North Eastern Roundhouse Ramblings (December 02)
From The Editor's Desk
I’m going to keep this short. As you get into the holiday spirit, we have another newsletter for you. And although this is short, the rest of Ramblings isn’t. Special thanks to Matt Blakely (a.k.a Metal Thunder), for his article submission and to everyone else who contributed. Keep your submissions (letters and articles) coming to eic@vnerr.com
Happy Holidays,
Cedric Nagy,
Director of Employee Communications and Public Relations.
From Bob's Desk
So here we go into our 4th month of operations. Incredible. Over 100 active engineers! Over 6,000 posts in our forums! Engineers submitting work orders and good ones too! Our first training class graduated! We now service 15 freeware routes and 4 payware routes. Our work order collection is growing very fast.
A completely new concept in Virtual Railroading and it works.
I know I have said this before along with all the other admin but I still can not believe how fast we have grown. I still can't. North Eastern has in my opinion become the future of all virtual railroads. The whole virtual railroading scene is in quite a turmoil at this moment. ACR & NWT are experiencing a lot of changes, not necessarily because of North Eastern, but indirectly because a lot of you were or still are involved with these other vrs, but have found something a bit more exciting about trains at NERR.
What I like the most about North Eastern is the community we are developing. I love our forums and the way our engineers handle themselves, especially in situations like the Bruhaha over the large amounts of hours on NON NERR trip reports. Some of you did not like the change and voiced your opinions, admin listened and had meetings and we attempted to satisfy all we could, and it seems the final decision did satisfy. This working together spirit is the best. Being able to make NERR the leading example of virtual railroading is what is going to come of all this.A VR is nothing without the engineers, Thank You all for making NERR what it is.
Bob
OD/NE
First Training Class Graduates
Fourteen NERR engineers were the first to graduate the two-month long training session. Congratulations to M.R. Roberts, Brian Element, Terry McLaughlin, Gary Jenk, Claude Thibault, Rich Wade, Scott Walker, Danny Dierker, David Hart, Noel Herbert, Horst Kraus, D Smart, Bill Long and Peter Johansson. Each graduate received a diploma and certificate number for successfully completing the course. Future initiatives will only be open to graduates of the training class, and these engineers will be the first to be full engineers under the new ranking scheme.
NERR’s Director of Workforce Development, Jim Vaughan, runs a diesel training class every two months. Participants of the eight-week session perform a variety of tasks on the Ohio Rails route, beginning with basic operation procedures but quickly escalating to more advanced material. Even engineers with previous MSTS experience are encouraged to participate. Graduates were impressed with the training sessions, which explored the more advanced capabilities of MSTS and were helpful for completing difficult NERR work orders.
The next training class begins in January. Participants earn a time credit upon successful completion of the entire session. For more information, or to sign up for the free January class, please visit http://www.vnerr.com/training/cert-testing-main.htm.
Steam training sessions are now in development.
Rolling Stock Revisions
Some engineers have encountered new versions of some rolling stock equipment. NERR’s Trainmaster is working on final versions of each piece of equipment. The updates will be posted periodically over the next several weeks.
Two Engineers Join NERR HQ
NERR has expanded the operations team during the past month. We are pleased to welcome Jeremy Levish (a.k.a Taz), as Assistant Director, Workforce Development. Jeremy will be developing a new steam training course, which we all eagerly await.
From the land of kangaroos, John Hodgkinson has been hired as our Human Resources director. He is hard at work updating the crew callboard, maintaining a database of each engineer and looking out for suspicious activity.... all while most of us sleep.
At this point, the operations team is well staffed. We don’t expect to hire anyone else for the time being. Thanks to all engineers who expressed interest at one point or another.
New Time Slip Reporting Procedures
After a month-long debate, the time slip reporting procedures have been finalized. Please ensure that you familiarize yourself with them. They are available to all registered engineers at the following address: http://www.vnerr.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=957
New Routes at NERR
East Metro has been added to the NERR system. East Metro was created by the same author as the Ohio Rails route and is another high quality freeware route. It is now available for download from NERR’s routes page, as well as standard download websites.
