Friday Nights Rain didn’t keep some from working on Saturday, March 9th
Friday’s overnight rain didn’t deter a small group from showing up Saturday morning for a workday. John, Wes, and Scott started out early Saturday morning by taking care of some items with the “Grandma Line”. They worked on the retaining wall which also means they had to haul in dirt and gravel with wheelbarrows. Robby showed up and brought back one of the new club riding cars to the site. He spent the past few months cleaning and repainting the car while Norm cleaned up the trucks. The riding car is now ready for operation for the 2024 season.
The crew also worked on plans for the retaining wall that needs to be installed near the west end of the Nicol bridge. We are going to take the end pieces that came out of the grey container project from a couple of years ago and cut them down to about 16 inches tall so we can then use them as part of the retaining wall structure. The plan is to get them cut and ready for installation by Saturday, March 23rd. We will need help hauling dirt and gravel using wheelbarrows to the retaining wall in order to complete this project. We will also be installing about 100 feet of fencing as well. Because this project needs to be completed before our April run day, we will also be doing work on Saturday, March 30th to finish this and other projects.
If all of this wasn’t enough the real fun part of the day was when John and Wes started working on the west end water line extension by figuring out a way to work smarter and not harder. The pair had been using two wagons to bring crush and run to the work area which was a slow process. The two put their heads together and decided to leverage the new little electric switch to bring material to John while Wes loaded the wagons. You have to watch the videos to really appreciate the great use of this new switcher and pulling of wagons full of material back and forth to the job site. Needless to say, this approach saved John and Wes a great deal of time. Scott jumped in and helped by operating the locomotives wireless controller from the comfort of well his chair.
John and Robby also spent time walking the “Grandma Line” as the area will see some major progress in the next month or so. The plan is to install a temporary crossing on the west end so a bobcat can bring dirt and other supplies into the area. Weather permitting this will take place by the end of March and will really allow this project to pick up steam. Keep an eye out for updates on what John and Wes will be working on next. This is a great opportunity to get involved.