Articles from RPO V6 N2
Dispatcher’s Desk
by Bob Amsler
Operations can be somewhat intimidating. No matter
how much you know about trying to emulate prototype
practice on a layout, it will still make you nervous the
first time you operate on a layout that is not yours.
But this experience can be both fun and educational.
Recently I went to Kansas City and took part in KC
OpSat ’98. This event was hosted by a number of the
Operations SIG members in Kansas City. It was a great
event. I got to operate as a dispatcher on Rick
McClellan’s layout, which is based on the St. Louis
and San Francisco Railroad’s operation in southwest
Missouri with Springfield as the focal point.
When I first went, I was nervous. I had seen this
railroad in one of the national magazines a few months
prior to the National Convention in Kansas City. It
looked like a great layout. When I heard Rick McClellan
liked to operate, I knew I wanted to go to his layout.
This was my chance.
I was very nervous when I learned that the only
people at his layout who were not real railroaders were
myself, Rick, and Bret Overholdt. I was in an operating
group with four Union Pacific dispatchers from Omaha and
a retired track foreman. This made me think that I
definitely was in the wrong group. I knew that I was
going to make mistakes and that these guys would think
my mistakes were so simple considering they all worked
for Union Pacific. I began to regret that I ever asked
to be the dispatcher on his layout.
Rick’s layout is somewhat difficult to learn. He
operates the Springfield Terminal of the Frisco and it
looks like an "X" with Springfield at the
center. The four arms of the "X" reach to
Kansas City and Tulsa to the west and St. Louis and
Memphis to the east. Rick is planning on installing CTC
control on the layout. At this time he dispatches the
layout using a "poor man’s CTC." He has a
schematic drawing of the layout on a panel on the
dispatcher’s desk. In addition he uses an "Order
Sheet" with the stations in the center of the sheet
from top to bottom. At the very top there is room to
write down a train’s number, engine consist, loads,
empties, and caboose. (This is prior to the death of the
caboose.) Even-numbered trains are on one side of the
sheet and they all go in one direction and the
odd-numbered trains are on the other side of the station
names and are for the trains bound in the other
direction.
This was difficult to work because while all of the
stations were on the sheet, they were not in an order to
show which leg of the "X" the stations were
on. Springfield was in the center of all the stations
just as it is the crossing point of the "X."
However trains bound for St. Louis and for Memphis were
on the same side of Springfield on the sheet. Trains
bound from Springfield to Tulsa and Kansas City were on
the same side as each other. Therefore, it was possible
to have station names listed in sequence on the sheet
but they would not be on the same leg of the
"X."
More than once this caused me to be very slow in
trying to figure out where trains were and whether there
was going to be a cornfield meet thanks to me. The
engineers would call for authority and I would give it
to the best of my ability. Whenever the engineers would
pass a town or junction, they would "OS" me so
I knew they were clear on the main up to that point.
Everything worked out fine. The dispatchers taught me
prototypical communication patterns and I would use this
as I learned it when I talked with them on the radios.
In addition, I would keep them on their toes when they
would forget to "OS" me. We even nearly had a
cornfield meet when two different engineers overran
their authority in the yard.
We all had fun that day. We ribbed each other when we
made mistakes. It was very enjoyable and I am glad I
went. I made some new friends (even got an invitation to
come to the Harriman Dispatching Center and see how the
pros do it) and learned more about operations. One thing
I also realized was that I did not have to feel nervous.
Everyone was there to have a good time.
This is the point of operations—people getting
together to have fun operating trains in a prototypical
manner and having fun doing it. I would encourage
everyone to give it a try. Do not feel nervous or, if
you do, do not let nervousness keep you from giving it a
try. You just might like it.
Until the next time, I hope all the signals you see
are green over red.
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