An update to the Full Bucket route, version 2, is also available. The original version will no longer be supported by NERR.
Stay tuned for the excellent PRRR/Hoodoo pass route. NERR engineers will be the first to be able to download the route, as the author has not chosen to distribute it on train-sim.com or avsim.
Monthly Reminder to Be Discontinued
Engineers that have been with NERR for more than a month may have noticed a monthly email from the Employee Communications server. The email reminded you of your password and included instructions about how to unsubscribe or change the email address that the newsletter is sent to. Please note that you will no longer receive this message. Most members found that it was only clogging up their inbox. If you need to make changes and have forgotten your password, please email eic@vnerr.com.
Feasibility Team Gets Into Gear
NERR’s Superintendent, Maintenance of Way, has completed the hiring process for the Feasibility Team after accepting applications earlier this month. Six NERR engineers sit on the team which is responsible for ensuring that work orders meet NERR standards.
As of press time, 45 work orders had been submitted to the team, the longest being 7.5 hours. In many cases, work orders must be sent back to the author for bugs that the team has found. The primary function of the team is to make sure that all the work orders that are posted at NERR can be completed assuming that engineers have a properly installed route and the proper equipment. The Feasibility Team’s role is not to guarantee that work orders can be completed in every possible combination of circumstances. All work orders should have been tested by the developers. The team’s responsibility is to verify that the work order can be completed and that the developer did not miss anything.
The team is also available to make suggestions to any engineer thinking about developing a work order. Engineers can test out ideas with the team whom will determine if the idea is workable.
The six members of the team are:
Rich Wade
"I'm from Floral Park, Queens. NERR has given me so much
that when I heard they were looking for help I jumped at the chance. I have been
playing MSTS hard-core since I got the computer to run it in May. What better
way to put all of those hours to use than to be part of the Feasibility Team!
Play with buses all day, play with trains all night. Now that's the
life!"
Bobby
"I'm from Lincolnshire, in England. I'm a railway signaller (All
signallers are called "Bobby"). One day I had a go on my son's MSTS and I got
the bug. My son hasn't had a look in since. Several visits to America have given
me a fascination with big, long freights. Put the two together and NERR is the
place for me.
"I applied for the Feasibility Team, because I wanted to drive more and learn more. Also it lets me do something for NERR. Because of the nature of my work (I'm on the relief team and shifts change at very short notice) I cannot take on any other job that requires regular hours."
R Mourre
"I’m from Chilliwack B.C. Canada.
"I’ve always had a fascination with trains and railroading. I work in the High tech industry as a network administrator for a large technical support firm.
"I'm an MCSE MCP CNA CNE A+ N+, my real job has a tendency to occupy my time so I don’t spend as much time as I would like with MSTS and sometimes weekends will call me to work.
"Out of all the software that I troubleshoot MSTS gives me a bigger challenge than any other piece of software I have ever worked with.
"Sometimes when I work with MSTS I work harder on my home PC than I do at work. Go figure!"
Claude Thibault
"I'm from a tiny village in Québec, Canada called Yamaska. One post office, one
garage, one snack bar. That’s it.
"I'm a retired 54 years old school teacher that now commercially grows annual flowers in two greenhouses, thus keeping me very busy from March to July. The rest of the year, I am a semi-pro actor (half-paid, half the time) and I try to teach some sense into my two horses and love driving trains for NERR.
"My love for trains comes from a picture of my dad sitting in the cab of a diesel engine. Saw this picture when I was 4 years old and waited the rest of my life for a train simulator to come out. Joining the feasibility team was the best thing I ever did. Gives a sense to my hours spent driving virtual trains. Often frustrating but loads of fun!"
recycler
"I am from Niceville, Fl. It is located in the northwestern
panhandle of FL, half way between Pensacola and Panama City. I work for the US
Government at Eglin AFB, (second largest air force base in the world, 756 square
miles of land). I put in for the Feasibility Team so that I could be one of the
first to drive an activity (outside of the author) and do something meaningful
for NERR.
"I have always had a fascination with trains and when MSTS came out, I was ready to drive one, even if they are virtual."
