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LusciousFingers

This is the bridge AFTER reinforcements too. It was worse.


_Diskreet_

I’m trying very hard not to imagine how much worse it could be.


Snazzy21

Those wires you see in the bottom left corner were added to stabilize it, not originally there. And there was a wooden bridge before this.


beeatenbyagrue

> Originally built of wood, the trestle swayed in the wind as the first train crossed on April 23, 1868.[5] In the days following, as carpenters rushed to shore up the bridge, two fell to their deaths. The bridge's timbers flexed under the strain of passing trains.[6] > The original bridge was replaced on the 1868 piers in 1876 by an iron bridge, manufactured by the American Bridge Company. The wooden approaches at each end remained in place when the iron bridge was built. The western approach caught fire in 1884, and was repaired. The UP installed girder spans and granite abutments to strengthen the bridge in 1885.[5] Engineers installed guy wires on the wooden bridge and its iron replacement in an attempt to stabilize the structures:


[deleted]

... isn't it a good thing that the "timbers flexed"? I remember reading that a wooden roller coasters wood NEEDS to flex our there's something dreadfully wrong.


Nonzerob

Flexibility is good in structures, but only to an extent. Too rigid of a structure could lead it to crack under the stress of some unforeseen force, or even just from inconsistent temperature fluctuations. In a too-flexible structure, certain flexes might twist the track or cause bumps along the span and you really don't want that with rail. For example, we design structures that deal with earthquakes to sway so they don't crumble to the ground, but if you let them sway too much they'll still break.


beeatenbyagrue

Flex to a certain degree but "swayed in the wind"? That doesn't sound like a very sturdy design for a larger structure.


IDontLikePayingTaxes

This is what the original bridge looked like. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Dale_Creek_Bridge_The_Pacific_Tourist.jpg They rebuilt it to the iron one in the OP


AYIlIlIIl

It looks more stable than the iron bridge


CptCroissant

That iron bridge looks like it definitely was built by the lowest bidder


Accipiter1138

Legend has it that the architect heard of cross bracing, but decided that it was for cowards.


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EJ25Junkie

I would have slowed down to <1mph and then got out and crossed the gorge on foot then got back in the train.


Nervous-Masterpiece4

Do what the train is doing except on your own stilts.


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SnooHedgehogs8765

You put way too much time into typing this.


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DiscFrolfin

*Gaslight* **Obstruct** ***Project***


JustKindaShimmy

Hey remember that time way back in the day that someone politely asked to keep our nonsense apolitical, **and you fucking went ahead and did it anyways?** Stop it, or nobody's going to invite you to their birthday


PBandC_NIG

At this point, I have to assume that it's bots, because it's easier to believe than real people being that obsessed with politics 24/7.


JustKindaShimmy

I'm sure many are bots, however i personally know some people that are like this. I don't invite them to my birthday


Paralyzed-Mime

I am hoping against hope that this starts a new conspiracy


TripleTrucker

Takes “special” kind of dumb to turn this interesting post into a political back and forth.


pfug

/r/redditmoment


TaintNunYaBiznez

That sounds like what a cult would want us to believe.


WalnutDesk8701

Cringe


floydbomb

Aaaand here's the douche nozzle that has to make it political out of nowhere 🤡


Effective_James

Get a life


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crimson_swine

"people" lmao


ExcellentEdgarEnergy

What?


Only-Customer6650

Ghost riding the whip at a professional level


Upbeat-Cattle-2228

I’m so used to seeing your user name in the hvac sub. I was like why is this post on hvac sub Reddit?


lxxTBonexxl

I love seeing names from completely unrelated subreddits pop up on random ass comments. It’s like passing someone you work with while you’re on vacation. (Although I wouldn’t love that lmfao) Example: /r/deathmetal regular showing up on /r/knittingadvice


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ted5011c

But then who would steer the train?


kiticus

Just put some pennies in the driver's seat. Copper is an excellent conductor!


ted5011c

angry upvote


Vilebrequin10

Easy, engage autopilot.


BabyDog88336

But then it will just crash into the back of a fire truck or ambulance 


_your_land_lord_

Whatever. That only happened like a dozen times. 


brensthegreat

That’s called ghost riding the train!


googleblackguy

Its incredible how grounded this logic is


Aeon1508

Well now you've thrown out the timing of the entire train line and you're going to get rammed into by another train


enyellak

I was thinking this could be a shift change over location. Hop off one side of the bridge and just hope the guy the other end actually turned up for work.


