Southern Indiana Railroad

Tortoise Blues.

The Ballad of Ken Pettit

Lyrics by Duke Green

​Sung to the tune of "Dark as a Dungeon" by Merle Travis

Come gather round people and I'll tell you a tale

about trying times on the Southern Indiana Rail Road

where we train drivers were pleading "Support Us"

Calmly Ken Pettit said "you need a Tortoise"

The session is over and us drivers go home

Ken Pettit remained to ponder alone

He studied the tracks, the turnouts, the wires

And sadly realized he would never retire

Chorus

So under the dark damp layout he went

Where every darn staple left his head with a dent

He put some green boxes up under the rails

In an effort to ease the drivers' travails

A month has gone by, Ken's head has improved

Drivers returned, some trains even moved

We barely noticed the additional help

Then we did what we do best, that is to yelp

We're still having trouble, what is to be done

We're having to think, which means not having fun

It has to be different and for this we plead

Thoughtful Ken Pettit said "More Tortoise you need"

Chorus

So back beneath plywood and blood-bringing spikes

Went courageous Ken Pettit, more than once yelling "Yikes"

He saw unused contacts, AH! Could be more wires!

Which brings flexibility, and ...perhaps fires

"It's worth it" he said "I will put in some switches"

That should satisfy those whinin' son...

But still we struggled about which way to go

Determined Ken Pettit said "O Wait I know!"

I'Il drill through the trackbed and put in some lights

Red is for wrong, green is for right

The courageous Ken Pettit, with no shield on his head

More drilling, more wiring, more blood to be bled

Put visual signals at each possible turn

In diminishing hopes that perhaps we would learn

Chorus

Well the years have flown by, every turnout's equipped

With magic green boxes on the switches they flip

Ken Pettit sits back on his folding chair thrones

Content in the knowledge he never left us alone

The layout is perfect, the traffic flows smooth

Dispatcher Ken Petti conducts every move

From position of power, hand on a mouse

That turns every train that runs in the house

The tale's far from ended, new gadgets abound

And answers to problems remain to be found

Ken Pettit stands ready to take up the slack

When it looks like us drivers are all smoking crack

Chorus

This model railroad that we are proud of 

We hold it sacred, as sent from above

To begin the next chapter of this beloved club

​The layout room's now known as the Ken Pettit SUB