Firsty
Firsty was not available for comment. He comes from Everswinkel
in Germany.
Visit http://www.vnerr.com/hr/HR_Submission.htm for more information about submitting work orders.
Engineer’s Guide to the Carrizo
Gorge
By Matthew Blakeley, San Diego,
California.
Overview
Carrizo Gorge is an extremely beautiful and
challenging line to haul on. Not for the weak at heart, or the slow on the
controls, this is a difficult line to work on.
The View
I start with the views, because as one who has
been to these places, and seen most of these views, I must say that I am
impressed with the near-perfect perspectives, trestles, tunnels, and track. The
Goat Canyon trestle is spectacular, and the inclusion of the old abandoned track
in to the previous tunnel was a great touch. The terrain also changes from the
lush grasslands of the Jacumba upper flats, to the barren rocky waste of the
high dessert dropping into Imperial Valley in a pleasing way.
The Track
I must confess that I am not a fan of the
track. There is lots of terrain over the track and jagged edges where the
terrain is cut off too close to the track, and easily visible from an exterior
view. There are also several places where the speed limits are WAY too high to
safely traverse that area. You must use caution on this track, as a nice long
straight quickly turns into a sharp turn one way or the other. You cannot trust
the speed limits on this track, always keep a low speed if your unsure of the
track layout ahead of you.
Conclusion
Even with its faults, this is still the
closest thing to San Diego that’s available, and it has wonderful scenic vistas.
I do recommend this track as a great sight seeing tour. However, it’s usability
as a working track is questionable. If you can see past the minor errors and the
occasional derailment due to incorrect speed postings, it is really nice to have
something to run around on where I know the places.
Ratings (1-10; 1 is worst/smallest/most
difficult)
Overall:6.2
Scenery:8
Vistas:9
Track layout:8
Track
detail:8
Signaling:7
Speeds:3
Freight workability:4
Passenger
workability:5
Size:4
The Rambling Interview
He is brand new to the team, but we found that he had so much to say that he gets the spotlight this month. Employee Communications caught up with NERR’s Assistant Director, Workforce Development, Jeremy Levish.
Q. Let's start out with some of the basic stats. What's your full name, age,
and place of birth?
Name: Jeremy Arthur Levish
Age: 43
(2/14/1959)
Place of Birth: San Francisco, California
Q. Have you any
railroad-related formal higher education? Either way, tell us a little about
what you've studied.
"Higher Education"? I guess you could call it that.
8-) I'm currently a student engineer, a qualified steam and diesel fireman, a
brakeman, and a yardmaster when the position is needed, at the California State
Railroad Museum, Sacramento Southern Railroad (the railroad operations end of
the museum). In addition, I'm also an instructor for both fireman and brakeman.
For each position that I hold, I'm required to attend a series of yearly
training classes, pass a number of written examinations, and demonstrate my
ability to perform a particular task in a satisfactory manner. In addition, I
must also pass a test regarding railroad rules. The material that I'm required
to know is covered in the various training classes, for the most part. Some of
it can be rather complex. In addition to the classes, we also receive a fair
amount of printed material that we are expected to learn...How much material? My
fireman's training manual for last year is about 125 pages and covers everything
from how a boiler is constructed to how an injector works, theory of
firing/operation including both coal and oil firing, and dealing with various
failures and problems. My rulebook, the General Code of Operating Rules (which
is similar to the NORAC book NERR uses), year 2000 version, with all of the
museum specific general orders and special instruction is another couple of
hundred pages..I'm required to maintain a "working knowledge" of the rules. For
most of us, attending one of these classes for the first time can prove to be a
bit intimidating. Even after you've attended them for a few years, a question
that is worded a little differently sometimes trips you up on a test.
We
also study some of the material from different accidents, usually related to
steam engines. A couple of the notable accidents that we've studied have been
the farm tractor explosion at a fair in Ohio, and the locomotive explosion in
Gettysburg. You can really learn something from analyzing these events.
