Am wondering if any of my fellow RyPNers will be riding this coming Saturday's 2102 powered Iron Horse Ramble over Andy Muller's superb Reading & Northern excellent mainline track??

I'll be happily ensconsed in the open window coach 4th. from the head end and would enjoy meeting you.

There's a good stretch of 2% grade in both directions which will have the T Hog working full out.

This is as close as it gets to the " Full Monty" today.

Onward and upward. Ross Rowland

Ross,

I have a few friends riding tomorrow and I'll let them know.

Do you intend on visiting the tomato festival or are there other railroad related activities in the area during the layover?

Hi Robbie, Unless it's raining hard we'll be checking out the Tomato Festival.

Hope they start with a full sandbox as they'llneed LOTS of sand.

Ross Rowland

Hello,

Hope y’all have a good trip today. I hope to get up there soon. Reminds me of years ago when I followed the trip that BM&R took through my homeland in Adams County Pa north on the Gettysburg line.

Back then they wish they had the booster along with that sand when they were violently slipping up the grade northbound at Wolf Pit just south of Gardner’s.

The 02 was backing with Gettysburg RR diesel in the lead, and they barely got over the hill in the midst of a downpour. The crew was pouring sand out the bags off the pilot of the diesel.

Wolf Pit had a grade and tight curve combined.

Add a booster to that sand!

Randy

I was aboard that train--September 1987. They stalled BOTH ways on that grade, 2102 solo southbound about a thousand feet from the summit (which is when they called in the Gettysburg Alco RS36 for the assist, arriving almost an hour later) and the combination northbound with 2102 running backwards (which it did, at somewhat reduced speed, ALL THE WAY to Temple and Hamburg). My recollection for the running backwards was that 2102 tried to navigate the then-still-original wye at the junction with the Reading, which T1's had earlier navigated in original Reading Rambles days of nearly thirty years earlier, but came too close to rolling the rails on the wye, so couldn't turn as planned after all.

I remember thinking as I was aboard the train watching the antics of the second stall, "This is history I'm watching here--there is NO WAY IN #*&@! that either Conrail or the Gettysburg is letting this happen again!" (Even if the Gettysburg ended up with a major quarry or mine that necessitated the complete rebuild of the RR with welded rail and other improvements, even under a steam fanatic leadership like the Cornells, nope, never, forget it......) We arrived back hours late, and that was the last time my not-so-railfan friends that accompanied me would ever hear me suggest a train outing....

I wouldn't mind seeing some photos of your chase. My head, camera, and torso may well be visible sticking out the window of one of the cars......

Glad to report that today's 2102 trip went perfectly from every perspective. Rain held off, T-1 handled the 19 cars with ease in both directions, passengers well pleased.

I got to meet 7 RyPNers so I now have a face with 7 names.

All in all a wonderful day witnessing the magic of steam at work.

Ross Rowland

This must be Hunters Run Grade where RDG's Gettysburg Branch crossed South Mountain Ridge. It did not require doubleheading a standard 16-car Ramble but did require special attention. If the Apple Growers were riding the train, they boarded at Gardners for Gettysburg and detrained at Goodyear on the way back, each with the train going downhill. The apples were tasty.

One RDG Ramble stalled account sticking brakes on one of the cars. The crew dealt with the brakes and the train started with no problem.

The slipping where 2102 was involved came well after RDG had sold the line and track conditions are a big factor in adhesion. For comments on Gettysburg RR's maintenance, see the report on ex-CPR 1278's boiler incident.

Phil Mulligan

One of the mysteries of the Rdg. T-1's is why they built them with only 1 sand delivery pipe ( just ahead of the # 1 driver) vs. several as nearly all 4-8-4's were given.

614 delivers sand to the # 1 and # 3 drivers and just ahead of the booster driving wheel.

This sparse sand delivery helps explain the 2102's slipperyness.

Ross Rowland

The 2102 has sanders on the #1 and #2 drivers.....

Then I stand corrected. I looked her over pretty good Saturday and thought she had sand only to the # 1 driver. Ross Rowland

Mr. Mitchell,

Thank you four the response. To start, this 1987 trip had strong sentimental value for me as I’ll describe later.

