Re: Cumbres, March 6, 1943

The normal operations was to have the same crew work both 115 and 116 between Alamosa and Chama. The crew had a 5 hour break in Chama then worked back to Alamosa. They were tied up in Chama long enough to get a break in the hours of service and got back to Alamosa before thier 16 hours on duty were up.
Also, the crew got two days pay for doing it very little overtime in it though.
The west crew didn't have it so good, they had to spend the night in Chama, and the run was quick enough that they didn't get much overtime.
It was not unusual for 115-116 to change engines in Chama especially in the winter months or when the trains were heavy. Into the early 1940's a spare K28 was often seen in Chama. If the weather was bad on the hill or the train was heavy, they'd put a 480 on the train over the hill and change to a 470 for the run on into Durango.