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January 1, 2002
2003, we had intended to go to Waushakum Live Steamers for their
annual New Year's run. Unfortunately, freezing rain on the
31, and forecast for the 2, precluded a thousand km of driving
for a couple of hours' steaming. We went to our regular
haunt, in Les Cèdres, instead, and had a great time. Jim
and Elizabeth Leggett and I got there just about noon and got the
woodstove cranked up.
Jimbo and Elizabeth prepare our steed in the clubhouse - Elizabeth's 0-6-0T "The Pickle Barrel." It was built by her great-grandfather Jim Turnbull circa 1950, and over a half-century later, it still rises to every call.
After a what seemed to be a very short time on the blower, Jimbo uses the first couple of blasts of exhaust to wash the roofs of the enginehouses with cylinder oil...
...and then he is on his way to a great day of fun. One of the greatest joys of Live Steam in the winter (after watching your buddy's nose turn blue and fall off) is the steam effects from condensation.
Not to be outdone by her dad in any way, Elizabeth, 11 years old, has proven she can hold her own when it comes to running a Live Steamer and more.
With some snow on the ground, our future expansion is quite clearly laid out in gravel and pylons. It's going to be a long winter of dreaming, before we can start making any more progress on this work.
I figured Jim Leggett, the professional photographer, would be a good bet to pass the disposable camera to, as I went for my run. He has trouble, though, because it appears there was no way he could screw his "smoke filter" to the cheap lens. Still, I had lots of fun.
Later in the day, he still couldn't figure out how to put a "smoke filter" on. I didn't seem to have that problem...
When Jim Scott showed up, Jimbo got a little concerned - Scotty is known for running his Princess (Turnbull 1949) hard and fast.
Uh, Jim, you might want to get your head out of the firebox, because the track gets REAL ROUGH in about one second...
You get the children out on a winters' day and play they will. Bitz has the Pickle Barrel in full stride, while Jimbo checks out the MLS skating rink.
Big Bill Evans and son Peter showed up. When Big Bill took his seat on the riding car, the Pickle Barrel did everything it could to hide...
Bill is dragging his feet on the roadbed, and still the little engine "could."
Peter took the throttle after some coaxing from dad, and he did quite well - the safety valve simmered quite comfortably throughout his run.
Hey, Peter, things look good. Let's take a closer look:
Water glass, 3/4 full, pressure gauge on 95 PSI, fire red-hot through the door, and the safety valve wearing a feather. You don't get much better than that. Proof positive that it is not in the genetics...
LizBeth was back on
it again, and Dad just looks over her shoulder to see if HE can
pick up any shovel-handling skills - notice she also has the
safety valve open...
Okay, so you want to see what it's really like to run an engine?
Here you go...
gkm 2003
