad I read that

[jeaton]

Larry

Don't be giving the young guys any ideas. Bad enough when one of the O-O's in town parks his 18 wheeler on the street during a weekend back in town. Get one of those big GE's taking up street parking and making pot holes on the way in and out?

Jay

[tree68]

Ironically, in the days of steam an engineer would often basically "own" an engine. Witness the recent article in one of the mags about an Erie hogger whose name was even painted on the side of the cab... Conductors often had their "own" caboose.

We can tease the non-fans for being clueless, but sometimes they are more right than we know...

[Anonymous]

Lol, engineers owning the locomotive. We do have many clueless people out there. But that concept is funny to think about. All engineers would have railroad tracks beside thier house, with a shed for them. Every night, they drive them in and go inside their houses. It'd be bad if the kids got inside of it and decided to blow the horn at like 5 o' clock in the morning. lol, there needs to be some train buff comedians

[chad thomas]

That's funny.

Reminds me of this guy I used to see all the time walking around with his white cane. One day I saw him look at his watch.

[Old Limey]

A former steam driver who changed to Electric multiple units told me about a friend of his who loved a joke. He walked up the platform of Victoria in London where the train was waiting to go to Dover. He had a white stick and tapped his way up to the front and when he got there asked a lady passenger if she could open the door and help him in. "Why?"she asked "Because I am the driver" he said, "Oh!" so she duly helped into the cab and he asked her to put a switch down for him just inside the door.(In reality it was just a light switch)."Why?" she asked again, "Because I can't see otherwise"he said
She apparently went back into the carriage and told all about her experience.
[:D]

[Old Limey]

A former steam driver who changed to Electric multiple units told me about a friend of his who loved a joke. He walked up the platform of Victoria in London where the train was waiting to go to Dover. He had a white stick and tapped his way up to the front and when he got there asked a lady passenger if she could open the door and help him in. "Why?"she asked "Because I am the driver" he said, "Oh!" so she duly helped into the cab and he asked her to put a switch down for him just inside the door.(In reality it was just a light switch)."Why?" she asked again, "Because I can't see otherwise"he said
She apparently went back into the carriage and told all about her experience.
[:D]

[vsmith]

QUOTE: Originally posted by artmark

QUOTE: Originally posted by jeaton

Mitch

I can almost see an old timer climbing out of the cab, firing up the ever present cigar, going up to the front of the car and leaning in to push it back. That is funny.

Jay

Jay,
Come to think of it, I think the hogger stepped outside (as he had to go back to the engine anyway) shrugged his shoulders and yelled,"Wanna help me push!"
This is exactly how guys get there nicknames on the railroad.
Mitch

Seen home movies of Buster Keaton let loose in a rail yard doing this stuff on film, grabbing a passing locomotive grab bar and "stopping" the engine or putting his hand on the back of a car and "pushing" it away, Funny stuff, all this was in the early 60's when he was in Canada filming the "Railrodder" his last film, appropriatly about trains.[:D]

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by chad thomas

Tell em' yea, it's right next to the gear shifter.

Strangely enough, there are a few locos out there with gearshifts - usually small switchers though there have been some larger experimental diesel-mechanical types. It's more common on railcars - British Railways ordered thousands of diesel railcars from various builders for branchline services, most of these had a couple of bus engines under the power car(s) driving through 4-speed gearboxes (manual shift) and then via cardan shafts to the inner axle of each truck. Basically a British equivelent to the Budd RDC.

Some of these stories are brilliant - especially liked the Pizza one, that had me laughing out loud! Sadly I don't have any to share - the only one I've seen (and this is more an example of stupidity than odd encounters) was the person who happily crossed with his wife and two kids in front of a moving steam switcher on a museum line - this despite the loco crew blowing the whistle, the guard (conductor) blowing his whistle, another crew member yelling and everyone gesticulating at them to get off the tracks. Luckily, we missed them, but if one had caught a foot in a switch (or similar) I'm not sure the crew could have stopped in time - takes a while to bring even our tiny locos to a stop!

[Jack_S]

QUOTE: Originally posted by chad thomas

QUOTE: Originally posted by Jack_S

QUOTE: Originally posted by chad thomas


Avoiding non-railfan interferance is why I do most of my railfanning in secluded areas. Sometimes I take a few guns and do some target shooting to divert attention from my main activities. It works for me.

This Saturday I may be going to a Cowboy Action Shooting Match in the Cajon pass. The shooting range is just across Cajon Blvd. from the 3 lines running through the southern end of the pass. I believe it is near Keenwood. I may be able to do two hobbies with one trip.

Cowboy Action Shooting Match ? I've never heard of that. What goes on at one?

The Single Action Shooting Society is the parent orgaization for it. They started out years ago as a bunch of people who liked to get together and shoot old (and replica) western style guns. Single Action Army Colts, Lever action Winchesters, Schofields, Sharps, and the like. They developed a series of shooting scenarios that simulate the old west, including one that involves riding a horse through an obstacle course while shooting balloons on 6 foot sticks. They have figured out how to do these scenarios safely and it's pretty entertaining just to watch. The National Championships used to be held in Corona, CA but have now moved to a place in New Mexico.

Over the years they started to dress up in authentic western costume while doing all this and the public is usually invited to the big matches. It's sort of a Wild West version of the Rennaisance Faires with a shooting competition added.

The various local and regional clubs have training and competition shoots all over. The Cajon Cowboys shoot at a ranch in the lower Cajon pass, beween old Route 66 and the freeway and right across the valley from the RRs.

Check it out at: www.sassnet.com

[chad thomas]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Jack_S

QUOTE: Originally posted by chad thomas


Avoiding non-railfan interferance is why I do most of my railfanning in secluded areas. Sometimes I take a few guns and do some target shooting to divert attention from my main activities. It works for me.

This Saturday I may be going to a Cowboy Action Shooting Match in the Cajon pass. The shooting range is just across Cajon Blvd. from the 3 lines running through the southern end of the pass. I believe it is near Keenwood. I may be able to do two hobbies with one trip.

Cowboy Action Shooting Match ? I've never heard of that. What goes on at one?

[chad thomas]

I don't know. Lets get on the "CB" and ask.

[Modelcar]

....Only on the models with a wrap-around windshield.....{yea, I know the Aero Train had that}....

[bbrant]

QUOTE: Originally posted by chad thomas

Tell em' yea, it's right next to the gear shifter.

Aren't both the steering wheel and the gear shifter right next to the 8-track player or is that only on wide-cab models? [:D][:D]

[Jack_S]

QUOTE: Originally posted by chad thomas


Avoiding non-railfan interferance is why I do most of my railfanning in secluded areas. Sometimes I take a few guns and do some target shooting to divert attention from my main activities. It works for me.

This Saturday I may be going to a Cowboy Action Shooting Match in the Cajon pass. The shooting range is just across Cajon Blvd. from the 3 lines running through the southern end of the pass. I believe it is near Keenwood. I may be able to do two hobbies with one trip.

[chad thomas]

Tell em' yea, it's right next to the gear shifter.

[Anonymous]

I've had people ask me if there's a steering wheel in the cab of the locomotive. [:D]

[chad thomas]

Actually half the people I come across are also doin a little target shooting. Well mabee not half... but it is common.