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Summer 2006
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Ex-Autoworker Turns a "Good Eye"
on
the Railroad
Alert trainspotter John
Thraen shows desk clock presented to him by CPR staff.
John Thraen is sharp. The retired
autoworker was once paid to spot defects in vehicles before they left the plant where he worked. Now he's spotting
flaws in boxcars as they roll by his favorite train watching post in Milwaukee, known as "wheelhouse curve".
And we're glad he is.
On 18 Mar 2006, John noticed a truck - or wheel assembly - was amiss on one of our cars. The bolster,
which runs from one side of the truck to the other, was at an angle. "I didn't realize it was broken", he
said. "I was thinking maybe the center pin had broken and the truck had shifted". He quickly counted the
position of the empty car - 22 behind the locomotive on Train 295 - so he could alert the crew.
John, who was above the tracks on the Canal Street bridge with his bicycle, had to wait for the train to back up so
he could scramble down the embankment to speak with the conductor. When he was met with some skepticism, he rode his
bicycle up to the locomotive to tell the engineer about the problem, too.
The crew finally got the point, checked it out, and had the car tagged so it could be set out for repairs.
Had the broken bolster gone un-detected, Muskego yard manager Rick Tessman hates to think what would
have happened. There were 90 cars of mixed freight behind the damaged car. "It was broken right through",
he said. "This is the kind of thing where you see cars derailed and piled up. It had the potential to be a major
derailment. It was just a question of when and where".
CPR Police Investigator Steve Rohde said this isn't the first time John has come to the aid of the railroad. John has
reported two incidents of vandalism to railroad property, resulting in arrests.
To show their thanks, Steve and Rick recently took John out to lunch and presented him with gifts, including a CPR
desk clock, CPR varsity-type jacket, and cap. Steve also offered to help get John a ride on the Holiday
Train coach car next December when it comes through Milwaukee.
GREAT MOMENTS IN CPR
HISTORY
This Canadian Pacific Spanner article
is copyright 2006 by the Canadian Pacific Railway and is reprinted here with their
permission. All photographs, logos, and trademarks are the property of the Canadian Pacific Railway
Company.
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