# Mojave Meltdown



## CaptainCassius (Jun 1, 2013)

4:00 AM 
'DING DING DING DING DING'
I am awoken from my slumber by the rail crossing signal.
Still dark.
I wonder If I am out of Long Beach yet.
Close your eyes..
9:13 AM
'SCREEEEECH JEERK POP!!!'
Shit I better not fall into the suicide holes in this thing.
Could be a nasty pink spot on the tracks.
"Hey Aurelius where do you think were at?"
"I dunno man take a look."
'HISSS POP CREEEEAK'
Looks like were moving again
No shit. I can't even see any road from here just mounds of dirt and rocky outcrops.
What a beautiful day. What a rush.
I wish I could play guitar right now but between these metal flakes lacerating the exposed portions of skin and the racket of the rail car I don't think I could do it.
At least its still cool outside, the metal of the car is still cold too.
Eh I can't go back to sleep anyways..
10:07 AM
"Hey I think I can see the road from here!"
"No shit man! where are we?"
"I dunno man I can't see for shit"
Oh wait. The Binoculars in my pack.
Dumbass..
"Oh wait I have binoculars in my pack"
Can't seem to get the resolution on these things clear enough.
"Damn my eyesight, I can't see shit. Why don't you look?"
"Don't ask me, I'm worse than you"
"Get some fuckin' glasses Aurelius, you're always reading and shi- Hey I see an interstate sign. Looks liiike 'Interstate 15"
"Well shiit looks like were going to Vegas"
"Fuck man I thought this train was supposed to be going towards new mexico?"
"You know just as much as me man, you read 'the change'. says they should go out south from there."
"Yeah lemme look around"
Jesus fucking christ. all these cars are empty.
It looked like a solid ride when we got on...
"All the other cars are empty man"
"You serious?"
"Yeah I'm fuckin serious! Where do you think this thing is going?"
"No clue Cassius. No fuckin' clue."
"Well It will take us somewhere.. lets ride it as far as it goes."
11:20 AM
Looks like more of the same shit..
A lot more rocks and dirt.
Empty blue sky.
How long has it been since we left L.A.?
Maybe I'll just take a peek...
"Fuck!"
"What is it?!"
"A Rail worker."
"Did he see us?"
"No. I don't think so, he was to busy fucking around or whatever he was doing to notice."
"Fuck it."
Need water.
'glug glug glug glug..'
"ahhh"
How long will we be on here?
Starting to get hot.
Still have... about half a gallon.
1:30
'SCREEEEEECH POP THUD'
'HISSSSSSSSSS'
What are we stopping for?
Are we there yet? Anywhere yet?
Better stay down.
1:45
'RUMBLE RUMBLE CREEEEAAAK'
'POP!!'
"I wonder where we are? You think were in Nevada yet?"
"I dunno these things don't move very fast.."
Looks like a city perhaps?
Maybe just a rail yard.
Well I better stay on this thing, no use in getting stuck in the desert and losing our only ride out.
2:15
'CREEEEEEAAAK POP THUD CREEEEAAK CREEAAK POP'


Silence.

Blistering Heat.

Water. I need more water.
'glug glug glug'
"looks like we stopped again"
"Yeah, man I really hate waiting on this fuckin' train. It must be low priority or something cause its let every goddamned train and its mother pass by before moving again-"
"SHHHH! You hear that? Sounds like a truck coming!"
"Fuck man this must be the crew change what should we do?"
"Stay on I guess, they won't look for us back here"
2:30
I hear the truck driving away. Thank god.
Running low on water..
Hope this thing starts moving soon or this heat is gonna piss me off.
2:58
'RUMBLE THUD POP CREEEAAAK'
"I hear something moving.. Shit get down theres another train coming by us!"
'CHUG CHUG CHUG CHUG CHug Chug chug chug....'
Thats strange.
Just Two units passing by.
3:??
"Fuck this car is getting hot I can see the heat waves"
"Yeah we've been sitting here for a while."
"I'm gonna take a look"
Fuck this train is long.
I can't see an end to it.
Damn my eyesight.
Heat is fuckin with my eyes.
"I can't see shit man"
"Yeah we're running out of water too"

Fuck.
Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck.
I can't see shit out here- 
Oh wait! Is that the highway? or is the heat getting to me?

"Shit man the air is so much cooler outside of this car"
"Yeah we're pretty much in a fuckin' oven"
"Human eggs frying to death in a fuckin metal box on wheels"
"We're not dead yet Cassius"
"Yeah but we will be soon if we don't get the fuck out of here!"
"But what if the train starts moving?"
"Fuck that. We wouldn't last another 2 hours in this hotbox. We've got maybe a little less than a quart of water left in this gallon jug"
"Fuck you're right man lets get out of this fuckin' thing!"
"Amen to that brother."

Burning my hands on the rusted metal carcass of the railcar.
Burning in my lungs sucking in the heat and desert dryness.
Throbbing in my head pumping my life giving blood into my dehydrated and heat stricken body
And I jump off the bucket and onto the gravel.

"Telephone lines?"
"Yeah where are we?"
"No fuckin' clue.."
"I think I see the highway from here. It's gotta be maybe a quarter mile that way"

March.
Left right left right.
Put one foot in front of the other.
Heaving breaths.
Sickly sweet odor of sweat, earth, and death.
Drain last drop of water out of jug.

"It's getting farther"
"Yeah its getting farther as were getting closer.. Its alot farther than I thought."
"We have no choice, I'm not gonna fucking die out here in this shithole of a wasteland!!"