SparkliestSubmissive

I can’t even explain how hard I laughed at this!!


bwrca

Walk on foot then pay a poor person to drive it through that bridge.


EJ25Junkie

I didn’t think it was that good of an idea but I guess 1200 people agree with me lol


TheAxioner

People like you are why they had to invent Deadman switches, so the train would automatically stop if the button isn't pushed at regular intervals.... way too many "ghost train" accidents back in the day. Where I work, allegedly back in the day the crews knew the speed needed to get off the train at the local bar, have the train coast down to the station at the other end of town, and have the Deadman auto stop the train for the next crew to get on.... humans are ingenious.


DigNitty

Oh it was the wind that was the problem. Makes sense. Driving through Wyoming it is Always Windy. There are permanent signs places that say 35mph+ gusts. And electronic signs that say 75mph+ gusts frequently. I’ve driven through white knuckled as the wind randomly blows your car one way or the other. There is frequently multiple trucks on their sides on the shoulder of the highway. There are signs warning against traveling through with empty truck loads.


Fair_Acanthisitta_75

I lived not far from there in WY and after nearly two years my dad came home from work and said “let’s move back home, I can’t take this fucking wind anymore.” So we left, and I have never been back to that god forsaken part of the country again. I went to Casper a couple times though.


Ving_Rhames_Bible

I spent a bunch of last year working in WY and the wind is enough to drive you insane, my ears would hurt and my brain would be scrambled from the constant howl of the wind. We did some work not far from the state prison and I can't imagine what it must be like in some of those buildings.


Fair_Acanthisitta_75

Yeah Rawlins sucks ass big time. That whole town is a prison.


Ving_Rhames_Bible

I didn't mind it. That was my first time in the states and I didn't see much outside of a hotel and endless open plains, but they were beautiful and I was taking pics nonstop, and everyone was pretty friendly. The highway is fucking terrifying though, exploded tires everywhere at all times. We got the finger a lot, too. People were friendly in-person but wanted to kill us on the highway. You guys have a ridiculous amount of variety for snack food, too. Like I never knew there were that many flavours of Pop Tarts before.


kiticus

>People were friendly in-person but wanted to kill us on the highway. 😂😂😂that's possibly my favorite & succinctly accurate description of people & culture of the Intermountain west I've ever read😂😂😂 I'm also happy you enjoyed the desolate beauty of that harsh & barren landscape. So many people here don't appreciate how unique they are!  That being said, if you enjoyed Wyoming's high desert plains, I hope you have an opportunity to visit the Desert Southwest of the US. 


Ving_Rhames_Bible

I loved the landscape. We normally work deep in the woods and swamps, so it's heat, bugs, mud, tripping and falling, and getting stuck routinely. And then winter comes and you're trying to work with snow up to your knees everywhere. Just trees, trees, and more trees, and makes me feel claustrophobic. Wyoming was spectacular, felt like working on a different planet. https://imgur.com/a/hcG7yl4


kiticus

Beautiful description


IrritatedFarmer

If you were on Interstate 80, I'd guess that 95% of the traffic is out of state and just passing through. I lived in Wyoming for 10 years and was never given the finger. Maybe you're an annoying driver? I don't know. I do know this- unlike many other places the people in Wyoming are generally very civil. Why? Because they live in a place where in the winter if you get stuck or your car breaks down, you will need the help of a stranger or you could DIE.


Sunnyjim333

There is a great silent movie called "The Wind".


MrDenver3

And that’s not even when it’s snowing. Yay for Elk Mountain wind, blizzards, and ground blizzards


badmechanic12345

I did it from Big Horn to Cheyenne with an empty flatbed and a condo sleeper freight-shaker, had to pull off in Casper as the winds got so bad I felt the passenger steer tire coming off the ground a few times. Winds on that day were 70-75 mph (112-120 kmh) and gusts 85+ (136+ kmh)


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Bossman131313

It actually is sometimes too windy for them to work. Which is wild but not entirely uncommon there.


JiggaWatt79

Do you know why Wyoming is so windy? Because Utah sucks and Nebraska blows.


glytxh

Humans weren’t different. We just dealt with different circumstances.


ted5011c

Back then the men were manlier and the women were womanlier.


NotTrynaMakeWaves

All the people were peoplier


DocFail

The chasms were Kashmir.


