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Trackside Lounge: 1Q 2011

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Posted by tree68 on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 1:36 PM

Hmmmmm.  Theme for the photo competition this go-round is "Trees."  Probably be in bad form to send in picture of myself (albeit in a RR environment...).

LarryWhistling
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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 1:45 PM

I like it, Larry!  And somebody like Joe could send a shot of an identical Tree in Deshler!

Carl

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Posted by Deggesty on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 4:33 PM

Oh, give it a try, Larry. Is there a category "Most Unusual Tree?"Smile

Johnny

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Posted by zugmann on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 5:51 PM

Since the theme is "Trees" you will need more than one.  So Larry would need a family member, or a mirror, or he would have to make sure there was a tree in the photo.

But yeah, I vote for "go for it" as well.

 

PS (unrelated to the above): I hate the waiting game..

 

It's been fun.  But it isn't much fun anymore.   Signing off for now. 


  

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Posted by tree68 on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 10:01 PM

Hee hee....  Devil

On a totally unrelated note, I just noticed that I have over 10,000 posts....Indifferent

LarryWhistling
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Posted by CShaveRR on Thursday, March 10, 2011 8:48 AM

And just how many trees were destroyed to produce all of those posts?

Congratulations!

Carl

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Posted by CShaveRR on Thursday, March 10, 2011 4:04 PM

Since Pat needed the computer today, I stayed out on errands a little longer than she did, watching trains at the station platform in Elmhurst, writing a letter on my manual laptop (a.k.a. clipboard), and grabbing lunch from one of my favorite places (Hamburger Heaven). 

I was by the tracks for a little less than two hours, and was blessed with an extraordinarily long manifest freight (three units, including one NS, on the point and a DP in the middle), a stack train, a coal train (CWEX, 2/1) an auto-rack train, and the usual scoots.  Another stack train was ready to head west from Global 2 as I left.

My departure was aboard an eastbound Metra train, to allow me to see construction progress on the third track and flyover between Bellwood and Provo Junction.  This was the first time I'd seen it since Paul posted the drawings of the proposed changes.  More pilings have been driven, and it's now easy to see that the new line will pass over the main line (all pilings are driven in a way that they would form A-shaped piers).

The most efficient place to get off the train was at Oak Park, where I had roughly a half-hour before a westbound scoot would bring me home (I also found a place for Five Guys Hamburgers within walking distance of a Metra stop!).  The local Border's didn't have the DeLorme atlases I want to buy for our upcoming trip.

The return trip revealed that the old pedestrian crosswalk at Villa Park has been removed (it was 11 days ago that we made the last trip through here, and it was still there then). It's been replaced by a new crosswalk at the east end of the platform, outfitted with flashers, gates, and ATWS.  The grade crossing at Ardmore Avenue will also serve pedestrians needing to cross the tracks.  The footings for two of the three new signal bridges between Elmhurst and Lombard were being worked on as we went through.  The third bridge may have had its footings being worked on as well, but at that point I was distracted by a small CN freight about to pass beneath our route.


Carl

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Posted by zardoz on Thursday, March 10, 2011 8:15 PM

tree68

Hee hee....  Devil

On a totally unrelated note, I just noticed that I have over 10,000 posts....Indifferent

Doesn't that qualify you for 5 Gold Stars?

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Posted by WMNB4THRTL on Thursday, March 10, 2011 8:24 PM

StarStarStarStarStar Yup, here ya go, Larry!!

Nance-CCABW/LEI 

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Posted by tree68 on Thursday, March 10, 2011 8:25 PM

zardoz
Doesn't that qualify you for 5 Gold Stars?

More like "I should get a life...."

Alas I have the same occupational affliction as Carl, and it's all too easy to sit down at the computer and 'see what's going on...'

LarryWhistling
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Posted by CNW 6000 on Friday, March 11, 2011 8:38 AM

Sounds like you had a full day Carl!  We're heading to Chicago this weekend.  Shedd Aquarium on Saturday and then my wife wants to go to the Jelly Belly factory on Sunday before heading home.  We're looking for signals south at around 0630 tomorrow.  We may have time to linger a bit on Sunday but I'm not sure for how long exactly.

Larry-congrats on 10k+ posts.  I think your fingers are due for an oil change and rotation.

Dan

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Posted by CShaveRR on Friday, March 11, 2011 9:14 AM

Hey, Dan, thanks for the call last week!  Had I not been away from the phone, taking a nap on account of my cold, we could have made it out to West Chicago and seen the ore train.


Anyway, I'd invite you out to the western suburbs on Sunday morning, but we, too, will be migrating, in the opposite direction, after church (If you call before 9, I could drop Pat at choir rehearsal and meet you folks there for a little bit).  If you get a chance to come out to the Elmhurst station for a crack at train-watching, please do--it would be easy enough for you to get on I-294 and head north to Jelly-Belly land.  (My daughter has been there--they usually go for the deals on the Belly-Flops.)

