Teenage adventures with Johnny Looney (About 1956). The Smokey Mountain Railroad ran from Knoxville to Sevierville, Douglas Dam and the mountain wood harvesting camps near Sevierville for about 50 years. It traveled at about 15 miles per hour, near the running speed of a high school track runner such and Johnny and the writer. We camped out at Jimmy Hall's house with several other boys who stayed up until 4 am. At 4 am the freight train came passing our camp. Not thinking about consequences several of the boys decided to chase the moving train, climb on top of a box car and ride it past daylight to nearby mountains. Somehow out of about seven campers, Johnny and I found ourselves alone on top of a box car just as the sun started rising. The tree branches hanging down over the box car periodically brushed us and made the ride a little uncomfortable. Our adventure continued until the RR track crossed over the road near Seymour, Tennessee. We casually hopped of the train and hitch hiked back on a farmer's truck to Knoxville before our Mothers got out of bed. And, no one but us ever knew the difference. How is that for a teenage adventure? A drawing of the train is attached. Jerry Long