IT'S SHOW TIME, ALMOST!
The original date for the CGGRS work meet at
my house was scheduled for the second Saturday of (which is when we regularly
schedule meetings) October, 1998, but due to the inexcusable complications
experienced in the aforementioned weeks, I had to move the meet back a
week to Saturday, October 17th, at 1:00 PM. That dirt was more than
I (we) could handle!!
The club requests, as a courtesy, those
planning on attending scheduled meetings RSVP, as normally there
is some type of food and refreshment served. Well, true to form,
Murphy's Law prevailed again. I received my club newsletter (newsletters
contain pertinent information like addresses, directions, phone numbers,
etc..) on like Wednesday before the scheduled meeting. Saturday
morning I was receiving phone calls from people extending their apologies
in not being able to attend due to the fact they had just received their
newsletter, or saying they had just received the newsletter and wanted
to know if they could still come! Strangest phone call I received was from
someone saying they had not received their newsletter, but wanted directions
to my house! Huh? How did they know I had a meet, or my phone
number for that matter, if they had not received a newsletter?
He He!
Of course, all hands were welcome and I was
well prepared! :o) I had spent the previous weekend (in addition
to moving dirt and cleaning out the pond) smoking pork and chickens for
Brunswick Stew which I froze for safe keeping, and the morning of the meet
I threw two very large pieces of pork on the smoker for BBQ sandwiches
to feed who ever might show up! All the trimmings were prepared and
I anticipated the pork would be ready after a few hours of work.
One by one and two by two's, people started
to congregate in my back yard. The earliest arrival was about 10:00
AM. Huh? Thank you JC.......you really helped get a "jump"
on the progress! Can't wait till the meet at your house this July,
but don't expect me at 10:00 AM! I had no idea who would show, nor
how many people would come, but from near and far they came! All
proclaiming "We're here to lay a railroad"!
I never got an official count, but there were
quite a few, and I was overwhelmed! Most came to work, some just
dropped by to wish us well, and some came bearing gifts, like Don Browning...........he
stopped by on his way to visit friends in Knoxville and brought me a Napa
Valley Wine Car, which he placed inside the house without my knowing it
until my trusty friend Frances informed me. Thank you again Don,
that was very thoughtful of you!
I was most disappointed my trusty helper Eric
didn't show up..........I had invited him, not to work, but to come and
have fun! Guess he had his own plans :o)
So, this is what we started with, people starting
to congregate................
That is JC sitting down, she started work well
before anyone else arrived de-somethinging to the ends of the track!
Guess it's my turn next............meet at her house in July, gonna lay
track!
This is Frances watching JC do her thing, and
the designated area in which we were to lay the track!
This is the beginning work!
It was predetermined that since my property
slopes, not very gently downhill, nor too harshly for that matter,
that we should first install drainage pipe, the kind that you use for gutters
coming off of your house that carries water away. (Don't tell anyone,
but we ended up conjoining the pipe, so what I now have is water traveling
round and round under my railroad, just like the trains run :o) )
Underneath that we added a layer of # 57 gravel,
and wrapped the pipe in weed block to keep roots, weeds, and stuff
from invading!
We had several work groups going on, and as
the drainage got laid people were busy installing track that JC had so
eagerly arrived to clean up and grease with something! Conductivity
something? Grease maybe?
This is track going down and being leveled!
Yippee!!
Note, we had plenty of overseers, and helpers
too!
Even the women helped!
Well, somewhere along the way we ran outta
rock, ran outta ballast and ran outta steam..........so we all sat around
getting fat and happy!
Following weekend.......Jerry, Vern, Frances
and Charlie, and JC and I got out there and finished up the outer
loop............and by the end of the day we were running a train!
Of course we (they) "jury rigged" the wiring, but hey!
We ran trains!
This is the NE bend
This is the NW section
This is the East middle of the railroad
These are my tunnels, one is 18 X 36 and the
other is 12 X 24
You can see here where we left off.............
This is one of the sidings................
And here is a night shot of my mogul !
I have to get someone to teach Frances how
to edit pictures!
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More to come!!!!!!!!!!!!!