Carl

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Posted by CNW 6000 on Friday, March 11, 2011 10:19 PM

Thanks for the tips Carl.  I know we're staying at a hotel in Kenosha somewhere near the Jelly  Belly factory.  Maybe I'll get lucky and we'll see something close enough.  If not, it's not like anyone's pulling up rails and I'll get back down there again sometime.

Caught up with the WSOR's HK/L595 job today.  Haven't seen them in a while.  Seen here on some rockin' stick rails near Elo, WI:
http://flic.kr/p/9pDJjr

Caught up again near Utica, WI as light and my time trackside was fading.
http://flic.kr/p/9pDLcB

Time for bed.

Dan

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Posted by Paul_D_North_Jr on Saturday, March 12, 2011 4:13 PM

I like the composition, context, and angle of that 1st photo, Dan - back a little ways and uphill a little bit from the grade crossing, instead of the usual 'clich/e' wedge shot.  Thumbs Up  thanks for sharing !

- Paul North. 

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Posted by WMNB4THRTL on Saturday, March 12, 2011 4:21 PM

To be perfectly honest, I was going to type almost the same thing, Paul. I just hadn't gotten around to posting that reply yet.

Dan, it's so nice to see a shot that is a little unexpected or unusual!! Very refreshing!! Thanks for posting, as always! Keep snapping those great shots!

Nance-CCABW/LEI 

“Even if you are on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” --Will Rogers

Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're right! --unknown

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Posted by CShaveRR on Sunday, March 13, 2011 8:34 AM

Off to Michigan later this morning...we'll try to bring along a few examples of Michigan's state bird (Robin) in our slip-stream, in case they haven't gotten that far north on their own yet.

I was hearing a couple of strange horn calls on the railroad yesterday and this morning, that seemed to be from something moving slowly, possibly in connection with control-point work.  I couldn't check things out yesterday, but will do so this morning before church.

Dan, it doesn't sound like your trip to Chicago yielded much in the way of railroading.  Hope you have good luck on the way north today!

Carl

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Posted by zardoz on Sunday, March 13, 2011 8:48 AM

CNW 6000

Thanks for the tips Carl.  I know we're staying at a hotel in Kenosha somewhere near the Jelly  Belly factory.  Maybe I'll get lucky and we'll see something close enough.  If not, it's not like anyone's pulling up rails and I'll get back down there again sometime.

Dan, you may see this too late, but the Jelly Belly plant is adjacent to the Milwaukee sub of the UP. It is also only about a mile from my place. If you want a tour of kenosha's rail spots, give me a call.

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Posted by CNW 6000 on Sunday, March 13, 2011 4:11 PM

Jim,

I'm reading this in Oshkosh, WI.  Apparently the trains.com sites allow reading on BlackBerry devices, but I'm unable to log in and thus can't post.  I did see the rail lines around JB.  Looked like a couple of industries on a single track and then a double tracked section heading towards what looked like a coal-fired power plant.  I did see a couple of UP trains west of 94W/41N as we turned for home but I'm so unfamiliar with that area I couldn't begin to guess at where they were.  I know that I saw one AC4400 at the end of the train of loads in silver bethgons.  Maybe next time?  I would like to spend a weekend between Duplainville and Milwaukee/ish sometime this spring/summer.  We'll see.

CN welcomed me home by sending a northbound intermodal through with a 4 GEs at the head and pile of auto racks tacked on the end. 

Glad to be home!

Dan

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Posted by WMNB4THRTL on Monday, March 14, 2011 4:13 PM

Hi,

  I was just reading and found reference to 'kicking cars.' What does this mean? I'm guessing it is dangerous bc it also mentioned it's banned or outlawed on most roads now. Thanks.

Nance-CCABW/LEI 

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Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're right! --unknown

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Posted by Deggesty on Monday, March 14, 2011 5:57 PM

WMNB4THRTL

Hi,

  I was just reading and found reference to 'kicking cars.' What does this mean? I'm guessing it is dangerous bc it also mentioned it's banned or outlawed on most roads now. Thanks.

Well, Nancy, I could say that it is something like kicking the tires on your car to see if they are in good shape, only you kick the car to see if it is in good shape (if your foot goes through the side, you do not want to use the car).

However, kicking cars was a practice used in switching cars when the crew wanted to quickly get the car where it should be--you are pushing the car onto another track, and as you approach the switch (lined for the other track), you give the car a little more momemtum, cut it loose, slow your engine, and reline the switch after the car has passed over the switch, and merrily go on your way with the engine. Unless you know that car will stop and stay just where you want it, you have a man on the car to stop the car and tie it down.