Unfortunately, it is usually what you should never do with, or let happen to, a
steam engine...Things like false reporting, a lack of proper inspections, or
running a locomotive over and above it's rated safe operation pressures, or
without the proper amount of water in the boiler. Safe operation is the biggest
responsibility for all of us involved with steam engines...It's not one we take
lightly.
I also read as much material as a can get (or sometimes afford)
on various railroad subjects. Most of the material is usually related to
railroads that I've grown up and/or been interested in. My favourite among these
is the Western Pacific (Southern Pacific's largest competitor in Northern
California until becoming part of the Union Pacific) and the NorthWestern
Pacific, which was owned by Southern Pacific, but operated as a separate
railroad in Northern California.
Q. Tell us about your family.
I
just recently got married for the first time about 2 years ago, and inherited a
family of 2 twenty-something year old daughters and a grandson who is now 2 1/2.
Both of my daughters and my grandson live with my wife and I in Woodland
California (about 17 miles Northwest of Sacramento along Interstate 5, or Mile
Post 85 on the Southern Pacific's West Valley line). My wife and I both work for
the local county government.
Q. What's the first thing you say when you
wake up?
"Hon, time to get up..." I'm generally a morning person; My
wife, on the other hand, isn't...
Q. Tell us about volunteering at the
museum.
I've been a volunteer (or docent) at the CSRM for about 13 years.
I became a volunteer shortly after moving to Sacramento from Mountain View, in
the San Francisco Bay Area. I was going through the museum one day and saw a
flyer asking if I had an interest in becoming a volunteer at the museum...I was
hooked, right then and there. The museum called me about 3 months later and I
signed up for, and took, a docent training class.
I've tended over the
years to volunteer in those areas in or near the physical railroad itself. One
of the first activities I got involved with was the Maintenance of Way
department...These are the guys and gals that maintain the track for the
museum's operation. You can really learn a lot about how railroads are
constructed and the forces that hold everything together (or tear it apart).
It's fascinating just how everything goes together and the amount of engineering
that goes into it. I've also had the opportunity to visit other excursion
railroads and/or railroad museums to help them with their track rehabilitation
programs.
I've also volunteered for various crew positions on the
excursion railroad, the Sacramento Southern. What this means is that I started
out at the position of a car attendant (which is where everyone starts) and have
worked my way up the ladder towards a position in engine service. I'm currently
a qualified steam and diesel fireman, a brakeman, and a yardmaster when the
position is needed. I usually end up getting called for duty about 20 times or
more during the course of our normal "steam" operating season (first weekend in
April to the last weekend in September, a few "diesel" weekends in October,
Thanksgiving weekend, and at least one weekend in December for Santa trains).
Almost all of the other trains that we run are diesel powered. They include a
semi-weekly freight movement to an on-line customer (bulkhead flats loaded with
lumber that are interchanged with the UP), a "training" train for the Railroad
Technology classes given by a local community college, and school trains for
schools groups visiting the museum.
Over the years, I've had the opportunity
to work with a lot of different equipment..Some of it very historical (like the
"Locomotion" and the "Tom Thumb"). In addition to the railroad's normal yearly
operations, I've been a part of the operations in the last two Railfairs (10 day
events in 1991 and 1999) that the museum has put on, a private railroad car
convention, 6 railroad festivals (3 day events), and numerous other activities.
Some of the experiences have been rather interesting like the filming a
Budweiser (actually, Bud Light) commercial and several pieces for both A&E
and the Discovery channels. We have even done several live TV feeds for things
like the Today show and Good Morning America..Those can be rough as the on-call
crew time is generally 2:30 AM (our time) to be ready for a live shot to New
York at 7:00 AM (their time).
One of my favorite experiences has been
running the Thomas the Tank engine trains. We ran them for 5 days this last
April and will be running them this month for 5 days as well (December 4th
through 8th). It's truly amazing to see all of the kid's reactions to Thomas and
to hear what they think about him and who their favorite characters are. I knew
that Thomas was popular and that the kid's were really into the whole series of
stories and characters, but I was totally unprepared for the shear number of
kids that we saw. Something that struck all of us that were on the crews was
that this is the next generation of railfans and the impressions that they took
with them from this event were going to be remembered for a long time. It's a
very humbling experience.
