What would happen if a C-train hit a hubcap?

[SebC]

No, I don't have a video.

Today I was waiting for the train at Chinook and was looking for the train from the overpass and saw a hubcap on the train tracks. Being a good conscentious person (and an atheist... huzzah!) I went down and moved it off the tracks and reported it to the police non-emergency line (could've fallen off a car but looked like it could have been intentional). Decided this was better than watching to see what would happen if the train hit it, but now my curiosity is unsatisfied.

So, if the C-train would have run over the hubcap (I think, had a lot of really thin spokes though) centered directly over the rail, would it have been a problem? How much of a problem? Did I help keep the trains on time? On the rails? Or did I just screw up a really cool mangling of a hubcap?

[Torture]

So what you're really asking is....
"I threw a hubcap onto the ctrain tracks, and now I'm starting to freak out because something bad might happen and they could have caught me on the cameras"

Right?

Well either way...I have no idea....could be cool though

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Torture

So what you're really asking is....
"I threw a hubcap onto the ctrain tracks, and now I'm starting to freak out because something bad might happen and they could have caught me on the cameras"

Right?

Well either way...I have no idea....could be cool though

No, if I had left it there (or put it there) I would have watched. I made sure nothing happened and am wondering what I missed as a result. And also if I had left it there I could check the news to see if anything happened.

I'm pretty sure you're joking, but still, it's just not logical.

[dj_patm]

Probably nothing. Pushed off and cracked.

[shermanator]

Is this like when you put a penny on the tracks, but way worse?

[dj_patm]

Penny is small enough to go under the wheel.
A hubcap would just get pushed off the tracks. maybe cracked

[Traditional_Ale]

^ thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts
thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts-
thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts-
thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts-thump-ts-







(...what? It sounds like a train!!! Really!)

[Hack&Lube]

Most people don't know this but there was a major C-Train accident in the NW yesterday. One of the power harnesses that stick off the train to connect it to the overhead wires broke off, swung over the side of the train and smashed through and the window exploded into the train and something got caught and I think the train derailed slightly.


Luckily, nobody was by that window at the time or they would be majorly injured or dead.


The official announcment you probably heard was that there was a power failure but it was much more severe. Freak accidents that are pretty lethal can occure anytime.

[Northendzone]

i would think that the train would crush the hubcap - but who knows maybe it could project the hubcap somehow.

[frinkprof]

Originally Posted by Hack&Lube

Most people don't know this but there was a major C-Train accident in the NW yesterday. One of the power harnesses that stick off the train to connect it to the overhead wires broke off, swung over the side of the train and smashed through and the window exploded into the train and something got caught and I think the train derailed slightly.


Luckily, nobody was by that window at the time or they would be majorly injured or dead.


The official announcment you probably heard was that there was a power failure but it was much more severe. Freak accidents that are pretty lethal can occure anytime.

Here's a description of the incident on Wednesday from a train operator on another forum I post at:

It all happened about 1345hrs. Key 6 left University when Enmax (already on scene for a unrelated problem) spotted a problem with the trailing car's pantagraph. They tried to radio key 6 to stop the train but it was to late, the train entered the tunnel inbound at about 75km/h damaging the catenary almost all the way through the tunnel. The train finally shut down, and the operator had no idea what had happened. Control asked the operator to check the pantagraphs and noticed that the pantagraph on the trailing car was bent out of shape. There was alot of damage caused to the catenary, from just north of University station all the way to the south end of the crowchild tunnel.

Chunks of debris hit the train, breaking 3 windows, causing minor body damage to the train and other equipment in the tunnel.

Key "x" is a particular scheduled run of either a bus or C-Train. The key of this train was 6.

Pantagraph is the part of the train that connects to the overhead wires.

Catenary are the overhead wires. Catenary poles are the metal poles that hold up the wires.

Inbound means heading toward downtown.

[Resolute 14]

I think most modern hub caps would simply get crushed. You'd need something a lot stronger to derail a ctrain.

[frinkprof]

As for the original topic, if the hubcap was not lying on one of the rails themselves, probably nothing as it wouldn't be high enough to catch any part of the undercarriage.

If it were directly on a rail, likely minimal (and repairable) damage at most. I doubt it would cause a derailment and/or disaster.

Besides, who knows how long the hubcap was there before you saw it and picked it up? Chances are, several trains had gone over it at that point.

[Huntingwhale]

This is what would happen, and it would be all your fault!

[CaptainCrunch]

The hub cap would be hit by the spinning wheels of the train launching the hubcap at a breath taking 500 miles an hour sending it schything through a crowd of catholic School Girls decapitating little Jenny Parsons who had been texting her bff Betty that she was going to lose her virginity to Biff Larou who was just so b1tchin ho . . .

[worth]

Why don't you ask them yourself?

CTCustomerFeedback@calgary.ca

I'm sure they'd be more than happy to put the hubcap to the test to see which hypothesis is correct.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by worth

Why don't you ask them yourself?

CTCustomerFeedback@calgary.ca

I'm sure they'd be more than happy to put the hubcap to the test to see which hypothesis is correct.

Or send CaptainCrunch's story to the Mythbusters and ask them to test it.

[Mccree]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

The hub cap would be hit by the spinning wheels of the train launching the hubcap at a breath taking 500 miles an hour sending it schything through a crowd of catholic School Girls decapitating little Jenny Parsons who had been texting her bff Betty that she was going to lose her virginity to Biff Larou who was just so b1tchin ho . . .

Sounds like a job for Mythbusters!!!!

[Locke]

It seems only fair that the fine transit-going citizenry begin exacting revenge, or at least fighting back!

Calgary Transit's probably killed more Calgarians than anyone else...

[Madman]

Could I get my hubcap back please?

[Prototype]

Put a styrofoam cup on the ground.

Walk into it.

Report to this thread on your findings.