I set out to get in some flying time along the main line and ended up catching 3 trains. (I posted this on Thursday 4/12, but had to delete and re-post due to a fact error.)
Getting on and off moving engines, rolling stock, or caboose was SOP back in the day when I was a brakeman for the SP, especially when I worked the local for a couple of years. You rock, you roll and you get the job done. This was all done without benefit of radio communication or what looks like some kind of special tool to set/release brakes on rolling stock. When we got to a switch to enter a siding, usually as head brakeman I did some 'sprinting' to make it to the switch, unlock it, and throw it so the train wouldn't come to a complete stop. When the train entered the siding, I climbed on board the moving engine and it was the rear brakeman's responsibility to realign the switch. He, too, worked swiftly in order to keep the train from coming to a complete stop. As usual, interesting and informative. If you've ever worked in broadcasting, which became my career after I left the SP, you've got the voice for it.
Great Video!! Some great catches in there. Always love EMD standard cab leaders! And that solid EMD lashup on Q452 was awesome!!! Always awesome to see EMDs on this GE dominated Railroad
i think you're doing what you were born to do,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,MAKING THESE TRAIN VIDEOS...............you're a genius at it,,,,,,,,,nobody else compares or even comes close to your work.........thanks.........don't forget the last mile switching videos.........they were great.......
Great work as usual Danny! Some nice drone work there and you got some fantastic overhead shots of covered hoppers that I can use for my weathering!! You spend a lot of time looking down on your models, so getting the tops looking realistic is important to me...so thanks for the reference videos!! Cheers Gregg.
Good to see you hanging out in my back yard, "Vitas Junction". The trees and plants have grown in so much over the years, I can hardly see the trains out my window anymore. Great video and pretty good piloting with that drone too!
I was thinking of you the other day I was going across the river in Prescott Wisconsin that train was going west to east from the Marathon fuel place it was a gorgeous morning and the sun was coming up across the bridge and I sat down by the yard at lunch that afternoon watch a lot of trains go by always love you videos again my dad be very proud what you doing the railroad Thanksgiving the great state of Minnesota I shared it on Twitter
I just love to hear those mechanical bells on railroad crossings and at 6:23 I hear some amazing WRRS bells. The Western Railroad Supply bells have to be my favorite. I just wish that Norfolk Southern would've kept them on the Harrisburg Line.
The pilot for the aerials is talented. Watching the entire train from above and the ground shots makes the S Line fun to watch! Oh, yeah your narrative is also important.
Thanks for another great video. On another note, we just returned from a holiday in Japan, where we did a lot of travel by train. Interesting fact is that we only heard the train horn once, and that was when a train was approaching a platform and a person strayed too close to the edge. Apart from that, we did a couple of thousand of miles of travel and not one horn. Quite a difference from the states and Canada.
This morning (4/17/18) I was woke up at 5:35am by the roar of a monster train going north through Vitas Junction. What caught the attention of my ears was the sound of a pusher engine on the back. This makes the third time I've heard one go by here, but they always go through at night. A few minutes later a short (maybe 25 cars) train went southbound.
I am always drawn to Distant Signal whenever I can get to the magic movie box. You have visited so many spots I'd love to get to, but alas! without a car, or a Drivers license, I have to depend on others and not many of my friends are real railfans. I do agree with you that "SmokinDs" is the place to go in South St Johns County. I would dearly love to see your video when you finally get the FEC's new engine lash-up with the CNG car in the middle. Have to be here in St Augustine before breakfast for the southbound event.
1:20 Always wondered - what's that whooOOP noise the locos make? Love your vids! Just an observation - when the train goes by, why don't you pan along with the head end so we can watch the power going away from us? Much more interesting than a string of rolling stock. Same with your aerial (great job, btw) why not turn and follow the locos? I want to see you fight the turbulence from those big cooling fans! Thanks, Danny.
