 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
||||||
| Track and Time - The First Day of the Rest of Your Career | |||||||
|
||||||||
 Article
by Scott ClayOctober 4, 2000 was my first day in the field. As I mentioned last month, I met the Roadmaster first, then about 45 minutes later the other guys began to filter in. I felt somewhat awkward as anyone would on the first day at a new job, but everyone introduced themselves and made me feel welcome. At 7:00 AM we had a review of the rules of the day, then the different gangs were given their assignments for the day and everyone headed for their trucks. And so the day began. I was sent out with two other fairly new employees; one guy had 2 and a half months on the job and the other guy had 3 weeks. Our assignment for the day was to go to Rochelle, Illinois, and dismantle the old diamond crossing that had been replaced 2 weeks before. This was an easy job and the day seemed to fly by. At that time I still didn't know what I was in for! What we did that first day was basically busy work to keep us occupied. The next day I got into real track maintenance, working on a track and time permit. I had to work fast to finish in the allotted time. I found myself running around not knowing what to do or what tool to grab. I started to get overwhelmed my second day! Actually, my first couple weeks were pretty overwhelming. I often wondered what the hell I got myself into? Good people make this job a lot easier. A guy by the name of Doug Hamel was the foreman that day. He didn't tolerate any B.S. and was a good foreman to learn from. He started with the Chicago & Northwestern in 1971, and had made foreman his first year. He knew a lot, and had the patience necessary to teach and condition new hires. Anytime we worked on something new he always went out of his way to explain everything clearly, made sure you understood, and never minded answering questions.  Not
everyone is so patient. I was told by most of the old heads that I was lucky
to have drawn Hamel as a foreman. "It could've been worse," they
would say, "You could've wound up in Rochelle under Wybourne."
I met this guy my second week on the job, as he had been on vacation when
I started. Terry Wybourne, a.k.a. "Big Daddy" had a reputation
for being hard on new hires. The first time I met him, he seemed friendly
enough; he introduced himself and shook my hand warmly. I soon found out
that he had a very abrasive personality, and was a no-nonsense kind of guy
who had no patience for a bumbling new hire. I was not immune to his wrath.
I did eventually earn his respect and now consider him a friend, but that's
a story for another time.During slow periods, I could be found just about anywhere I was needed. I only worked for a month-and-a-half before the winter furlough began. But in that time I learned a variety of different things and gained valuable experience. Being that I was the lowest man on the roster, I was often "borrowed out" to other crews who needed extra help. I often got sent out with the welders on a regular basis. This was okay, as I enjoyed going along with them. Joe Aguado who is the DeKalb welder was always friendly and always explained what they were doing and why. I enjoyed working with him. He started on the C&NW in 1965, and like me, he had come here from California. I was often sent out with the track inspector as well. John Hepperly, better known as "Doc." Because of his manner, some might call him a "Quaker." I will admit he is a little different from the rest of us; he is somewhat frugal, and very mindful of nature and the environment. He started with the C&NW in 1973 and was hired as temporary help to dismantle the ex-Chicago Great Western line that ran through St.Charles, Sycamore, Belvidere, and on to Iowa. After this project was completed, he stayed on and worked many different jobs before becoming a track inspector, a position he has held for several years now. I always liked going with Doc. This guy knew tons about everything, railroad and otherwise, and he always had stories about the old days. Stories about some of the other old heads, some good, some not so good, but always enlightening. Doc was a good teacher as well. I learned so much tracks and rail from him. He taught me how to look for dark spots on the rail that could mean a potential internal fracture; how to spot hairline cracks on joint bars; how to stringline sight a low spot; how to determine the size of a switch frog; and how to determine the degree of curvature. He was also the first one of my coworkers to find out that the railroad was more than "just a job" for me. Most days with the track inspector were spent in a hi-rail truck just cruising the track, which is a real good way to get familiar with the territory in which you are working. But on a bad day (especially in colder weather), it could really suck. Broken bars, pull-aparts, and so on. Bottom line though, I was working for the railroad. Like any job, everyday couldn't be a daisy. I knew from the start that I would be laid off during the winter, and going into November knew layoffs would be coming soon, but your still never quite prepared for it when it happens. The week before Thanksgiving, on Tuesday we were told that morning not to worry about layoffs. We would be working into January because we had a lot of projects to complete, and they needed all the help they could get. Ah, a reprieve! I could breathe easy for the time being. I even called my wife at work and told her the good news. At 3:00 PM that afternoon when we came in for the day, several of us were handed our five-day abolishment notices. Two-thirds of the positions were cut, and only the guys with 20-plus years would be able to hold jobs for the winter. My last day would be the following Monday two days before Thanksgiving. I stayed home until mid-January calling the bid line every Thursday to listen to the new listings, and to see if I'd caught a bid from the week before. Some weeks there were no bulletins, and it was very discouraging. After sitting at home for nearly two months, money started getting tight and I began looking for a winter job. I searched the classifieds for a couple of weeks, which proved fruitless. I finally applied at a temp service, and much to my disbelief, I was offered a position on the spot. I would be working for a machine shop. This couldn't be too bad since I had worked part-time for a machine shop when I was younger, and had actually enjoyed it. But this time around, it was like a prison sentence for me. I found myself longing to be back out on the track again, and continued to call the bid line every week waiting for the moment I could give notice and get back where I belonged! Don't get me wrong, the machine shop company was an okay place to work for, and I met a lot of good people there, but I was making less than half of what my hourly rate on the railroad had been. And, I was cooped up in a hot, stuffy building all day. Yes, it was much-needed income, but it was a real drain on morale. So I lived my life from Thursday to Thursday, bidding on jobs when they came up and waiting to hear my name on the assignment list. Finally! The last week of February, my name came up! I figured my time was coming soon as I had heard many familiar names in those last few weeks, including the guy who only had three weeks on me. I had bid on, and was assigned to the position of trackman at DeKalb, under foreman Hamel. Life was good! I walked right into the supervisor's office at the machine shop and informed her that the next day would be my last. She told me that she was glad I got back on the railroad, but she was sorry to see me go, as I was a good worker. I was glad to know she felt that way, but was more glad to be leaving there. The next three days seemed to drag by, for the first time ever I wanted the weekend to be over so I could get back to work! Finally Monday morning rolled around and I actually smiled when the alarm went off. I was on my way back to the railroad! Little did I know that I would be in for a big surprise when I got there, but that's a subject for next time. Until then, work safe. |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
||||||||