Do Not Hump Under Any Circumstances! - Evanston, WY
Posted by: Hikenutty
N 41° 16.269 W 110° 58.241
12T E 502455 N 4568858
This sign can be found at the deserted Rail Complex in Evanston, Wyoming - a spot where the local teens come to grab some, um.... private moments.
Waymark Code: WM29AF
Location: Wyoming, United States
Date Posted: 09/25/2007
Views: 456
This is posted on the side of a railroad dining car, now on display at the Railroad Roundhouse complex in Evanston, Wyoming. Eventually the entire site will be renovated and used as city offices and park space, however for now the area lies deserted and is a favorite night spot for young couples with nowhere else to go. It's a regular problem for the local police. Maybe they should paint this sign all around the complex and see if that will curb the, um... activities.
I'm sure you all know what "humping" means in everyday lingo, and if you don't I'm not going to explain it here - this is a family Website. :) But to the railroad, "humping" is something entirely different. Here's an explanation from straightdope.com:
"Humping" involves the use of a man-made hill, or hump. A track heads up the hill and branches into numerous parallel tracks on its way down the other side. To make up new trains, a switch engine pushes a string of cars to the top of the hump, where the cars are uncoupled one at a time. Having determined the car's destination, a worker in a nearby tower pushes buttons or throws levers or whatever to get the track switches (you know, those things where one track divides into two) lined up properly. The car is then given a nudge, causing it to roll down the hump and onto the right track.
The advantage of humping is that it's a lot faster than having switch engines shuttle back and forth all day making up trains. The disadvantage is that it's sometimes a little rough on the freight cars and their contents.