What's a Light Foot?

I was on my way home from Penn the other night and I can overhear the drivers radio and someone kept saying "Light foot" what does that mean? Is that a railroad code or something?

The opposite of "lead foot"-which would mean to keep it light (not too hard) on the throttle, I'd guess.

Sounds like something that has to do with cowboys and Indians.

Brock

Not to be confused with a "shoo-fly!"

Dave

I've just done a tremendous update on my LIRR Call Letters listing on my website, thanks to new data received from my friend Art Huneke and hours of research and typing by my friend Jeff Erlitz.

What started out back around 1969 as a 5+ page list is now 80 pages of typed Microsoft Word document data!!!

The call letters (and/or numbers) for cabin/tower/station locations are provided dating back to the 1870s and up to the present-day. Also provided are exact location of block stations, in service dates, type of interlocking machine therein (where that information was made available to me), date of conversion to letter calls, date of conversion to name calls, dates that specific signal changes had been made as well as dates when placed out of service where applicable.

Also included are temporary block stations, such as required for track work or for grade crossing eliminations.

Where possible, I've indicated in BOLD font the location(s) from which the call letters were derived (i.e. "VN" from Brookha"V"e"N" station or "PD" from "P"atchogue "D"ock.)

I'm missing some of the old numbered block stations, but hope to fill in more of the blanks before I pass on!

Otherwise, I'm sure you'll find it a rather complete listing. If you have any questions or feel you can add anything to the listing, please feel free to contact me directly at: [email protected]

Check out the list at: http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirrphotos/ ... etters.htm

Thanx!
Dave Keller

Canadian folk singer, Gordon is the first name. Wreck of "Edmund Fitzgerald", or was it Wreck of the "Penn Central"? Whichever.

Oops!

Sorry guys . . . posted my call letters to this thread in error!

Back to lightfoot, hotfoot, shoo-fly, toe-jam, etc.

Dave

Sorry to disappoint guys, but it's not some secret code , or RR slang. But I am sure that a particular employee would be amused to find out that some one saying his name on the radio has caused a thread to be created.

Oh I see, the LIRR has an employee whose name is Light Foot. I am a serious Native American art collector. That name would be Sioux. I think that it is wonderful that the LIRR has Native Americans on it's workforce. Brock I would think someone who lives in this day and age would have been enlightened enough to know that using the word "Indians" to describe Native Americans is nolonger acceptable. I am sure Mr. Light Foot would not be happy to see what you wrote. Thank you Bluebelly I always enjoy reading your comments and contributions to this forum.

tell that to the cleveland Indians and the washington redskins.. you are indeed a nut case

speaking of the Fitz'. .
The anniversery of that famed wreck was just a few days ago. . 30 years , November 10th
The Edmund Fitzgerald was one hell of a ship. . how she sank so fast is amazing . .

She might have broke up, or she might have capsized, she may have broke deep and took water

She was in a storm on i think lake superior? and ran a ground causing the keel to split, she took on water from the keal and the deck hatches. the condition of that bolk carrier was "scrapable" before she left that night running a ground seald her fate.

there was a program on Discovery Ch a year or so, i remember watching it, and Rich, they plaid that song by light foot, witch i do have a recording on another PC. any one wants it PM me your email address and i can email it to you

I guess it's my bad that we've gone so totally off the topic, but...
the M.V. "EdmundFitzgerald" was caught in a severe gale on Lake Superior. At the minimum, two of her hatches collapsed in the severe weather. Loaded with taconite pellets, she filled rapidly and the hull failed in the center. A transverse fracture caused the ship to literally fold up, like a man's wallet. The huge vessel went straight to the bottom in about 500 feet of water. Her bow remains upright and her stern upside down, separated by about 100 feet. Divers have been to the wreck and extensive photos and drawings can be found with a Google search. No trace of her crew was ever found. In deep water, fresh water, and cold water, she will remain preserved as she sits today for centuries. Her bell has been recovered for memorial services. Thanks to Gordon Lightfoot, more people know about this particular tragedy than almost any other shipwreck other than the "Titanic".
BTW, the "Fitz" was spotted by a following freighter, and was gone within about 10 seconds. It was that fast.

I visited Detroit back in 1981 and stood in front of the church from which the bell was rung for the lost hands of the Edmund Fitzgerald as mentioned in the song.

Dave