763 Power Spot

The Surfliner Cafe car has 4 tables and seats  11. One of these tables is by far the superior position for the following reasons:
1. Is a single seat with its own table.
2. Has an AC power outlet - the only one available.
3. Good viewing angle  on the coast side of the train.

Like elementary school there is a defacto seating chart on the 763. The power spot goes to a regular with seniority in terms of most miles/year. If that regular is "working from home" on a given day the next senior person  takes it.

One thing that can completely hose this up are non-regulars that get on early in downtown San Diego. Most of us get on in Solana Beach or later. We seldom have the heart to kick out the tourists. Generally speaking they eventually move on their own out of discomfort.

In case you might forget where you are sitting, Amtrak has thoughtfully numbered the 4 tables. And of course the power spot is table # 1. Please respect the seating chart the next time you ride.

 

Where's Amtrak

We have had an unfortunate string of late trains on the Surfliner recently. It seems like the train is late more often than not and the list of reasons given is long. Late departure in the morning because the crew slept in, late arrival in morning because of an accident up the line. And to make it even more fun, the train is occasionally, albeit rarely, early! Regardless of the reason on any particular day, these incidents provide opportunities to tell jokes, catch up with friends, and above all complain.

Waiting for the 784 in Los Angeles

The network of regular riders often does a better job of updating each other than the folks at Amtrak do. Texts, emails, and calls go out to riders up and down the line to warn of delays, and to determine how long a delay is likely to be (Amtrak's default reply is that the train will be there in 5 minutes). Alternatives are discussed (carpooling, taking Metrolink, going to Trax) and plans are made. We all eventually make it home safe to try again the next day.

In order to share these updates with the larger group, I have set up a Twitter account under the Rail_Tweet username and will post the status of my trains whenever we are running off schedule. The most recent tweets will also be displayed on the top of the blog homepage. Hope this helps people plan and feel free to send Rail_Tweet your updates as well. Working together is how we will win.

A Different Class

It should not come as a surprise that there are different classes of service on the Surfliner. At the ticket counter they offer fares for Coach and, if you are willing to shell out an extra $11, Business - where you get "free" coffee in the morning or a small bottle of wine in the evening. But beyond the published fare categories for seats, there are also different classes of riders.

The Regular always sits in the same seat, usually surrounded by a group of similar Regulars. I would compare it to a blend of a school bus and Cheers. We look out for each other (and each other's seats). If you forget something, call your buddy who rides a bit further and he'll pick it up and hold it for you. Train is late? You will get a text message from up the line letting you know the situation. You will find many of these Regulars enshrined in the Commuter Hall of Fame page on this blog.

In contrast to the Regular is the Casual Rider. It is easy to poke fun at them, but we have to remember that each of us was a Fu-New-Gy at one point in our commuting lives. They are young, old, rich, poor... but most of all, they are clueless. You will find many of these Casual Riders enshrined on the People of Amtrak page on this blog.

Regardless of your class: Regular, Casual Rider, or Business, please let us know the strange and entertaining things you witness on the train. We are happy to share our stories, and to listen to yours.

In The Dark

The ride home is always entertaining, but sometimes it crosses over the line and becomes strange. Last night was an example of the strangeness that can enter into an otherwise routine commute home.

Everything was normal as we made our way out of Union Station. The regulars were in their standard seating positions and the LSA was doing brisk business. The only items out of place were Big Al and Mark (the banker), who huddled in the corner instead of assuming their normal positions standing in the condiment section of the Cafe Car.

Things deteriorated 10 minutes after leaving the station when the internal power supply cut off. The train got eerily quiet without the normal background noise of the air conditioning fans buzzing. At that point we knew that this trip was going to have issues.

Close your eyes and imagine a 2 hour train ride without lights, air conditioning, flushable toilets... Now think of that ride without beer! The horror! Luckily for us, Big Al was hiding in the corner because he had brought a six pack of beer with him, and he didn't want anyone to see it.

Beer problem solved, we now had to fill the unusual quiet with chatter. I have a limited number of topics to run through in my chat files, so we recycle topics quite regularly. Every now and then you get someone who drops a doozy. Yesterday's tidbit was provided by a random passenger who, after a whole hour of silence dropped this nugget:

"I don't like Swedish people. I'm just throwing that out there"

After the shock of this guy saying something, and after processing just how ridiculous it was, I replied the only way proper. "Me neither... I have always been partial to Norwegians."

Such was the 784 on 2/22.