May 28, 2017
All - Mainline steam at 100 mph in 2017 is always reason to celebrate, even
if it occurred across the Atlantic Ocean in the UK this past May 15th:
I well remember stories that my Dad told of his days as a head end brakeman
during World War Two when he rode Class S-4 Hudsons, Class O-5 Northerns and
shovel nose EA or E-5 motors at 90 mph sustained speeds over the
Aurora-to-Galesburg mainline with occasional speed bursts of 100 mph or more
necessary to bring the heavy weight passenger trains or Zephyrs of the
era in "on time."
Such high speeds were every day events across Lines East and West.
Senior passenger train engineers were proud of their well earned reputations as
"fast runners" when the need arose. And to think, all of this was safely
done on jointed rail and without computers..... Best Regards - Louis
Louis Zadnichek II
Fairhope, AL