It can be dangerous--and the only time I saw it used, there was not a good connection between the brake wheel and the brakes, and the car ran over a derail (which failed to derail the car) much to the chagrin of everybody involved. (I mentioned this some time back when I commented about running over a rabbit). 

Johnny

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Posted by CNW 6000 on Monday, March 14, 2011 5:58 PM

Kicking cars FWIU is a semi-normal practice.  I know CN does it at many yards and I've observed it.  Kicking is when you have an engine with a cut of cars that the engine can handle starting & stopping w/o air sorting cars between various tracks based on destination using small bursts of speed & braking using simultaneous uncoupling of the cars to be sorted.

The switches ahead of the cut of car(s) being kicked are lined and the conductor tells the hogger "Kick 'em".  The conductor either walks with or jogs alonside the cut lever and yanks the lever open as he tells the hogger "That'll do".  The hogger will hit the brakes (usually pretty hard-but there's an art, just ask Ed Blysard) and the car recently uncoupled will continue on to the desired track, leaving the stopping cut and engine behind on the lead being used.  I will try to get a video including audio of both engine sound and radio TX if you'd like to see it. 

AFAIK the only time it's "illegal" is if the car rolls across a public crossing.  The City of Oshkosh has such an ordinance...but I'm gonna step back from that line of thought as I'm not admitted by the WI Bar.

Dan

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Posted by AgentKid on Monday, March 14, 2011 6:43 PM

Dan, I'm not quite sure that is the old type "kicking" that was outlawed.

The way I remember seeing it done was back in the days of five man crews. You had one guy riding the car to be kicked, who stayed with it to man the brakes. A second crewman was on the last car before the uncoupling, to pull the pin, and set the kicked car free. And then the tricky, and I think currently illegal part.

As you describe above, the last car is kicked, but there is a third man who throws the switch the moment the kicked car's second truck clears the switch frog, and before the still moving cut of cars lead truck reaches the switch points, and the powered cut continues down the other track. Getting the spacing right between the two cars was done after much practice and was way cool to watch.

The final two crewmen were the engineer and fireman.

Workers Compensation and lawyers put and end to that action.

Bruce

 

So shovel the coal, let this rattler roll.

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Posted by tree68 on Monday, March 14, 2011 7:07 PM

AK - what you describe sounds almost like a "Dutch Drop" or "flying drop."

As an analogy for kicking cars - imagine you are sorting out soda cans by brand.  Because you have a number of brands, you have a number of barrels lined up.

If you were to directly drop each can into the specified barrel, you'd have to carry each can to the appropriate barrel and drop it in.  Very time consuming - lots of walking.

If, instead, you toss the cans into the barrels from a central point, you can be reaching for the next can while the last can is still in the air. 

So it is with kicking cars.  If the crew pushed each car down the yard track until it coupled with the cars already there, sorting a group of cars would take "forever."  There are times when that's appropriate, though.

An anchor of several cars is set at the far end of each track that will be used.  As the destination track of each car is determined, the appropriate switches are set and the car is kicked as described above, to roll down the track until it reaches the cars already there.

Once a car clears all the switches, they can be set for the next car(s), and the engine can be backing up for the next shove/kick.

And so the cycle continues.

I was in Lynchburg, VA a few years ago, watching NS kicking cars in one of their yards (it's right next to a mall).  It was dark, and you couldn't see the far end of the yard anyhow, so all you got was seeing the car(s) kicked, followed by a loud bang when they got where they were going.

LarryWhistling
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Posted by CShaveRR on Monday, March 14, 2011 7:23 PM

Kicking of cars is certainly not illegal, nor is it unsafe.  The business about keeping going and lining the switch behind the kicked car is not a good idea, but it also isn't a necessary part of the move, ever. 

Nance, kicking is just accelerating then pulling the pin and letting the car roll by itself.  Depending on the circumstances, a person may or may not have to ride the car to set a brake.  In my old playground, if a car didn't roll in the clear an engine would come down and kick it down into the track.  Some things not to do when kicking a car are kicking it faster than a walking speed, or to release the car when the cars are on a curve.

The one that involves throwing the switch between locomotive and car(s) is a drop switch, which is a way to get a car onto a facing-point spur from behind the engine.  The engine pulling the car speeds up, then slows down quickly, just enough to provide some slack at the pin, then runs ahead out of the way.  After it clears the switch, the switch is thrown and the car(s) go down the other track.  This is the move that is no longer permitted by rules or notices except under extremely specific cases.  I have done a drop from every aspect of the job except the engineer's (i.e., pulling the pin, throwing the switch, and tying down the free-rolling cars in the clear). 

Bruce, I doubt that lawyers in general know enough about such moves to prohibit them.  The prohibition was probably made by some manager who probably suspended a guy who didn't time his role properly and either cost the company some time or repair expenses.  The suspension probably would have been enough, but said manager, wanting to assure himself that such things didn't happen on his watch any more, had the prohibition enacted.

