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classictrains — Riding the Footboards
by-nc-nd
Published: 2008-09-07 16:11:12 +0000 UTC; Views: 1557; Favourites: 29; Downloads: 46
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Description
In a practice deemed unsafe and not even possible today, a switchman rides the footboards of an Chicago Great Western Alco S2 in the joint Soo/CGW Cicero yard just off the Eisenhower Expressway in 1967.Related content
Comments: 17
Incredible yard shot! I enjoy trains especially in the urban-industrial environment.
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Wow. I was hoping you had a shot of somebody actually DOING this. Now, you have to get us a shot of poling pockets in action.
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I know I don't have that!
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For me it looks like a storage base of Santa Claus. Here are many Christmas packages
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Now the GCOR not only forbids footboards, it also forbids conductors from riding a car or engine to a joint. They must get off before the joint. That's no problem on the KCS, where they're still allowed to get on and off moving equipment (that's going less than 5 MPH), but it's a pain in the rear on the BNSF. There, they may ride the cut into the track, but they must stop the movement 50 feet short of the joint, get off, then make the joint. I can only imagine how many conductors fudge the rules when they have a lot of switches to make and just want to get it done and go home...
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Dang man. Footboard are highly illegal now. 
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You sure? 
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You're shots are always so interesting and well composed Chris. Have you ever thought of writing a book?
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P.S. When I get to 999 deviations and I get through more cleanup on some of my older shots... including tagging them with CC, date, and name... I'm gonna put together a CD/DVD with all of these pix on it. Not for profit... just for fun... interested?
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Sure I'm interested. I've saved allot of your shots to the hard drive but it would be nice to have the whole collection on CD/DVD.
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You are reading my "book" as I write it... and folks like Hoyt and Traci and you many others are adding details that make it a wonderful compendium of memories. Don't know if it will ever get published on dead trees though.
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Wow 1967 eh! Cool stuff. Would love to have seen a close up study centred on just the guy on the train too.
Also I quite like the frame you used on this one!
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Thanks Larry. Unfortunately a closeup is impossible... too much grain in the film.
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Well, i had a little play with it, hope thats OK:
[link]
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That's the same resolution as the original, cropped more tightly. Here is what happens when you do a "closeup:" [link]
Where possible I try and include the surrounding detail. In some of my photos the "history" in the automobiles, buildings and freight car "billboards" are as intriguing as the locomotives themselves.
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Yea i just cropped the image,adjusted levels a little,increased saturation and added a little USM.
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Can't see why anyone would think that was unsafe.
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