nother Grand Day Out on the Florida East Coast over in Palm Bay. And if you think it’s all about running trains, no, it’s about all the stuff it takes to get together, to exchange greetings, eat too many cookies and get ready for top-level operations on this fully-signaled line.

The setup was good. Rode over with Kyle and Terry, JB and me in the back seat. No Brightlines spotted, alas, but lunch at Culvers was good. All the usual guys showed at the Farnhams’, with JB and Jack talking about their shared butterfly fetish, me chatting with Chip, Al and Doug. Greetings to Monty and then, surprise-surprise, Chuffer Steve made it, having achieved a seasonal parole from running steam for his sugar-daddy. Ken and Bev, our gracious hosts, entertained us all. But then a hush of seriousness fell over us. The jobs were passed out (yay! I got the panel again). Along with the two yardlettes, Kyle would be in the shed with me, running trim. Ken was out on the line (though he’d keep up his chiding criticism of my performance remotely, thank goodness (and Ken, that train was only ten minutes early!) (Well, truthfully, there were a couple sixty-minute premies)).

“Railroad Crossing – 5 tracks”. A Kyle-eye view of the Hialeah Engine Facility (Photo: Kyle S)

The session ran under a new timetable which was one of the most balanced we had yet (not necessarily a good thing, since it meant there was no point where the mainline was blocked by a diddling local – I was non-stop busy). We pushed a lot of trains through but Kyle and the ladies kept the yard humming (special thanks to Kyle – he cleared the arrival track promptly, letting me recover inbounds fast). So I was busy busy busy. One-legged man stuff.

My only real cockup (well, the superintendent might judge that “one” is an understatement) was late in the session. I got 312 (northbound coal MTs) up to Titusville, holding at the signal. I gave him greens in and lined his special arrival track up, turnout 25. Unfortunately we’d had a heavy stormline pass overhead right before this – while the layout stayed up, I lost cameras 1 and 4 (top and bottom of the north helix) so I was blind there. I figured he was coming and got distracted with the other four trains I was moving. What I didn’t know was that Steve (no redaction here) had wandered away from his train, lost his throttle, and presumably had his brain fall out. Having dangerously lost track that he hadn’t moved and hadn’t arrived, I took a call from 210 (a general freight heading north out of Hialeah yard for Palm Bay (both these trains use the Runnel (the tube that connects the sheds) and both would change lines on the same crossover, opposing). It would be like a game of chicken (but with massive locomotives operating in the blind, not mindless barnyard fowls). And if Terry on 210 was killed, I’d lose my ride home.

Happily (for me, not Terry) I had forgotten that turnout 25 was still set for the overdue and quite forgotten 312 and so my informal derail track worked fine, dumping 210 on the cinders. As soon as I saw the lead unit stumble, I looked to the board (saw 25 in reverse) looked to the right side of the track diagram (saw the light for 312 finally advancing down the helix) and got on the radio and told him to go into emergency. So one on the ground, one in emergency, better than a cornfield, but not a good moment for me.

I did get two sets of trains to pass, inbound and outbound, in the Runnel during the session, which is a baby-bottom-slick move, so I do have some pride left.

The yard, where three crews maintain a constant flow of cars in and out. (Photo: Kyle S)

Afterwards, we trudged back to the house in the remnant rain from the passing storm. It was a weary crew that plunked down onto the sofas to debrief the session. While the boomers droned on, I slowly slipped into slumber, only waking to the sounds of laughter and the click of Steve’s camera (I only wish he’d been as prompt with a throttle as he was with his phone). So yes, a blush moment. Then we all got bags of cookies and went out for our traditional post-run Mexican grub.

Long drive home where we watched the bright line hum  past us like a destroyer escort in the twilight – very pretty. At home, JB put the cookies on the kitchen counter. Five minutes later, the cats had pulled them to the floor and ripped the bag open, making a mess out of everything. They did not eat enough of the chocolate to die from it, more the pity.

Anyway, good session all! I hope the cameras are okay and that we can run again soon!

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P.S. Sorry, but I didn’t get any layout shots, other than from Kyle in the yard. Hooper is so fast with his phone, yet he didn’t get anything else save for the embarrassing shot below.

A weary dispatcher passes out afterwards. Next time I will find a train to run the engineer who captured this moment into (Photo: Dickwad Hooper)