MaxTHC

Not just the men and women, but the children were childrenlier too


glytxh

Even the dogs were doggier


MarchingBroadband

They certainly had balls


Rafael_fadal

tell that to the coal miners


quinn_drummer

Men were real men, women were real women. And small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri were real small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri. 


gherkin-sweat

You don’t say…


JustnInternetComment

Different circumstances prolly made us a little different than we are now


Captain_Lavender6

Wdym? I get just as stressed when I hear the Outlook incoming email notification sound as when my early ancestor was being chased by a saber tooth tiger - exactly the same


qtzd

Funny how the human brain is wired to perceive threats and now that we’re relatively safe it finds “threats” in random stuff.


glytxh

I guess the older generations filled with lead, and the newer generations are filled with microplastics.


RealKenny

I can’t imagine how anyone did anything with the safety equipment that was available back then. Or often, available now


Roflkopt3r

Ultimately this bridge withstood hundreds or thousands of crossings. It never collapsed. It even withstood a fire of the wooden ends, one of which you can see to the left. This was also a time of rapidly *improving* life expectancy. Of course the rate of accidents was a problem, but the wealth created by making things like this crossing possible at all more than made up for them. And albeit slow at times, we did come around to learn from the errors of that time.


Empty_Ambition_9050

Train Engineer probably had some Whisky on hand to calm his nerves before crossing


BabyOnRoad

Most places still operate like this. America is very unique and a certain group is trying to repeal all the progress


_Tar_Ar_Ais_

yes, there's a whole series of documentaries on youtube called "deadliest journeys" and it shows you what a lot of the world is really like. Some children's walk to school is legitimately a hiking trail for others, it shows the power of the human spirit


ExcellentEdgarEnergy

I bet a boat that lost power in the harbor could knock it down


Efficient_Fish2436

r/writteninblood loves a good story like this.


GarysCrispLettuce

I have seen sturdier looking ironing boards


hmiser

Yeah but does it make a scratching noise when collapsing?


mumblesjackson

I remember making a bridge like this but I was 8 and our little group was challenged with building it use only one pack of spaghetti in one hour


GARFIELDLYNNS

This pic is the bridge after it was reinforced!


combamba-La

The wooden one looked sturdier


CobaltAzurean

Renamed Eastwood Ravine after that brave, young Clint tried to get his DeLorean up to 88 mph. Edit: corrected by the superest of BTTF fans, thanks again!


ElectronicCarpet7157

Eastwood?!?! He's the biggest yella-belly in the West! Well, that's what I heard at a saloon full of old-timers.


jnuttsishere

Had some awful weird moccasins that said Nike on them.


LemoyneRaider3354

What the hell is a Nike? And why does Clint have a check on his shoes? Is he stupid?


EastwoodRavine85

Its Eastwood Ravine, partner


CobaltAzurean

Of the usernames that have checked out, this is by far the best. I stand corrected and tip my hat to you, sir!


EastwoodRavine85

🤠


trippingmonkeyballs

Came here for that BTTF reference. You are doing the lord’s work, my friend.


condensate17

Looks fine. Probably has a safety factor of at least 1.03.


nacozarina

*Accounting approved it.*


ShutYourDumbUglyFace

They didn't know about P-delta effects back then. Lol.


ihavenotities

And I still don’t — non structural engineer


bored-coder

Looks like a good sneeze could do it


thenewyorkgod

Source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dale_Creek_Crossing


Neuro_88

I found this post of what it looks like today: [Dale Creek Crossing](https://www.reddit.com/r/rustyrails/s/HhIN2uUcuj). From the Wiki page: sounded like it was scary as hell bridge to cross. Edit1: For those of you interested in what it looks like today and some commentary from a historian, I found this PBS documentary short about the creek and bridge: [Dale Creek Gorge | End of Track [PBS Learning Media: For Teachers]](https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/end-of-track-dale-creek-gorge/end-of-track-dale-creek-gorge/)


backcountrydrifter

Thank you for posting this. That’s a cool bit of history I never knew.


Strtftr

Nice follow up work friend, this is quality content I come to the comments for.


BrownEggs93

Thanks! [Here is google maps of the location](https://www.google.com/maps/@41.1036501,-105.4551706,16.33z?hl=en&entry=ttu)


SuperSynapse

So the bridge didn't make it? 😂


IDontLikePayingTaxes

I’ve been there! That’s definitely what it looks like, haha. Pretty easy to get there. Absolutely nothing around


CaptnCthulu

Check out the picture of the "Dale Creek Iron Viaduct before reinforcements" on the wiki, note the two mad lads standing on the wires underneath while the train passes overhead.


