Re: The Railfan Who Got Cited - And Other Tales . . .
| July 10, 2017 02:51PM |
|
Brian Norden Wrote:
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> When the 4449 went east out of the Los Angeles
> basin, I cannot remember the occasion -- maybe the
> train to New Orleans or the American Freedom Train
> or both -- the California Highway Patrol (CHP) was
> prepared. They had an officer with radio riding at the
> open baggage door of the crew car to watch for the
> really foolish drivers and report them to ground units.
> I think they also had a helicopter out.
I don't recall an officer riding with us on the AFT, Brian, but do remember that traffic chasing #4449 from Bakersfield to L.A. on 12/22/75 was so bad in Mojave that the California Highway Patrol blocked the old highway through Lancaster & Palmdale and forced all the chasers to stay out on the freeway. (I got well ahead of the pack and set up on the Vincent Grade, and then used the freeway again to get ahead and set up near Agua Dulce Road in Soledad Canyon - see [ngdiscussion.net].) Per page 31 of Joe Strapac's 'New Orleans Steam Spectacular', R. N. Noonan of the CHP was aboard the Louisiana World's Fair Daylight throughout the Golden State in 1984.
> Also I understand, that east of Colton where the
> railroad goes through San Timoteo Canyon and is
> paralleled by a curvy 2-lane road, the CHP made a
> temporary closure and did not allow traffic moving
> against the direction of the train. Better to inconven-
> ience a few unknowing drivers than have a head-
> on collision on the road.
Unfortunately, they didn't block the westbound RR traffic as well - my photo on page 46 of the above-mentioned book would have been a lot nicer without a mixed freight in the background. As usual I had gone earlier to scout the area, found a good spot to wait for the train, and was unaffected by the horde of chasers barely visible among the power poles beyond the long string of tank cars:
> Over the years, I have been out on train chases
> with a-now-deceased, experienced chaser/photo-
> grapher. I recall when we followed the Royal
> Hudson over Tehachepi after it visited Los Ange-
> les with a visit B.C. promotional train. The ascent
> out of Mojave was nerve racking as both railfans
> and other drivers paced the engine. When we
> got to the downgrade toward Bakersfield things
> got better for us. Often we would be the last to
> arrive at a good photo location and pop out of the
> car, get our photos from a side without getting
> into anyone's photo, then hurry back to the car
> and be one of the first out. We repeated this at
> several locations. The Fun When Young!!
I first met Tom Gildersleeve the day that the Royal Hudson left L.A. headed north – he was setting up for one of his well-known night photos across from the depot in Saugus. And you must have seen me setting up and waiting for the train at a few spots, getting around "the pack" in my old and slow VW van whenever the train stopped for meets or servicing. The Fun When Young, Indeed!! That was just over 40 years ago, Brian!!
- El Abuelo Histœrico, Greengo y Curmudgeoño de los Locomoturas Viejos y Verdes,
aka Der Grossväterlich DünkelOlivGrünDampfKesselMantelLiebHabender
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/10/2017 05:05PM by Russo Loco.
-------------------------------------------------------
> When the 4449 went east out of the Los Angeles
> basin, I cannot remember the occasion -- maybe the
> train to New Orleans or the American Freedom Train
> or both -- the California Highway Patrol (CHP) was
> prepared. They had an officer with radio riding at the
> open baggage door of the crew car to watch for the
> really foolish drivers and report them to ground units.
> I think they also had a helicopter out.
I don't recall an officer riding with us on the AFT, Brian, but do remember that traffic chasing #4449 from Bakersfield to L.A. on 12/22/75 was so bad in Mojave that the California Highway Patrol blocked the old highway through Lancaster & Palmdale and forced all the chasers to stay out on the freeway. (I got well ahead of the pack and set up on the Vincent Grade, and then used the freeway again to get ahead and set up near Agua Dulce Road in Soledad Canyon - see [ngdiscussion.net].) Per page 31 of Joe Strapac's 'New Orleans Steam Spectacular', R. N. Noonan of the CHP was aboard the Louisiana World's Fair Daylight throughout the Golden State in 1984.
> Also I understand, that east of Colton where the
> railroad goes through San Timoteo Canyon and is
> paralleled by a curvy 2-lane road, the CHP made a
> temporary closure and did not allow traffic moving
> against the direction of the train. Better to inconven-
> ience a few unknowing drivers than have a head-
> on collision on the road.
Unfortunately, they didn't block the westbound RR traffic as well - my photo on page 46 of the above-mentioned book would have been a lot nicer without a mixed freight in the background. As usual I had gone earlier to scout the area, found a good spot to wait for the train, and was unaffected by the horde of chasers barely visible among the power poles beyond the long string of tank cars:
> Over the years, I have been out on train chases
> with a-now-deceased, experienced chaser/photo-
> grapher. I recall when we followed the Royal
> Hudson over Tehachepi after it visited Los Ange-
> les with a visit B.C. promotional train. The ascent
> out of Mojave was nerve racking as both railfans
> and other drivers paced the engine. When we
> got to the downgrade toward Bakersfield things
> got better for us. Often we would be the last to
> arrive at a good photo location and pop out of the
> car, get our photos from a side without getting
> into anyone's photo, then hurry back to the car
> and be one of the first out. We repeated this at
> several locations. The Fun When Young!!
I first met Tom Gildersleeve the day that the Royal Hudson left L.A. headed north – he was setting up for one of his well-known night photos across from the depot in Saugus. And you must have seen me setting up and waiting for the train at a few spots, getting around "the pack" in my old and slow VW van whenever the train stopped for meets or servicing. The Fun When Young, Indeed!! That was just over 40 years ago, Brian!!
- El Abuelo Histœrico, Greengo y Curmudgeoño de los Locomoturas Viejos y Verdes,
aka Der Grossväterlich DünkelOlivGrünDampfKesselMantelLiebHabender
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/10/2017 05:05PM by Russo Loco.
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488 stops for water at Los Pinos tank on closing day Oct. 1979. Photo courtesy Don Richter
The NGDF was started by Don Richter and is currently operated in his memory by Nathan Holmes and others. Others who have contributed to the upkeep of this board are (in no particular order): Charles McCandless, Everett Lueck, Ted Wilton, Cole Adams, James Bane, John Moellmer, Jon Bentz, Linn Moedinger, lloyd lehrer, Rod Jensen, John Craft, Steven Forney, Herb Kelsey, Bill Ramaley, Russ Sperry (El Russo Loco), Josh McNeal, John West, Jim Armstrong, Bob Bergstrom, Greg Scholl, Blake Forbes Doug van Veelen and Mark Fuller.