The whoop sound is the air compressor's electric motor starting up to operate the compressor. In the older locomotives, like the SD 40 and GP 40 along with older GE's, the air compressor turned with the prime mover but only compressed air when a pressure valve gave notice. This caused the air compressor to wear prematurely because it turned all of the time and more frequently had to be changed out. Not so with the later models whose air compressor was operated only when needed. Stan
Yeah it's the noise the air compressor electric motor makes upon being energized. If you want to hear some really ear-gasmic noises, watch this startup of a large 160kW (about 200HP give or take) electric motor: /watch?v=PI-OT6-TZRA :D
Another amazing and informative...not to mention a pleasure to watch...video! Thanks so much for posting as you know these videos always make my day. Such a well put together production!! All the best to you!!
Looks like Q-452 was going faster than the without EOT Q-442. Wonder what happens when they catch up; do thy let them pass on the other line ? Great video as usual Danny, hope to meet up with you some day when I'm out railfanning in Florida.
Good drone views, just watch out for power lines, a friend with Centerpoint Energy in Houston reports drones can tangle in power lines, especially in residential areas and along transmission power lines typical of hose along rail lines.
Parking and no waiting at Vitis? And can assume 452 gets the high sign around the defective or out of reach EOT unit at. Baldwin also. Love it every time you post sir and thanks as always...
Thanks Todd. Yes, it occurred to me while editing this that those other two trains must have gone around 442 at some point. Probably Ridge Manor or Wildwood.
Great video as usual! Nice job. Q452 was massive!! Love it. They had a box at 4:03 that's quite a ways away from home, too. Providence & Worcester from central Massachusetts. Don't see those very often, even up here.
Danny, this was a nice video. I am watching it on 30 December 2020. The last train on this video was CSX train #K814 from New Wales, Florida to Bensenville Yard in Bensenville, Illinois. That caught my attention because I live in the Chicago area and I am curious if you or someone else who reads this comment has any idea what the routing would be for this train to come from Florida to Bensenville Yard. I currently live about four blocks east of the old Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railroad tracks which are now the joint line owned by Union Pacific and CSX. I was wondering if CSX train #K814 used that line to come into the Chicago area or if another CSX line was used. Thanks for any information that anyone can give me in regard to the routing of CSX train #814.
what used to happen at the junction city mining turn out...were the trains so long that the switching had to go out onto the mainline?? did the trains working the yard block the mainline??
Great Videos, very professional, I enjoy the information you put out! I live in England and have worked on the Railway here all my life (now retired) love the contrast between UK railways & USA, ours is mostly Passenger based, yours is Freight based or course, I hope to come over to Florida in September, going to do a bit of rail fanning or train spotting as we call it. Kept coming Danny, love to meet you sometime. Kevin.
Thanks Danny, If we come over I'll let you know, P.S. You have switch Towers Which are sadly in retreat now we call them Signal boxes as you probably know, when I retired in 2015 the signal boxes I worked at closed due to modernisation, One control centre now takes the place of over 70 boxes! Is that happening there? So much I want to tell you about our signalling methods. Regards Kevin.
Another qwaomw video that is totally outstanding compared to the videos here on RU-vid! Cane to think of one thing, it is nice to compare things from the past and today and see all the changes! Keep it up, Danny!
Been enjoying your videos for a bit now. One thing I like about your style versus others is the narration, plus you not having to show the entire train. Those videos you did about the signalling were extremely helpful too. Also great that you're in my area, so I can relate to what you're showing. Down here in Sarasota, they are tearing out tracks down around Clark Road....likely in preparation of extending the Legacy Trail northward. Is there even any rail traffic any more around Sarasota/Bradenton/Venice? Love for you to check this area out one day.
Thanks very much! Yes, it really helps when the subject matter is in your own area. I never say any train videos on Florida in the 1990's until I started doing them. Don't know about the Seminole Gulf in Sarasota. I would imagine that every time they lose a customer on the south end, they apply for abandonment and the "trails" bunch will snap it up for their own use.