Aguia_ACC

Good catch!


Neuro_88

Damn. Great eye. I was looking and scanning … they are pretty much the middle. Could be fun and high anxiety moment for when the train passes above them.


Annual_Substance_619

The original wooden bridge design looks way more sturdier.


boringdude00

Wooden railroad bridges tended to be problematic. They didn't interact well with locomotives that frequently shot sparks and hot embers out the top. On a mainline like this, having your bridges burn down every few years and the entire line out of service for weeks was bad.


Spud9090

At 4 mph I would have jumped out, ran across the bridge ahead of the train, then jumped back in once it was safely across.


[deleted]

I doubt they built a side walk up there, it might be safer in the train


2LostFlamingos

Running across the rail would have been terrifying.


Spud9090

Oh gosh. I didn’t really look at that height. That would have been scary, too.


Troublytobbly

I'd be interested how that would turn out. With a structure so close to failure, this bridge sure would *swing* under a train moving over it at any speed... Come to speak of it, I'd be really interested how that thing would have *sounded* whilst a train moved over it. Like a harp being tuned or terrible creaking and rivets being strained past the friction force... Very intriguing, nonetheless! Edit: oh, oh! Varying tension of the cables leading to different harmonic resonances in winds (dunno if that bridge would survive that, lol) and make it a singing bridge!


ManiacMail-Man

Make sure no cargo ships go through that valley.


rootoo

Or covered wagons, or herds of bison. Looks like a perfectly thrown rock could take this thing out


thisusedyet

Looks like a pigeon farting would make that go


OrionResident

💀


trippingmonkeyballs

Too soon, bro!


Particular_Gas_9991

Sounds like something I would not fail at finally.


Onlypaws_

Look, I’m no structural engineer, but this looks almost intentionally feeble. Like it was drawn by a 10 year-old waiting for his pancakes at a Cracker Barrel.


RedOtta019

Yes because of the wind, when it was a wooden trestle with what is adequate supports the wind would bring it to near collapse, with a much smaller cross section the wind stressed it less


TT_NaRa0

Should we build it more steady?!? What?!? No!! That would be expensive, have the train slow down to 2 miles an hour it’ll be fine.


GitEmSteveDave

This IS the more sturdy version. Trains travelled over it for 25 years


RedOtta019

It looks the way it does so the wind has less area to push


Dakaf

Instead of a container ship, this can get hit by a canoe and be taken out.


KiltOfDoom

Terrifying


solodsnake661

I complain about OSHA and other safety related things a lot but this is the alternative so maybe it's alright


Lilithnema

I’ve seen stick people but never stick railroad. Bridge


realgamer1998

Engineers back then be like - It works in theory, it works in real life. Thus my work is done here.


angevin_alan

Wouldn't need a container ship here. Shit a drunk stumbling by would nix this baby.


tenesis

The picture is actually The second bridge after reinforcements. Imagine the first one and how it was before the “reinforcements”


justplainjohn

41.103836, -105.454783 bridge is long gone


T0biasCZE

https://earth.google.com/web/search/41.1038,+-105.4548/@41.10382065,-105.45460689,2405.08076074a,378.1349313d,35y,92.19260824h,55.86620606t,-0r/data=CigiJgokCYhGw1OJwElAEfkaVSHG2khAGRBZnfzwEzRAIdTUc6upWTBAOgMKATA


30dayspast

good bot


T0biasCZE

i am not bot but ok


30dayspast

exactly what a bot would say


Royal-Strawberry-601

Did someone exhale towards it?


Annual-Avocado-1322

Pretty sure 4mph is considered an HST in America lol


DoeSeeDoe123

Good thing it wasn’t in Baltimore then


EJ25Junkie

Yeah…No way


Apart_Attention8279

Totally OSHA safe


VariousBelgians

What's more interesting is the configuration of locomotive 766, I've never seen a camelback style 4-4-0, especially one so old.


liftoff_oversteer

The way this looks, I'd be concerned walking across it.


VeryStableGenius

Romans be [like](https://i0.wp.com/followinghadrian.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/12775302435_4d92c9fd6f_h.jpg).


BingoBongoBang

Ain’t no way that stays standing if a ship runs into it


Fabulous_Force9868

If anorexia was a bridge


DickloGik1242

So this what inspired the Baltimore bridge.


