There are a few new hires currently training as switch people on Montana Rail Link. With weather as is this week, not something I'd want to be doing. It's been in the minus 20 range at night. (Or colder!) From the heat of summer, to times during winter such as this, this is definitely work for a young person! Bbbrrrrrr!!!! Boxcab E50
A few years back .. Central Oregon & Pacific (CORP) purchased some old 40 foot hopper cars to use as wood chip cars so they could take them over the Siskiyous and through the old tunnels. The hand brakes were clear up at the top and during snow / icy weather it was really scarry to climb up there to release the brake wheel. My hat is off to everyone who works under those sort of conditions. CORP scrapped almost all of those cars last year (2003) but kept a few to haul ballast.
Switch people? Cold weather? I saw a BNSF pair, GP39m (in GP30 skin) and GP38 switching in Denver, remote control, and I thought - THAT is the job I need: warm control tower, life-size switching layout at your feet, and a great variety of cool locos to play with. And to think those guys actually get paid, with union benefits to boot!
Here is a link to a story about working on MRL in the cold. http://billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2004/01/07/build/local/40-snowlaurel.inc Boxcab E50
I hate to be the fly in the ointment but...unfortunately the remote control guys aren't in a tower...they're out on the ground and down in among 'em with a belt pack engine controller. They lug a radio, lantern, switch list and the belt pack plus all the layers of clothes they need to keep warm. The ones I saw a couple of days ago in Harrisburg looked awful chilly riding the platform of their engines with the temp. around zero. You've got to move to yardmaster before you get the warm tower but then you trade in the remote for a computer, a radio and a phone that never stops ringing. Tough choice but if I had to pick, I guess I'd stay outside. I could add more layers when it's cold but I couldn't put up with the craziness in the tower-summer or winter.
I work on a short line RR here in NJ, The Black River and Western. It seems the coldest days, the heater chochs out. If we were running the steamer, no problems then, a built in heater
That steamer cab can be a popular place on cold days! Also, the backhead is a great place for making certain you have hot meals and drinks. Boxcab E50
That steamer cab can be a popular place on cold days! Also, the backhead is a great place for making certain you have hot meals and drinks. Boxcab E50 </font>[/QUOTE]Never cooked on a backhead but I got pretty good at sidewall heater cookery on road jobs. In a pinch, I've managed to get a meal or two up to operating temperature on the exhaust manifold.