Push Push Push.
40 lb pack became 50 lb became 60...
Water leaving my body no matter how hard my entire self tried to keep it in.. I need that.
Falling, Scrambling, Crawling.
My sight is getting fuzzy...
Just one more step.. and another.. and another.. and another..

"Fuck man I feel like shit.."
"Ditch your pack! Ditch your pack!"
"No fuck that Aurelius We're almost there.."

FUCK.
FUCK.
FUUUUUUUUCK.

"Fuck. There's A Fucking fence!"
"Should we hop it?"
"NO FUCKING CUT THE BITCH FUCKING CUT IT OPEN LIKE A VIRGINS FRESH CUNT"

'CLIP CLIP SNIP SNAP CHING!'

Scramble Scramble Run.
Slam the pack down.
Emergency water supply!!
'RIIIIIIP'
'glug glug glug glug glug'
"ahhh *cough cough* drink some Aurelius before we die of heat stroke"
"Fuck man thanks!"

"Lets try to flag down a car"
"OK lets"

?:??

What is wrong with these people?
I'm holding a sign that reads 'WATER'
and I get no reaction?
Not an inkling of care?
Who are these sadistic uncaring souls?
Do they not feel?
Do they not realize that there is nothing in the desert, and that no man needs nothing?

"Who the fuck are these assholes?"
"Yeah seems like they can't read"
"We should get to some shade"
"We should also get some water considering we're out.."
"Fuck Cassius what are we going to do?"
"Well the nearest shade i can see is under that overpass which has got to be a mile down the road, that would fucking KILL us without water right now in the heat of the day."
"Well then I guess we either flag a car down or get some water."
"Yeah I guess so. I guess fuckin' so man. Beats staying in orange county though eh Aurelius?"
"Yeah Cassius, I mean I could be sitting on my ass playing call of duty eating cheetos. yeah fuck that HAH"
"I am in agreement with that sentiment."

'SCREEEEEEEEEEECH'

Smoke and dust.
And then we saw the Pick-up Truck.


----------



## kokomojoe (Jun 1, 2013)

i love the way you tell the story, hell yeah man


----------



## CXR1037 (Jun 1, 2013)

> "Fuck man I thought this train was supposed to be going towards new mexico?"
> "You know just as much as me man, you read 'the change'. says they should go out south from there."


 
lol



> Jesus fucking christ. all these cars are empty.
> It looked like a solid ride when we got on...




lol



> How long will we be on here?
> Starting to get hot.


 
lol




> "Fuck man this must be the crew change what should we do?"


 
lol




> Thats strange.
> Just Two units passing by.


 
LOL

cxR - i take it you were on a baretable train to Yermo?


----------



## CaptainCassius (Jun 1, 2013)

CXR1037 said:


> lol
> 
> 
> cxR - i take it you were on a baretable train to Yermo?


 

Yeah they passed barstow and yermo and went about 45 miles northeast of yermo and pulled onto a siding track disengaged the engine cars and left the empty buckets and wells there to fuckin' roast in the sun in the middle of the desert.

It's the story of one of my first rides.


----------



## Tude (Jun 2, 2013)

It's reading stuff like that that made me become a member of this forum.


----------



## CaptainCassius (Jun 2, 2013)

Tude said:


> It's reading stuff like that that made me become a member of this forum.


 
Thank YOU!


----------



## CaptainCassius (Jun 2, 2013)

kokomojoe said:


> i love the way you tell the story, hell yeah man


 
Thanks man I think I'll keep writing..


----------



## CXR1037 (Jun 2, 2013)

CaptainCassius said:


> Yeah they passed barstow and yermo and went about 45 miles northeast of yermo and pulled onto a siding track disengaged the engine cars and left the empty buckets and wells there to fuckin' roast in the sun in the middle of the desert.
> 
> It's the story of one of my first rides.


 
Yeah a good rule is: if you see empty intermodal cars, don't get on them. UP and BNSF both leave big cuts of wells out in the middle of nowhere. When things get backed up they just don't have enough room in the ports, so out they go. 

cxR - BNSF has air stations coming out of the ground at one particular CP out here. Because there are so many empty cars going in and out, they just hook them up to the air so the brakemen/conductors don't have to handbrake each string.


----------



## CaptainCassius (Jun 2, 2013)

CXR1037 said:


> Yeah a good rule is: if you see empty intermodal cars, don't get on them. UP and BNSF both leave big cuts of wells out in the middle of nowhere. When things get backed up they just don't have enough room in the ports, so out they go.


 
Yeah I'm well aware of that now lol but back then that would have been some very useful information.


CXR1037 said:


> cxR - BNSF has air stations coming out of the ground at one particular CP out here. Because there are so many empty cars going in and out, they just hook them up to the air so the brakemen/conductors don't have to handbrake each string.


 
You don't say..


----------



## Mongo (Jun 2, 2013)

CXR1037 said:


> Yeah a good rule is: if you see empty intermodal cars, don't get on them. UP and BNSF both leave big cuts of wells out in the middle of nowhere. When things get backed up they just don't have enough room in the ports, so out they go.
> 
> cxR - BNSF has air stations coming out of the ground at one particular CP out here. Because there are so many empty cars going in and out, they just hook them up to the air so the brakemen/conductors don't have to handbrake each string.


One time I jumped on an empty intermodal leaving port when I was drunk without thinking, just being super impatient.
Worst idea ever, then again 50% of drunk ideas are


----------

