Well, Doug I find it hard to believe you didn't hear this one when on the
property but here we go.
I told this story at my presentation at the BRHS 2014 meet in Rock Island as a
prelude to the main subject and as a missed item to the 2013 presentation at
the annual meet at Mendota.
Waycars were marked in various ways to make it easy for yard crews to put the
correct assigned
Caboose on the right train and also for road crews to find their "car" on the
Waycar track.
Sometime in the late 50's or in the 60's there was a certain Condr w/ the
nickname "Gabby" who was working the Rockfalls Wayfreight that operated Eola
to Rockfalls westbound one day and return the next. Layover at Rock Falls was
near the roundhouse in the Waycar (no hotel accomadations) so all meals,etc
were at the crews expense.
Since it was autumn and the pheasants were plentiful along the branch ROW,
"Gabby" and the hogger worked out a system where the head end let the rear end
know when a pheasant was available. "Gabby" would step out on the back platform
of the w/c and " bag" the pheasant with his shotgun. The train would make
a,momentary stop while the bird was retrieved. Upon arrival at Rockfalls the
entire crew would enjoy a pheasant dinner in the Waycar.
Things went along just fine until one day an Illinois game warden climbed
aboard the Waycar. Seems local citizens had grown tired of the shotgun blasts
and what they termed unfair hunting methods. I don't know what fines were
levied or what was confiscated. But the jobs Waycar soon sported a pheasant in
flight on its side, everyone knew which job this Waycar was to be go on.
I suspect that either Mike Meketti or Lew Spears were the "artist" that did the
work on the Waycar. More info. On Mike Meketti's (Aurora Div. engineer)
artistic abilities will be in an upcoming BRHS bulletin.
Leo
Sent from my iPad
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Posted by: qutlx1@aol.com
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