Mike's Railroad Crossing Forum

Well I just finished my first week of conductor training and I'm feeling great about it as I got a 90% on my first test today. I've come to grips that railroad employment comes with inherent risks of injury and even death and that your social life takes a back seat. But for the money that stands to be made and the great benefits, it's worth it to me. I'll be able to buy a house and even a nice car. I'm thinking an Audi RS6...

I'm a very huge fan of Audi! Good Luck on your training, Andrew.

Texastrainman wrote:I'm a very huge fan of Audi! Good Luck on your training, Andrew.

Then you'd love the RS6. 450 horsepower, twin-turbo V8 and only 860 imported to the United States for one model year (2003). The thing flies.

I'm thinking of going to NARS after high school. Do they have a course to be a locomotive engineer or do you have to be a conductor first?

TommyBNSF wrote:I'm thinking of going to NARS after high school. Do they have a course to be a locomotive engineer or do you have to be a conductor first?

Do it. If you're really excited about working for the railroads, NARS is the best way to go. The course is taught by BNSF employees who used to hold the very position they teach. Johnson County Community College (where the classes are held) is more like a junior college than a CC. That and local hotels give serious discounts to NARS students. I'm at the Holtze Executive Suites and got a $189 a night room for $39.99!

As far as engineer positions go, you start as a conductor and then the railroad will offer you a promotion as they see fit. From what my instructor and a fellow student who works for CN, don't start out in MOW if you want to become a conductor. If you start in MOW, it's impossible to get out without quitting and re-applying for a conductor position.

The pay and benefits are FANTASTIC but there is a catch you need to keep in mind. With the railroads you aren't the typical 9-to-5, Monday through Friday American. You are on-call 24/7/365 and are only guaranteed a maximum of 10 hours off in between calls. If you don't think you can handle that kind of lifestyle, railroading is not for you. I'm not trying to sound harsh, I'm just telling you how it is.

Well, I love trains a lot and would love to be with them more often and I've looked at NARS's site and it looks like it is a perfect place for me.

How long until you graduate high school?

I'm still only a freshman, so it'll be a few years yet.

i am strongly considering getting into the railroading field, i too am just a freshman so i still have a way to go.

They say when you love what you do, you don't work a day in your life. As I get older, I've found that more people tell me this is true. Driving shuttle for the Audi dealer, I talked to countless people who absolutely despised their jobs and even had a few tell me how jealous they were of my position. How they could be jealous of a part-time $9/hr gig with little chance of advancement is beyond me but I think it was the freedom they envied more than anything.

I feel I know you all well enough to tell you this story. When I was a kid, I wanted nothing more than to work for the railroads but somewhere along the line that dream got pushed aside. But when I was 13 I was invited to a friend's house for a neighborhood get-together. The kids were all downstairs and somebody had brought over Office Space, which at the time was a fairly new movie. It was at that moment, seeing that movie that I swore I would NEVER work in a cubicle. I haven't up to this point and I have no plans on backing down now. I'm not an office man, never have been, never will be. Funny how a satirical comedy can have such an impact on you at such a (relatively) young age.