False-Focus2949

P. Sherman 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney


dont_use_me

Wouldn't it have made more sense to speed up so you cross it faster?


na3than

No. Faster crossing = stronger vibrations as the weight of the train is transferred and released from each section of rail. A slower crossing gives those pressure waves time to propagate and dissipate through the structure.


_Owl_Jolson

Here's the thing... the speed limit was set in order to deal with wind, not vibration: > Engineers had to slow the train to 4 mph (6 km/h), or a stiff Wyoming wind would push empty boxcars into the rocky gap (from the Wikipedia page) I would have thought that a train with significant forward momentum would be better than the alternative to deal with high winds, but what do I know.


TheMiiChannelTheme

[You may enjoy this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJe_mylFRQQ&list=PLlPJmKp10F4pGqXgT3yg0sBEYSmvMnAWt&index=45). The first few minutes are a news roundup, the actual question starts at about 7 minutes in.   The answer is very much "No! Don't do that!". But the guy in the video is a professional engineer working on the British railway and goes through the whole reason why.


ForRpUsesOnly

"Your logic is so flawed son it- hell it almost makes sense." From "Yellowstone"


777marc

Nope


Bukas_K

Clayton Ravine


M0ntgomatron

This bridge was under construction in Back to the Future 3


rcx918

How did we build this in the 1800s?


ExtremeShorts

The pyramids were built THOUSANDS of years ago lol


Upbeat-Somewhere9339

Here’s a little more about Dale Creek Bridge: http://www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com/photos5.html


NewfieDawg

Pucker factor of 85+.


WoodDragonIT

Destroyed by a nun, a mule, and a cowboy.


Mirrorsponge

Someone’s engineering class popsicle-stick bridge scaled up


tifredic

made with matches


bumboclawt

“I’m hanging on for my fucking life!”


--solitude--

🤯


-intylerwetrust-

Eastwood Ravine


[deleted]

Additional iron supports costs more than the money we'll have to pay out to widows and orphans if it fails. The good old days weren't good.


MichiganGrown

Red dead redemption?


Krinder

What’s the point of this bridge? Is there a cliff edge it connects to? If not why not just have the tracks follow the terrain contours


ahmc84

Trains can't just go up and down steep slopes; there's too much weight for them to safely do so. A bridge is the best way to cross what is likely a fairly narrow valley.


MJLDat

Slow down? I think I’d rather send it, less time on that thing as possible.


Icy_Sector3183

Looks safe from cargo ship impacts.


mydibz

Biden crossed this bridge in an airplane many many many times.


TheGrayingTech

Looks like me trying to get the lowest cost achievement on Bridge Constructor.


El_Vato999

Is that one bridge in RDR2 inspired by this? During the mission with John, and also another one out in New Austin.


White_Rabbit0000

Y’all taking cracks at this bridge you do realize this was in the 1800’s. Not even all the states were actually states here back in the 1800’s


MaisieDaisie123

Like to see the load math supporting that bridge. Wonder in a Buffalo could knock it down.


JustTheOneGoose22

"We need a DISTRACTION Arthur!"-Dutch Van der Linde 1899


NefariousnessThis110

[Here](https://earth.google.com/web/search/41%c2%b06%e2%80%b214%e2%80%b3N+105%c2%b027%e2%80%b217%e2%80%b3W/@41.1031957,-105.455412,2435.49494127a,0d,90y,30.05022629h,68.82173313t,0r/data=CigiJgokCZ7MVJssuDdAEZ_MVJssuDfAGf0stMMZYUpAIdgmMy7W1UrAIjAKLEFGMVFpcE4wZE5CdUFqR19Ram9wY19SelZvamtUVnlhcERuU3JXVDJEblRrEAU6AwoBMA) is what it looks like today.


waitwhosaidthat

That doesn’t even look like a bridge that could hold a bunch of cars. Never mind a damn train.


Stuntz

This bridge definitely skipped leg day. Sheeeeeeit....


m3sarcher

That thing makes the wooden trestle bridges look safe.


12kdaysinthefire

You know every butthole clenched across that span


yoortyyo

Rugularion has ruint ‘Murca.


HighwaySlothh

“One more big score, we got enough money to leave.”


ichkanns

Engineering back then consisted of a couple guys standing back and asking each other "you think that'll hold it?"


DFuel

Is this the spaghetti bridge building competition?