(See, you shouldn't have gotten me started!)

Carl

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Posted by CShaveRR on Monday, March 14, 2011 7:29 PM

Larry, you were finishing your post as I was writing mine.  Nice analogy! 

Let's see...how would a drop be described?  You're running along with a can on a balcony or something, and the can is a molotov cocktail with the fuse lit--you still have to get it into the barrel, which is on ground level, but you don't want to be in the way when it gets there.

Carl

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Posted by CShaveRR on Monday, March 14, 2011 9:44 PM

Late at night, in the wilds of Michigan (at least relatively speaking--they have five railroads up here in GR, but you have to be very lucky to catch anything on any of 'em!).

Right now I'm "hearing that lonesome whistle" calling for grade crossings.  On this side of town, it probably means that the Pere Marquette has arrived from Chicago, and is heading up to Fuller or thereabouts, where it will lay over until heading back in the morning.  Wish I could be on it!

Earlier today, in Muskegon, we saw a Geep (it looked like a GP20, with only two large radiator fans on the long hood) and an EMD switcher, both in an attractive red-and-white paint scheme for the Michigan Shore Railroad.  Pat and I had lunch at what could realistically be called a Trackside Lounge--it was even named "The Station!".  However, it was decorated in the theme of an old filling station, and the tracks adjacent to it had one former Wisconsin Central (now GACX) covered hopper on them.  Quite a comedown from when this was a fairly busy yard used by GTW.

Carl

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CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by jeffhergert on Tuesday, March 15, 2011 2:57 PM

CShaveRR

Bruce, I doubt that lawyers in general know enough about such moves to prohibit them.  The prohibition was probably made by some manager who probably suspended a guy who didn't time his role properly and either cost the company some time or repair expenses.  The suspension probably would have been enough, but said manager, wanting to assure himself that such things didn't happen on his watch any more, had the prohibition enacted.


I think another reason it's banned is because it's hard to do on a condr-only crew.  Not impossible, I've seen it done.  One wayfreight condr used to do it quite often.  Even harder for one person since getting on/off moving equipment is now prohibited.

Jeff 

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Posted by mudchicken on Tuesday, March 15, 2011 3:22 PM

....kinda goes hand-in-hand with the term "flat switching" which I assume Nance has encountered by now.

Mudchicken Nothing is worth taking the risk of losing a life over. Come home tonight in the same condition that you left home this morning in. Safety begins with ME.... cinscocom-west
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Posted by CShaveRR on Tuesday, March 15, 2011 3:25 PM

I'm sorry, Jeff, but to me it's just common sense that one, or even just two, ground men couldn't handle a drop, particularly without being able to get on or off moving equipment.  You'd have to be nuts to try.  Now the nuts who think that rules exist to be broken (don't laugh--I've known a few!) will try it.

Back from Michigan.  Had a strange day yesterday, in which the names of four former acquaintances, none of whom I'd really thought about in many years, were dropped in front of me.  One, a former college friend and confidant, is now a very good artist (the friend we were visiting had some of her pictures in her house).  Another, a college roommate, is now a sports columnist for the Grand Rapids Press (never would have expected that, on so many counts!  But that picture sure looks like him.)  A third, a girl who graduated high school a year ahead of me, might have made a good phys. ed. teacher.  But she turned out to be an award-winning principal for the middle school that's now housed in the very building where we went to high school!).  And the fourth was a long-ago director of our local historical society, whom I'd forgotten about.  Nothing spectacular here, except that she had some physical/emotional problems back then, but is still in there and kicking, apparently--that's good news!  I was guilty of not even thinking about these people since my encounters with them...forty years in most cases (45+ in one!) and at least ten in the last.

Carl

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Posted by WMNB4THRTL on Tuesday, March 15, 2011 4:00 PM

mudchicken

....kinda goes hand-in-hand with the term "flat switching" which I assume Nance has encountered by now.

You mean just regular switching in a flat yard, right? Yup, been there, done that one. Thanks everybody.

PS I just gotta come back in here and say, this aspect of things is a tough one sometimes. Some of you saw/'heard' me talking about vintage equipment and the numerous, double digit tries it takes to make the hitch. It will add to my gray hair count for sure, unless I pull it all out first!!

Kind of a funny story here, too. On one of my early hitches, after I got past try #3 w/o success, I stood up out of my seat bc I was gonna tell my mentor I was done trying--he had NONE of that, thankfully (looking back now) and told me to try again!! It's the old-- 'Oh no, you're in that seat, now sit down and do it until you get it'-- thing. BTW, the fourth try was the charm!! (Just for the record, I would NEVER, EVER dare even TRY  that with my one instructor, as I he'd toss me out of the cab, literally!!!!)Laugh

Nance-CCABW/LEI 

“Even if you are on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.” --Will Rogers

Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're right! --unknown

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