Nice video and catches Danny! Spent the day today at Railfest in Plant City. Kept looking to see if I saw you in the crowd. If you were there, I must have missed you. They did have one of your videos playing inside during the event. I said, "Hey, I know that guy". LOL! Maybe next year, eh? Cheers, Dan
Thanks Danny. I couldn't make it to Plant City on Saturday. I already had a commitment that took me out most of the day. Sorry I missed all of you. Maybe we'll get together in PC sometime later this Spring.
Sounds good Danny! We stayed at the StrawberryHouse Beb and Breakfast this weekend. and had a great time. Give me a shout if you come this way and maybe we can get another room here then. Cheers, Dan
Great video as always! I just found, and subcribed to, your channel a few days ago. After seeing your Northeast Corridor video, have you checked out Manassas, Virginia? It is an Amtrak stop along with the VRE, Virginia Railway Express commuter into DC. It is an unmanned station but has a visitor center and museum. Culpeper, VA and Orange, Va are great stops as well.
Great bird’s eye view Danny! I’m in Decatur, Illinois and at 9:53 you referenced a company that this train is en route to. What company did you say? I heard Bensenville, Illinois, but not the company. Thanks Danny! P.S. You’ve also referenced ADM corn syrup and ethanol trains before. More than likely they are from ADM right here in Decatur, Illinois!! How cool is that? Thanks for sharing!
Awesome Danny!!!!!!! There is a book about Palmer Massachusetts. It's Palmer the town that had seven railroads. I'll be headed there. This late early June. And you'll be hearing me talk about the town of East Brookfield Massachusetts in my childhood memories. About the trains going every hour and a half
It's hard to get an exact total because of the occasional as needed jobs like coal, autoracks, ethanol, phosphate etc. But just counting regular freight there are 10. 4 are intermodal and 6 are manifests.
Efficiency over safety? How can that happen in the country that regards itself the world leader in anything and everything? It is simply shocking! Why doesn't the guard start his duty at the yard so that he doesn't have to board the train on the open line?
Its just the tracks have been warped by the heat, nothing dangerous, entering and leaving that right track means trains have to go slow. It could also be a derailer
Interesting; I was wondering why would there ever be a method to purposefully derail a train. so I looked it up. For anyone else wondering, this is apparently to discourage unauthorized train movement onto the main line from the siding. The cost to re-rail a low-speed derailled car/loco is tiny compared to going onto the mainline at an inopportune time ("fouling" the main line) and having a major accident. Feel free to correct me if I'm mistaken.
How is it that we live in a world where CSX didn't allow rolling boarding, whereas everywhere else the on the continent since railroads began rolling boarding and alighting by crew has been supported? ATSF: Count the Seconds, is the video I point to when criticizing improper boarding/alighting procedures. TRAILING FOOT FIRST! Very well produced video. My only comment: leave a bit more space between the dialogue and the train so that the lines don't cut out after the train is on top of the shot. Give the units some time to roar; let the narration compliment the video. I know great editing when I see it: and you never disappoint!
It's a maneuver that's been done millions of times successfully. Of course, there's always one or two unfortunate occurrences that will contribute towards the statistics. Personally, I don't think it's the worst sin that could be committed, obviously not a great idea at 20 miles an hour, though. I do agree with another commenter that it would be better done on the side that the Engineman sits. My theory of it is this: If the person to be mounting or dismounting isn't comfortable or is otherwise encumbered with carried objects or whatever, he could always ask (or hand-signal) the Engineman to stop. I don't think it's written in stone that the train MUST be or remain moving, no matter what. It's just a time saver. Most of the guys doing the mounting and dismounting are in pretty good shape. For those who aren't (as described above), or if the ground is too low or soft, or whatever, all they'd have to do is ask the Engineman to stop.
I disagree. That No Moving Equipment rule is only recent.Trainmen did it for more than 150 years as a routine. Accidents happen when carelessness creeps into the workflow. Moving trains can be boarded safely when the speed is walking pace or less and the adjacent surface is flat and paved, like the road crossing. Stopping a 12,000 foot train just takes too long for these small on and offs.
