Great Outdoors June 4th Ride
CR 3800 N ascending a glacial moraine
Also called Detector Road for the ‘hot box’ detector on CSX railroad
Used to be able to listen to CSX radio traffic on the scanner until they changed to all digital
As a train passed the detector a message would be sent either indicating everything all clear, or possibly (rarely) and overheated axle bearing
Could also listen to the dispatcher in Jacksonville, FL communicate with the train’s crew
This was the destination for this mornings ride
Rich-Illinois
Very much enjoy all the entries you all have provided -- great to see the everyday cycling venues. Being in eastern Illinois, scenery certainly isn't our forte, but oh well, the roads are normally quiet. Look forward to more and more entries from all of you, I do have a few over on BL -- in Bill's Day Rides, and one journal.
4 response to "Great Outdoors June 4th Ride"
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“Temperatures were cool, clear skies, low humidity, and NO WIND!”
Are you sure you were in Illinois? 😉
I can only imagine what the CXS radio traffic sounded like on the scanner: “The tracks look good and steely here at mile 32.” “Still clear at mile 33.” “I blew the horn at mile 34. Gates down. No cars crossed. No problem.” “Nothing on the tracks at mile 35.” “I’m bored.” etc.
That’s interesting about the box – it would have been fun to sit around and listen. When I was in NE on one of my bike tours, I stayed in a tiny motel and all the other rooms were taken up by a train crew. They went around and fixed derailments. Apparently there are hundreds of derailments a day, you just only ever hear about the big ones where the train cars come off the tracks. That was news to me.
One of the more humorous lines I ever read in Trains Magazine involved tobacco and re-railing derailed cars.
After spitting a huge quantity of juice after re-railing a car, the old guy said:
“You can’t learn that s***, You gotta KNOW it”