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   MSGID: 10.fidonet_memories@1:19/33 2d3c1ab3   
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   PID: Synchronet 3.21a-Win32 master/0e9549266 Sep 07 2025 MSC 1942   
   TID: SBBSecho 3.29-Win32 master/0e9549266 Sep 07 2025 MSC 1942   
   BBSID: TBOLTBBS   
   CHRS: CP437 2   
   FORMAT: flowed   
   Ed,   
      
    >  On this day...   
    >     He saw   
    >     The train   
    >     And tried to duck it   
    >     Kicked first the gas   
    >     And then the bucket   
    >     Burma-Shave   
      
    EV> While reading this poem I thought that it might be a favorite   
    EV> of Yours and Mike since it topic is about Railroads.   
      
     It is NO CONTEST betwen ANY vehicle and a train..whether it's   
   just a locomotive running light (with no other cars), or if it's   
   a fully loaded freight train.   
      
     One locomotive is over 300 tons...and a fully loaded freight   
   train is over 12,000 tons (likely much higher). If it's doing   
   over 50 mph, it can take from 1 to 3 miles to bring that train   
   to a stop, once the engineer "puts it in the big hole" (applies   
   the emergency brake)...and all the crew can do is "watch you die".   
      
     It's the equivalent of you driving your vehicle over a can of   
   soda pop or beer.   
      
     They will NEVER seat me on a jury involving a grade crossing   
   incident...the laws of physics win every time.   
      
     In a poem that The Good Lord gave me, called "No One Asks The   
   Engineer", it basically highlights the tragedy at a railroad   
   crossing, when a vehicle tried to beat the train. Normally, they   
   don't even consider the thoughts or feelings of the crew...but   
   as the poem notes, many had to quit, and have recurring nightmares   
   over the incident, which was totally preventable.    
      
     The 2 verses I highlight are as follows:   
      
   Had I been the engineer on the train that day,   
   And if you asked me how I felt, here is what I'd say.   
      
   "There was no way that I could stop, or out of the way, swerve".   
   "They ran a red light at a crossing, and got what they deserved!!".   
      
     You can read that poem at http://www.wx4qz.net/rxr.htm -- along   
   with a public service announcement I did for Operation Lifesaver,   
   the organization that promotes safety at highway grade crossings.   
      
     It takes far more inertia to stop something moving, than it does   
   to get it moving from a dead stop. For that matter, many folks think   
   that they can stop just as quick on a wet, snowy, or icy pavement,   
   as they can on a dry street. It easily becomes "demolition derby".   
      
     Across the Earth...we rush to beat:   
      
   1) The traffic lights at intersections.   
   2) The trains at railroad crossings.   
   3) The boats at draw bridges.   
      
     But, we'll stand patiently for 3 hours on the golf course.   
      
     You figure it out.   
      
   Daryl, N5VLZ   
      
   ... Try to beat a train to a railroad crossing, and you'll be DEAD WRONG!!   
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