This Day In History

[shilala]

Today in history they cranked up the Alaska pipeline for it's maiden voyage.
Along the 800 mile stretch, numerous sections of pipes split, and gazillions of welds failed.

Now, the tie-in to Thomas' post. Bear with me...
On this job the derisive term "Hoopie" was formed and exists to this day.
The pipeline was made of 48" diameter 1/2" thick steel.
This is super easy stuff to weld. I can tell you this because I can weld it to pass xray in one shot, and I can't weld worth a damn. What I can do is boss welders, so that's what I did for lots of years.
As you can imagine, 800 miles of pipe requires an extraordinary amount of manpower. When you hurt that hard for help, the quality of skills that come with the manpower suffers.

In the 3rd year of that 3 year project, it turned out that every able-bodied man in West Virginia was a welder. If they could make a spark, they were hired.
Problem was, a high percentage really couldn't weld to save their ass. So Aleyeska brought in chill rings. Chill rings are basically hoops that fit inside or outside pipe.
They facilitate welding in extremely difficult situations by pulling heat away from the weld, making it easier to control an arc. They have no place on any pipeline.
Then the men were babied along and taught to weld in critical situations they should have had no part in. They should have been welding bumpers on trucks.

As you'll have with guys at work, these men were teased and tortured.
Anyone who was seen anywhere near a chill ring was called a Hoopie, regardless of where they came from, their skill level, or actual tradecraft, and are still called Hoops today.
Among fitters and welders, it's much like "yanks and rebels".

You may take it from there, my crusty, old, scalawag brother.