For decades, whether on a short, steep grade or a longer climb, pushers and mid-train engines have allowed many heavy trains to keep moving, alluding to the Joe Cocker song, “With a little help from my friends.” and Canadian helper districts, but rather a celebration and illustration of certain freight helper operations and locomotives (manned and unmanned), with special emphasis on territory west of Chicago, in the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s, along with a brief update on the evolution of integrated distributed power (IDP). What follows is not a comprehensive account of past and present U.S. Ironically, the 3637 was part of a group of SD40-2’s delivered to the UP in the late 1970s that necessitated the renumbering of their SD45 fleet, the 39 had previously worn 3639. In December 1980, SD40-2 3637 and SD45 39 have teamed up as mid-train helpers on a coal train. Since the age of steam, helpers have assisted freights in many parts of North American, usually, but not always, in mountainous terrain. Furthermore, helpers provide additional angles for the photographer, who can get shots of these engines on the rear or in the middle of the train or both. They are often dramatic events because these engines frequently travel through beautiful scenery, with heavy trains crawling up steep grades… motors roaring, straining and smoking as they slowly fight gravity. There’s something electrifying about helper operations. He was in elementary school, the year sometime between 19. Route 101, remembers Southern Pacific gray-and-scarlet colored helper engines assisting a struggling freight train on Cuesta grade between Santa Margarita and San Luis Obispo. I thought, “Two sets of engines, what a bonus!” My friend Steve Jessup, who grew up in Atascadero, Calif., along U.S. I’m not referring to a first romantic encounter, but rather the first time I saw a helper engine assisting a train! I still vividly recall the time when in 1971, at age 20, I followed white helpers on a long Kansas City Southern freight grinding up the Rich Mountain grade along the Oklahoma-Arkansas border. Helpers: With a Little Help From My Friendsĭo you remember your first time? I recall the event with a mix-ture of excitement, pleasure, and awe.
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