Just curious, has there ever been a derailment at the big ten curves..it would seem that from a design standpoint, a more direct line could be built that doesn't curve as much.
Hi Rodney, I worked for the D& RG RR starting back in 1970. Yes there were many derailments on that curve over the years..but the curve itself didnt cause the lions share of them. As far as a better design goes if you could stand in that country you would get a better idea just how steep it is and how few choices they had to maintain a workable grade. So what did cause the wrecks? Hurricane force winds! And they are 80 ~ 100+ mph coming out of the mouth of Coal Creek Canyon. It blows constantly up there. That area in the foothills where the Big 10 curve is known as Rocky Flats... and its notorious for high destructive winds..but especially bad in the early spring. I worked on a 5 man Signal gang and we were dispatched to the last big derailment on the Big 10 curve in 1971. We were in the area already up by the Moffat tunnel and were one of the first to reach the wreck. It was massive. Immediately after that wreck in 71 the railroad built a windbreak by building some track next to the mainline and pulling some old ore hoopers out on to it and then they welded the wheels to the rail and filled those ore hoppers with rock and dirt. You can still see them on a portion of the big 10 curve to this day...there are trees and brush growing on them now...but that windbreak has worked very well. We also installed a high wind detector which then turned the approach signals (well in advance of the curve in both directions) red for approaching trains to hopefully get them stopped them in time before they went out on the curve. On a side note another problem the RR had in that area of the Big 10 curve was hot brakes on eastbound trains descending out of the mountains. By the time trains reach the Big 10 curve theyve been braking quite a bit for miles...its a steep grade. Youll notice that the trees naturally stop out in that open area around the foothills and all you see is prairie grass. Hot brakes on the older style boxcars could throw off red hot chunks of the brake and easily start a prairie fire in that grass which in turn was fanned into a fast moving prairie fire with those constant winds. That was also a problem back in the day of coal fired steam engines that had sparks coming out of the smokestack. I was told by some old timers that the steam engines before my time had to work hard to pull that steep grade uphill for westbound trains and the spark arrestors didnt always catch all the hot sparks. Hope this gives a different perspective of the Big 10 curve. Take care. MK
Amazing view!
Sounds like a touch of flange lubrication is in order there, with all the squealing. Better wheel longevity, a big PLUS.
Just curious, has there ever been a derailment at the big ten curves..it would seem that from a design standpoint, a more direct line could be built that doesn't curve as much.
Hi Rodney, I worked for the D& RG RR starting back in 1970. Yes there were many derailments on that curve over the years..but the curve itself didnt cause the lions share of them. As far as a better design goes if you could stand in that country you would get a better idea just how steep it is and how few choices they had to maintain a workable grade.
So what did cause the wrecks? Hurricane force winds! And they are 80 ~ 100+ mph coming out of the mouth of Coal Creek Canyon. It blows constantly up there.
That area in the foothills where the Big 10 curve is known as Rocky Flats... and its notorious for high destructive winds..but especially bad in the early spring.
I worked on a 5 man Signal gang and we were dispatched to the last big derailment on the Big 10 curve in 1971. We were in the area already up by the Moffat tunnel and were one of the first to reach the wreck. It was massive. Immediately after that wreck in 71 the railroad built a windbreak by building some track next to the mainline and pulling some old ore hoopers out on to it and then they welded the wheels to the rail and filled those ore hoppers with rock and dirt. You can still see them on a portion of the big 10 curve to this day...there are trees and brush growing on them now...but that windbreak has worked very well.
We also installed a high wind detector which then turned the approach signals (well in advance of the curve in both directions) red for approaching trains to hopefully get them stopped them in time before they went out on the curve.
On a side note another problem the RR had in that area of the Big 10 curve was hot brakes on eastbound trains descending out of the mountains. By the time trains reach the Big 10 curve theyve been braking quite a bit for miles...its a steep grade. Youll notice that the trees naturally stop out in that open area around the foothills and all you see is prairie grass. Hot brakes on the older style boxcars could throw off red hot chunks of the brake and easily start a prairie fire in that grass which in turn was fanned into a fast moving prairie fire with those constant winds. That was also a problem back in the day of coal fired steam engines that had sparks coming out of the smokestack. I was told by some old timers that the steam engines before my time had to work hard to pull that steep grade uphill for westbound trains and the spark arrestors didnt always catch all the hot sparks.
Hope this gives a different perspective of the Big 10 curve.
Take care.
MK