I have been an engineer on trains climbing the D&RGW/SP/UP's Moffat Sub. Unless you "been there" and I mean in the cab, you cant imagine the torture and plain abuse these locomotives go thru, just to get thru the tunnel district, and up to the apex of this grade in "the Tunnel". 2% is steep, but that means quite literally nothing until you add all the tunnels you go thru to get there. The trick to it, is to have enough power to keep the trains moving at 12mph+. Anything much less, and your power, especially the 3rd, 4th units and so on, tend to not get any clean cool air to breath and make credible/efficient combustion, and either de-rate or shut down altogether, and the later adding another 250 tons to the drag. Remember this is all taking place between 5,200 ft and 9,200 ft elevation, in about 60 miles. Now the RR's, whichever carrier, want to use the least amount of power to keep the trains moving. Makes sense on a computer screen HPT (horse power per ton) on the flat lands, but not so much on this particular mountain grade. I wish you could see what it looks like when 3 units going 7mph, in 8 throttle, exiting a tunnel of any substantial length. Bear in mind that these units have been in and out of many tunnels and in run 8 for a long time, pulling all they can, with flange oiler's back to back to back, that further costs you speed. I apologize for going on a bit about this but it strikes close to home for me. Please find the attached video of a loaded westbound sand train getting started at Tolland, it flattens out there a bit ahead of the power. But still he is in notch 5 for a while before the train moves. All the locomotives were the same color and disposition, upon leaving Denver, after the tunnel district, you can see how the diesel smoke effects the clean paint of a locomotive. Whether it be an F3/7/9 or an SD70ACE. Its just the ugly truth, here is a video for you to consider.
I would concur with the above by glslsffan, having ridden in brand new loco's under test up Bozeman pass. Only one tunnel there, and it isn't all that long. A hard slow pull through it and the cab gets awfully bad, so I can't even imagine what it's like on those grades! And the soot level, wow! After a single or two runs over and back, everything is covered in soot. And your clothes have a distinct aroma! The only thing I can imagine worse would be how bad it would be under the pull of a slow, plodding, coal fired beast!
Yeah, like an Alco steam engine! See that lead unit start slipping and that exhaust chugging away, wooo-weeee!!!
Yep, Thanks for posting another good video. Looks like that SD45 is DIC, no smoke no sound. Doors open around the start station, very familiar, also the same doors open on the tunnel unit. Those SD45's always ran hot, a bad spot for it to be 4rth out in consist. I bet it got restarted at least once then it got hot enough to boil the water out. Check out the tall horn on it too.
Rio Grande F7B 5703, Denver, CO, Circa 1970 (Bob Jordan) Rio Grande F7A 5574, Denver, CO, Circa 1970 (Bob Jordan)
Rio Grande F7B 5723, Denver, CO, circa 1970 (Bob Jordan) Rio Grande F7B 5573, Denver, CO, circa 1970 (Bob Jordan)
Watch this video, starting at 5:35, to see how the Santa Fe used to keep their F-units looking spotless:
You could probably count the number of tunnels on the Santa Fe system on one hand. And if you took the Belen cut off like much of the freight did, you missed the tunnel at Raton. The Rio Grande on the other hand...................
Just from Denver to Salt Lake City on the Moffat, trains would encounter at least 40 tunnels. If they took the Craig Branch, that number approaches 60. Even the Tennessee Pass route to SLC still had at least 10 tunnels. Filth was inevitable!
A quintet of diesels (two D&RGW SD50s, a SP SD45, a D&RGW SD40T-2, a UP SD40-2) are at the head of some coal at Floriston, CA in the early 1990s (Bob Jordan) A lineup of Rio Grande power (SD7 5302, F9A 5771, SW1200 131) at North Yard in Denver around 1970 or so (Bob Jordan)
I hope Mr. Jordan chased this one over Donner! They're in model number order, too... Simply 'Grande stuff, keep it coming!
I do not think is a question of tunnels, it should be a question of washing, even if I can image the Santa FE on the video were for the passenger varnish (filling tanks with water), maybe the ones for general freight were washed less often.
Alas, that and one other image were the only ones I found of that train. And these are also the last of the Rio Grande photos, for now anyway... Another trio of Rio Grande power, this time in Pueblo, CO, early 1970s (Bob Jordan) Rock Island and Rio Grande power meet at North Yard in Denver, circa 1970 (Bob Jordan)
Rock Island F7B 13 at Denver, circa 1970 (Bob Jordan) Rock Island F7B 15, Denver, CO, circa 1970 (Bob Jordan)