Due to an NS derailment somewhere in North Carolina my train TV212 was running four hours late today. As we exited Pattenburg on the main and entered the first curve to the East, a hind end comes into view on the controlled siding. The first thought that enters the brain is Oh we are leaping somebody, but a closer look also reveals that something is different looking. I then jokingly say, Oh we have a mixed train out here today, since the second hind car is a coach with a classic clear story roof line. As we pass the eye does a quick scan and picks up the big SRNJ on the coach, which immediately tells me it belonged to the Southern Railroad of New Jersey. About this time the engineer starts saying something, but my eyes and brain go back to scanning the cars near the coach. When passing trains on adjacent tracks I am always cognizant of open plug doors, metal hanging out of gons, and an assortment of other potential hazards, but I have always been very keen on looking for odd ball, and in particular old cars. When it comes to covered hoppers the giveaway is always the hatches. Now from a few random sightings over the years I was aware of Conrail still having at least one Ex Reading, square hatch hopper in active engine sand service. Four times a week I roll by part of the Reading Technical and Historical Societies rolling stock collection at Temple Pa. Always with envy, I look at the square hatch ex cement hopper they have already saved. I always then think of the Ex Lackawanna cement hopper that has sat at Enola for years, defying the scrap metal gods on a daily basis by its sheer existence. As I spin in the seat, speed and dirty windows tend to cloud what the eye is picking up on. To most Railroad enthusiasts the most unimportant, trivial occurrence has just happened. In what seems like a hundredth of a second square hatches seem to have appeared and disappeared. It could have been mirage, but I trust my eye. It could have been one car, but I think it was more. Is that possible? FM Trainmasters and Alco PAs don't exist, or do they. The engineer is still asking questions about the coach, but I haven't heard a thing he has said, and out of the blue I give him an unrequested history lesson on square hatch hopper cars,and how rare they are. In reality he probably would have rather heard about the mating habits of a sloth, but he wasn't in luck. I had seen a shooting star, but as usual didn't get the chance to make a wish. A later check of ALCA01 consist revealed the hind car as RDG 93536 Sq hatches, coach SRNJ 9936, followed by CR 74228 round hatches, followed by RDG 93532 Sq hatches. Shooting stars do happen, and in 1998 multiple square hatch covered hoppers can show up in any train. So regardless of the time of day or night, be keen of eye, and have a wish ready. Regards, Bob ------------------------------------------------------------ Visit the erielack photopage at http://el-list.railfan.net ------------------------------
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