Re: A Businessman's Response to Mark

I've been around the C&TS as a tourist/fan for fifteen years or so, in the typical five or ten days a year that many of us manage. I've only spent a few hours in the shop spread over a number of years. I watch Jay's shop reports faithfully; they are great to see (if not detailed enough :-] ). In general, I think that Jay does a pretty nice service to our little community with your web efforts. I think that Don Richter, Mike, Jay, and many others with longer, more significant relationships (Earl, John Bush, Mark Y., etc.) have made a wonderful committment to the whole shebang.
But, I am a little frustrated now. I *never* said I was a guy with answers; in fact, I pretty much said the opposite, and (unfortunately) you all agreed " />. My original post on the NGDF was just a description of what any of us can see about the past. I drew up a little chart to make the point that it's going to repeat unless significant changes were made in the general process. My point was that there needed to be a plan for fixing the core maintenance problems. I know that some positive changes are happening now after a few "down" years.
I specifically said that the existing crew and their efforts were not at fault, and that they were doing great things. I repeated that each time I posted and in my back-channel email to Jay. I like the guys individually, I think Charley and anybody else who has the time and skill to volunteer (including Friends on work weeks) are making great and worthy contributions. I know that they are much better machininsts, mechanics, welders, and boiler makers than I am. In fact, I'm pretty sure that the financial sacrifice they make by working in Chama is much greater than I make in my industry or the local charitable organizations I work with regularly.
All I asked for was a real long term plan that described what the Commission intends to do to put things right.
I got stomped on for being an arm-chair quarterback for doing so -- an accurate description of my position -- but we all know that that's pretty much where every person involved with the railroad started. Earl and John Coker have shown their "railfan"-ish heritage, Greg Scholl got it from his Dad and an old camera. I'm pretty sure that most of the commissioners, John Craft, John West, Teresa Shaw, Howard Bunte, etc. got involved for the same reasons. I'd guess that only the few people who need their jobs and are unwilling to move away from Chama/Antonito would have a relationship with the C&TS (or D&S) that started in other ways.
I just want to hear a realistic long-term plan that people promise to pursue over time. That doesn't preclude an awesome short-term plan to get things back on their feet. It doesn't demean the magnificent efforts of the shop crew and the local management (I've stayed in Kim's motel, and will do so again; she's great).
Bob Keller has posted about getting on a solid business footing; emotionally, I disagree about the Antonito thing, but I do agree with his goal and his realities. Mark Yeamans posted a simple list of budget line items that he thought were required; it may have been somewhat tongue-in-cheek, since there's no pile of money that big laying around anywhere, but it was a more realistic evaluation than the RGRPC's original blissful approach. C.H. Irvins posted (just a little bit ago) about the need to meet a pot-load of different demanding constituencies and to look at what's real versus what's perceived. All of these are smart guys who have a lot of experience. Unless I'm misreading between-the-lines, they all basicly are saying that a long-term plan on top of the short-term plan are needed. And then I go look for a shop report on the Goat, and there's Jay responding to Bob Keller and saying: In all of the ranting and pontificating on the subject of "What The CTSRR Needs", I have yet to read an idea that I didn't hear three-four years ago. Many good minds seem to be in basic agreement on many things that need to happen, but we have yet to see anything approximating a PLAN!.
So, I still think the Commission, in cooperation with smart people, needs to publish and implement a long term plan. And, amazingly, Jay is apparently in complete agreement with me. " />
Respectfully,
Tom Stewart