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Diesel locomotives are turning in unprecedented performances thanks to alternating-current propulsion systems
A LIGHT DRIZZLE SPATTERS the windshield of Union Pacific General Electric AC4400CW 6583 as engineer Don Crowe notches out the big diesel's desktop throttle and gets eastbound coal train CRMAE-11-075 on the move. Departing the Powder River Coal Company's Rochelle (Wyo.) loadout, this is the definitive "heavy-haul" unit train. A distributed power, or "DP" train in UP parlance, the CRMAE has 138 MCHX aluminum bathtub gons loaded with low-sulphur bituminous coal, bracketed by AC4400's 6583 and 6857 on the head end, and radio-controlled General Motors SD9043MAC 8167 as helper on the rear. Bound for New Madrid, Mo., CRMAE-11-075 tips the scales at a whopping 18,919 tons gross weight. Crowe has his hands full.
Steel rails glisten in the soft spring rain, and the six-motor GE's shudder as they get underway. "Doin' the boogie shake," says conductor Dave Prahl, as the 42-inch wheels claw at 136-pound rail. Crowe has the sanders working, and the 415,000-pound machines maintain a sure footing, shouting to the heavens as they grind up the North Antelope Mine lead toward Nacco Junction and the Powder River main line (or "Orin Line"). At the rear, 8167 shoves with all its might, doing its part to keep the heavy train moving. "That rear motor's pushin' like a son of a bitch," says Crowe, and the digital display on a control console screen confirms it. Shouldered up against the rear of the train, the 90MAC is in Run 8, "diggin' for potatoes," as the man once said, and producing 130,000 pounds of tractive effort in the process.
Threading the crossovers at Nacco Junction, CRMAE swings onto "Main Three," the third track of BNSF's Orin Subdivision, and comes face-to-face with one of the most challenging grades in the whole Powder River Basin: Logan Hill. Logan is legendary among Powder River railroaders, and in the not-too-distant past, the mere thought of tackling the 7-mile, 1-percent grade with just three units and more than 18,000 tons would make even the most seasoned veteran's blood run cold. Only a few years ago, a train like this would have demanded about 18,000 h.p. in the form of four C44-9W's, five SD50's, or at least six SD40-2's. By...