Q. What are you currently involved with at the
museum?
Currently, I'm working on becoming an engineer. I'm going through
a series of classes designed to teach me the "how and why" of being an engineer.
Some of this material covers things like different air brake systems, how to
start and stop the various diesel locomotives that the museum has, how to handle
a train, how to conduct an air brake test, what to do if the train goes into
emergency, etc. I also get some "seat" time under the watchful eye of our RFE.
The first time you get a chance to handle a locomotive, or a locomotive that is
new to you, you're not even in the cab..We joke about a person's butt not ever
touching the seat or having to scrape them off of the roof of the cab. As you
run a bit more and get more comfortable, you begin to realize what's around
you..You can watch the brake gauges when you make an application and still look
out the cab window. It's exciting stuff..
Q. Apart from volunteering,
what do you do with your life?
Sleep... 8-)
Q. What has attracted
you to this hobby?
It was definitely the chance to run a lot of different
trains in areas of the country/world that I wouldn't normally be able to. I've
had the opportunity to sit in the right seat (engineer's seat) on a real
SD70MAC...It's quite some experience! The ability to do that, any time I want,
on a route that I choose, is one of the things that I find attractive. Not to
mention that it takes up much less space than a model railroad of that same
route.
Q. Do you have any other hobbies?
Yes...But is there life after
railroading? Actually, I'm a member of the Woodland Modular Railroad Club and do
some modeling in HO scale (...not much lately, though, as my grandson likes to
help which limits what I can do...). I like to travel, especially to places that
I've never been before. I also enjoy playing guitar, when I get the
chance...
Q. What's on your mousepad?
At work, it's the Sierra
Railroad No. 3 heading up a hill near Keystone. My portable, a picture of the
Southern Pacific 4449 taken at Railfair 1991. And, my "fallback" is a picture of
Union Pacific 4466, an operational, hand fired, coal burning, 0-6-0 engine that
is part of the museum collection...This is the steam engine that I broke in on
as a fireman and I have a lot of fond memories of that engine.
Q. How
much time do you devote in the average week to NERR.
Probably about 6 to
10 hours, including time spend "gabbing" (answering questions and/or discussing
ideas) in the forums or E-Mail and/or doing research on various items related to
Steam on MSTS.
Q. What sacrifices have you made in order to devote the
amount of time that
you do to NERR?
On occasion, I have to go into my
bedroom and lock the door to make a run or test an activity. I try not to
sacrifice time with my wife and/or grandson.
Q. If you could be any type
of tree, what would it be and why?
A Redwood...You get to grow old,
really old, and fat...And, if you grow big enough, they build a park around you
and everyone comes to see you...Scars and all...
Q. What would you like
to see change?
With regards to NERR, I think that we are all still in the
formative stages. We've been operating ineas a railroad since September 1st, and
we're still finding out what works and what doesn't. Obviously, those things
that don't work will get changed.
With regards to the world in
general...I'd just like to see my grandson grow up in a world that didn't have
to fear things like terrorist acts.
Q. Look ahead a couple of years.
Where do you see the railway?
I think that NERR will still be a very
strong and pioneering force in the virtual railroad field. Hopefully, some of
the current limitations with MSTS will be eliminated with future versions
(...MSTS II??...). We may not always be the first virtual railroad to do
something, but I think that once we decide to do it, we'll be the standard that
others will emulate. I see the people at NERR as not excepting anything less of
each other and holding each other to that same high standard...
Q. Do
you eat the stems of broccoli?
Yep...But only the portions attached to
the tops.
Thanks, Taz. Very informative. Look for some of his articles in future editions of Ramblings.
Industry News
Atlantic Coastal has announced that they are hiring a Human Resources Director and Equipment Resources Director & Vice President of the ACR LocoWorks. The length of the title probably won’t correspond to the length of time someone stays in that position, based on the high turnaround experienced by ACR management.
M Nanni’s North East Rail has announced that it will continue to develop passenger activities for the NEC.
North Eastern Roundhouse Ramblings (NERR) is published monthly by Employee Communications. Contact eic@vnerr.com with any inquiries.