Unfortunately my record of the 1987 2102 trip is relegated to my memories which are likely eroding over the years. The only record I may have is an audio cassette tape recording of the Wolf Pitt grade assault, it is likely in storage and may never find it. I never was camera / tech equipped in those days, let alone equipped at the level and zeal as were the brothers Brouse from the Lewisburg area.

My old friend from my teenage days and I were on the ground following the train as feasible. My memories are few but here is what I recounted.

Southbound - 1st Location - we were watching the train on the engineers side across a field, as is started to assault a grade , possibly the main grade up to Starners Station (grade of the first stall) I believe we were located around the village of Goodyear. I distinctly remember seeing the engineer on his feet, both hands on the throttle. The engineer was likely Charlie Kachel.
2nd Location- Georgetown Road crossing, this was just south of the location of the first stall. We witnessed this as it unfolded. The train was wrapped around the curve and up the grade and the repeatedly tried to get grip and slipped constantly. If I recall, the others waiting at the crossing had a scanner. Sloan Cornell was begging the BM&R to stop the restart attempts until the diesel arrived. The word going around was they were terrified of the 02 going on the ground. The track conditions were poor and the speeds were low.

Northbound - 1st location- Wolf Pit south of Gardners recounted above. As we waited there, just as the train started into the grade, the skies opened. I believe we were the only two on the ground to watch this spectacle at Wolf Pit. 2nd location - somewhere east of Mount Holly Springs on the old Reading Main Line (Conrail) . It was at night and we saw the train roll through pretty quick tender 1st by car headlights. We did not pursue any further.

I have no recollection of any other locations on that trip.

As for the old wye in Gettysburg, I believe the south leg once connected to the old trolly line that traversed into the Battlefield? When traveling through the west side of town in Gettysburg in my younger days, I recall remnants of the south wye leg going through town.

———-

Back at the Georgetown Road - Reading R
crossing northwest of Idaville, was about 1/2 mile from the house where I born. Around 2016, when describing this crossing to the late Mr. Wayne Laepple, he advised me of a Gettysburg Reading Ramble raw film footage on a DVD he was reviewing for a video company to provide comment. He recounted seeing a family at this crossing from someone filming out of one of the passenger cars. Wayne was kind enough to loan me the DVD. when on my computer I toggled the video slowly through the frames and was able to see the family. It was my family! My sister, brother and my father holding me. I was 2 years old. It was May 2, 1964. Wayne later told me this footage including my family did not make it into the final video.

When recounting this story recently on Facebook, Mr. George C. Johnson connected my recount with a photo he used in his recent book of the “Iron Horse Rambles” - a recount of the professional photographer Jim Bradley. George shared a photo Jim took of a Ramble at Georgetown Road crossing and it was my family watching the 2102 heading upgrade! My brother sat along the track, my older sister was next and my younger sister stood beside my dad holding me. It appears dad was looking at me. Either I was in shock or crying…..This photo is on page 201 of this book, on page 204 my older sister could not handle the noise any longer!

This book is sold through the Cumberland County Historical Society, very nicely done and recommended.

https://www.historicalsociety.com/produ ... m-bradley/

With this find I am very grateful to Wayne then George to find this memory in print that I don’t recall myself.

Based on George’s notes in the book, this was the last Ramble the Reading ran to Gettysburg Branch on May 2, 1964. Based on a list found of the Rambles from 1959-1964, it appears 12 trips were taken to Gettysburg.

Growing up there I recall the Reading running significant size freight trains on this line, 3-4 diesels? When visit there years later, seeing the tight curves and grades, it had to have been a challenge. Just up the road from my house, Mrs Cox had a cherry orchard along this line, adjacent to Starners Station. My family picked cherries there and I recall seeing the Reading green and yellow diesels pulling the large trains along her property.

Agreed! We will likely never see a trip to Gettysburg again with the 2102.

Thanks to the T1s, it appears they infected me with this disease!

I hope to get to Port Clinton and see my old friend before leaving this life. We are both 60 years older and the 02 looks in way better shape than me!

Cheers!

Randy