Mike is correct. Engine crews changed in Chama, train crews worked all the way through. The engine crew from Alamosa went off duty upon arrival in Chama and went back on duty in the afternoon to take the eastbound train back to Alamosa. As they only worked about 4 hours each way and got a 4+ hour break in in service between trains, they easily did it under the 16 hour hours of service law. And, as per the the union agreement they got paid a basic 8-hour day for each leg. So, they got two days worth of pay for every trip they made to Chama. That was counter-acted by the fact the regular engine crews worked every other day. As the run to Chama was less than 100 miles, and they worked less than 8 hours on each leg, the overtime that all railroaders coveted was slim-to-none. Still, it was a great job, usually held by the number 3 and 4 seniority slots on the roster (#1 and #2 worked the night time passenger job to La Veta and back).
The crews from Durango didn't make out nearly as well. As the 2 San Juans met at Carracas, west of Gato, the crews worked to Chama, then laid over for the night, taking the train back to Durango the next day. As it was a bit over 100 miles, but only a 6 hour run, there wasn't much overtime involved, so it wasn't a great paying job. But it was regular hours and usually the #3-#6 roster holders in Durango had the job (#1 and #2 held down the Durango switcher). From what I can see from call books and train registers, the engine crews worked every day. They got a day off when they laid off, otherwise they worked. Jim Pearce told me he didn't care much for the passenger job when he got called off it off the extra board. He said he made a lot more money working the freight trains. Occasionally, the passenger crew would get some overtime when they would be used to run a helper during their off duty time in Chama, or even after arrival back in Durango.
