Remote Control Troubles

*I know this is long, but I just wanted to share the story of my first RCO experience at CSX Radnor Yard in Nashville, TN.

Last month I recieved the dreaded call that I had been forced on RCO training. I wanted to avoid it for at least another few months, as I'm still getting used to how things work. (I marked up last July)
The two week training class went smoothly, and I started to think that being RCO qualified might not be a bad thing after all with more jobs becoming available and making more money.
I was glad when I caught first shift at the hump for my first RCO job, even though I had only humped 2 small cuts on the training job. Everything was going fine starting out...My first cut was only 4,000 tons, and was in one of the best tracks to come to the hump out of (not many switches to throw) I only had to stop 2 or 3 times for chicken pluckers (when the pin pulls but the knuckle dosn't open after the car crests the hump)
My second cut was a completely different story. 10,000 tons and in a track where I had to worry about several switches and crossovers. When the yardmaster gave me a green board to the hump, I started lining up. I took my time and made sure all the switches were lined. If you line the wrong switch, you could end up shoving into an inbound train on an adjacent track. If you run through a switch, you'll derail when making a reverse movement. By the time I was ready to start the movement, the yardmaster was on the radio asking what was taking so long.
About halfway to the hump I started to panic as the cut got up to around 7 mph and wouldn't slow down. I had 5 cars of air, but the cut was still slowly speeding up. 6.9, 7.2, 7.5... After about 30 seconds of full service I was about the throw it into emergency, but it finally started easing back down. By the time I got to the hump I was a nervous wreck.
My next trouble started when I cut off 4 cars together that rolled down and stopped over the second set of retarders, due to a hand break. Sounding as if it was my fault, the yardmaster said to reach down and bring them back over the hump. Great. I had only cut off a few cars, so I still had nearly 10,000 tons to handle to make the coupling. Well, lets just say if the drawheads had bypassed, I would have derailed the cars and tore up the retarders they were sitting on. I was going 9mph when I made that coupling. The whole move took about 20 minutes, so the yardmaster was getting pretty hot by then.
I finally get ready to start humping again when I can't get the cut to move. In hump mode, breaks off, in reverse, 10 mph selected, not budging. I still don't know what was wrong, but after 10 minutes of turning the boxes on and off and my engine man resetting the RCO stuff in the engine, we get moving again. Yardmaster very, very pissed.
An hour later and after having several chicken pluckers and cars that had not been bled off, I get the cut humped. I'm thinking we're done, but the yardmaster wants me to go get a track in the bowl for a rehump. My other man stays at the hump and I go down into the bowl to get the track. The first car in the track that I had to couple the engine to was in a curve. It took me 5 minutes just to make that coupling. Yardmaster not happy. Usually, another yard job couples the rehump track, so the cars should all be coupled. Not this time. The first car wasn't coupled, so I get on the radio and ask if the track is all together. Yardmaster - "It should be! Just check the south 5 cars." I misunderstood him and thought he said to come out with the south 5 cars. So I start back to the hump with my 5 cars when yardmaster starts yelling on the radio, "197 do you know you only have 5 cars!" I've never heard a yardmaster yell on the radio like he was doing. I realize it was my mistake for misunderstanding him, but I was so stressed out at that point, it was hard to concentrate on anything. So, I get on the radio - "I'm about ready to throw this damn thing (the remote box) in the river"
By the end of the day I had a migrane and a different outlook on my job. I made mistakes I normally wouldn't have made on a conventional (non RCO) job. But, I know I'll only get better with experience as everyone does.
This is one reason why railroad buffs such as myself who want to work for the railroad need to realize that they may wind up hating the railroad when it's their job. I have loved trains my whole life and still do, but if you have a hard time dealing with pressure/stress like I do, a bad day like this will quickly change your attitude.

Don't be so hard on yourself. For one, you are relatively new and
just have been put through a two week "quasai engineer" program. That is
something that the rest of us (engineers) learn over 15 months.
They (the company) wants you to do five jobs at once and that yardmaster is playing favorites by letting that other crew have a
longer break while you do their work.
So my advice is TAKE YOUR TIME! Don't worry about a big slip (switch list), because they can't take you out of service for going too slow and safe. But they will take you out if you go too fast and put a car on the
ground.

Exactly man ... you are new on the box. Take your time until you are used to how the units respond with the cars.

"No job is so important, no service so urgent that we cannot take time to perform all work safely"

Just tell him over the radio that you are doing this as safely as you can in order to get the job done. He won't come over the radio sayin anything after that because its on tape. F**k em

Controlled Speed wrote:"No job is so important, no service so urgent that we cannot take time to perform all work safely"

Or you can just say that quote to the yardmaster the next time he gives ya a hard time, can't argue with that!

Kill him with kindness. Saftey First

Reminds me of my first RCO on a blind curve going into a building..

Take your time and BE SAFE!

Hurry up, make a mistake and you'll be on the outside looking in. I say - no good deed goes unpunished. Don't let them get under your skin. If the YM wants to play games, make him regret it. They give us a rule book that details almost exactly how they want things done. Use those rules to your advantage and bury the job right up the YM's hind end. They'll send down a Trainmaster who knows even less than you to tell you how to do your job so you can show him exactly what's taking so long. The remotes were a bad idea to begin with, nothing replaces the seat of the pants feeling sitting in the locomotive provides. They've been trying for years to make it work in my terminal. Whenever it does work properly which is very rare, it slows things down so badly - they end up outlawing trains for miles since they can't make room in the Receiving yard. We get paid by the hour - not by how much we get done.

I hate to hear of stuff like this. It's not fair to the new guys, who're just learning how the place works.

Remotes are NOT SAFE, or not as safe as the "traditional" way of humping cars. That work should be reserved for senior men, who've got some years' experience under their belt - not a new kid who doesn't know the job, doesn't know the people, doesn't have "street cred" and who's scared spitless.

Then they wonder why they have "incidents" that they have to sweep under the rug.

I don't. CSX is completely out of control and the quicker it's forced out of business or sold, the better for the employees, the industry, the nation.

Controlled Speed wrote:"No job is so important, no service so urgent that we cannot take time to perform all work safely"

Just tell him over the radio that you are doing this as safely as you can in order to get the job done. He won't come over the radio sayin anything after that because its on tape. F**k em

If they do order you to violate the rules
-make sure you get their name over the radio
-clearly ask them - "are you ordering me to violate the rules and jeopordize my safety?"