Water stop

A water stop or water station on a railroad is a place where trains stop to replenish water. The stopping of the train itself is also referred to as a "water stop". The term originates from the times of steam engines when large amounts of water were essential. Also known as wood and water stops or coal and water stops, since it was reasonable to replenish engines with fuel as well when adding water to the boiler.

During the very early days of steam locomotives, water stops were necessary every 7–10 miles (11-16 km) and consumed much travel time. With the introduction of tenders (a special car containing water and fuel), trains could run 100–150 miles (160–240 km) without a refill.

To accumulate the water, water stops employed water tanks, water towers and tank ponds. The water was initially pumped by windmills, watermills, or by hand pumps often by the train crew themselves. Later, small steam and gasoline engines were used.

As the U.S. railroad system expanded, large numbers of tank ponds were built by damming various small creeks that intersected the tracks in order to provide water for water stops. Largemouth bass were often stocked in tank ponds.

Water stop (disambiguation)

Water stop may mean:

Water stop (sports)

A water stop is a break and a place to break for drinking water in sports events (sports competitions or training) for some types of sports, such as various long distance types of running (e.g., marathon), cycling, etc. Similarly, a water break is a break to drink water in some sports events held in one place.

Water stops and breaks have become obligatory relatively recently. Before the 1950s, there had been a practice to eliminate water breaks in order "to toughen up boys" (see "Junction Boys" for an example).

Water stops are used to combat interrelated dangers: hyperthermia, dehydration and hyponatremia. Drinking water combats dehydration, while intake of electrolyte solutions (often provided by various sports drinks) combats hyponatremia and its extreme case: water intoxication.

In a marathon, waters stops are usually at every 5K or at every 2 miles, resulting in 8-12 stops. Stopping for 10 seconds per station results in 1-2 minutes of added time, but the loss of stamina due to dehydration would add much more.