Finally—The Video

Before i start i want to thank everyone who offered advice on how to get a video into a blog. This is by far one of the most time consuming endeavors.

So what will we see????? These video’s were shot from the cab of GSMRR Locomotive 711 on May 18, 2011. The trip was from Bryson City to the Nantahala Outdoor Center and back. The first video is going around Horseshoe Curve# 2. Yes there is another one but we did not go around it. Notice that the sight distance in this video is quite short. Most of the time it is less than 200 ft. I asked Engineer Dale if he made an emergency stop at this speed (15 mph) what would the distance be to come to a full stop? He estimated it to be 300 –400 ft. since we were hauling 10 passenger cars, over 200 people, with a weight of over 100 tons total. In short if we saw something on the track there is no way we could stop before we hit it. Also when the leaves are off the trees, you can see the last car entering the curve as the engine exits. Horseshoe Curve #2

Next we cross the Tuckasegee River Trestle. Watch how close we are to the trestle. Most people don’t realize that a train extends almost 3 feet beyond the rails on both sides. If you are on a trestle with no guard rails there will not be enough room for you and the train. Guess who will win????  Tuckasegee River Trestle.

So there they are. Question for today is:

What is the distance between the rails of a standard American railroad track and why this distance???

Possums are ineligible for this question because they are so smart :-)…

Say Good Night Grenville….”Good Night Grenville.”