Where's Elliot (Big_Boy?)

[Anonymous]

I haven't heard from him nor seen any posts from him in a while. I'm concerned.

[Anonymous]

Oh, there he is....Just saw a few posts from him with David's subjects.

[spankybird]

HI Jack,
He posted yesterday.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Amtrak Jack

I haven't heard from him nor seen any posts from him in a while. I'm concerned.

Elliot is here and there on the forums. Tonight we chased 261 from Hastings MN to Mpls MN. We got some good pics and right now he is working on a few of them for you guys.[:D][:D]

I saw a whole NEW side of Big Boy tonight--I knew he was good at finding all the good spotting areas-now I know just how FAST he can find them[:O][:O][:P][:P].

Much to Big Boys chagrin[sigh] seeing 261 flying down the tracks has only deepened my taste for the steam loco's.

[Big_Boy_4005]

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!! My kids are away at summer camp, and it is my big chance to get out of the house and do things. We are trying to have a garage sale, and all kinds of other stuff.

Last Saturday we went to the grand opening of the light rail line in Minneapolis. Tonight we chased Milwauee Road 261, with me at the wheel and Big Girl behind the camera, here's just some of what we caught.









On Friday, we ride, and on Saturday we chase again!!![swg]

[Big_Boy_4005]

How We Spent Our Summer Vacation

Last Saturday was the grand opening of the light rail line in Minneapolis.

What a day, and what a ZOO!!! Big Girl and I got over there about 11 AM, and got right on. Free rides all day Saturday and Sunday, even the busses were free. The problem was that when we got to the south end of the line, everyone had to get off and get in line to get back on. So rather than ride the train, we took a bus which ran the route, but didn't parallel the tracks the whole way. Here is car 102 ready to load up and head back north after our first ride.



There are 12 stations open right now, but the last few miles on the south end won't be open until December. The south end may be what makes the line most useful, because of the airport, the Mall of America, and a lot of parking associated with those stops.

There were special events at every stop. Also at each stop ther was a Metro Transit booth, handing out all kinds of souvenir stuff and information about the system. But maybe the coolest thing was the passport. A little booklet telling the days events at all the stops along the line, and on the last page there was a place to collect stamps from all the stations. We managed to hit 10 out of 12.



We got the train on at Franklin Avenue, and rode to Fort Snelling, then took the bus, stopping at all the stops except VA up through 38th Street. At 38th, the lines were short enough that we could just jump on going north into downtown, so we rode to the end of the line. In the end we managed to ride the train through every station once, and a couple of stations twice.



Fifth street in downtown Minneapolis used to be a beautiful 4 lane wide one way street, but no more. It is now a chopped up mess with strange traffic configurations, as the light rail runs right down the middle. Some sections no longer allow any car traffic, others have a single lane on one side, and one section has a single lane on each side of the rails. The trains lose the right of way, and have to obey the regular traffic signals, though they have special indicators which use a white bar either verticle for go, or horizontal for stop. Here we see a northbound train stopped as a southbound train arrives at the Government Plaza station in the middle of what used to be Fifth Street. The stone building in the background is Minneapolis City Hall.



We ended up walking from the Warehouse District station all the way through downtown, and back to where we left the truck, a distance of a little over 2 miles. Along the way, we stopped at all the booths to get our passports stamped. The lines to get back on were just too long to stand and wait.

[Anonymous]

Glad to know you're okay! BTW, what's that smoke coming out of that engine? Is it on fire or something?? HAHAHAHAHA!!

A diesel fan at heart.

[Big_Boy_4005]

Yeah Jack, if it has flanged wheels, I like it!!!! Big Girl who never really even thought about trains before meeting me, seems to be hooked on steam. I know what you mean though. I must admit, that I would like the new Weaver model of this that is coming out this year. I have some cars that I could use with it, and run fan excursions on my layout, just like the prototype.[swg]

[Anonymous]

I actually got to go in the cab of the 261 when I was 7. That was very hot when they opened the firebox doors![:O] I have an engineer friend that works on the WI central, and one of his buddies was the fireman on it so we cimbed into the cab. I couldent lift myself in the cab beacause I couldent reach the hand-holds, I was just to short![:D] So I grabbed on a few rivets on the floor and dragged myself into the cab. Bad idea, when I came home I saw I was COMPLETLY BLACK![:D][(-D]

Well, I asked why the fireman why he wasn't shoveling coal, and he said,"nope, i don't shovel the coal, the automatic stoker does it for me!" so he lifted up a panel in thhe back of the cab and I saw a conveyer belt, chucking coal into the hungry firebox. My eyes started to hurt, so he put sown the panel.

And thats my experience with the 261![8D]

[FJ and G]

Nice pictures. Glad you're having a good time. Guess one needs a break now and then, even from the forum.

dav

[spankybird]

Hey Big Boy,

Be sure to have Big Girl see my posting this Sunday on Sunday Photo Fun as I will be posting 30 sec flicks with sound of some of my steam engines running on our layout.

Here is one of them

http://www.gahannawedding.com/Video/2004-06-24Spankybird018.avi


tom
PS. Great pics, thanks for sharing

[Big_Boy_4005]

Hey Jerry, yes, for running 261has an automatic stoker, but that doesn't explain what these two teenagers are doing with shovels on top of the tender back at the engine house. They were definately pushing the coal around.[swg]

[Anonymous]

They could be chopping the big chunks of coal smaller.

[Big_Boy_4005]

Possibly Jerry, but I doubt that. I suspect that they were just evening out the pile so it could be topped off. The coal is pretty uniformly sized, though I suppose it could stick together. Maybe I could ask tomorrow.

[Anonymous]

What's 261's wheel configuration? It looks like a 4-8-4; don't know what that's called.

Tony

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by spankybird

Hey Big Boy,

Be sure to have Big Girl see my posting this Sunday on Sunday Photo Fun as I will be posting 30 sec flicks with sound of some of my steam engines running on our layout.

Here is one of them

http://www.gahannawedding.com/Video/2004-06-24Spankybird018.avi


tom
PS. Great pics, thanks for sharing

Thanks Tom--I always love your videos. I will definitly check back on Sunday for the rest of them.

Hopefully we will have even better pictures for everyone after riding Friday and chasing Saturday.[:D][:D][:D]

[Anonymous]

Hey Big Boy--- Nice pics. I remember those S3s in commuter service on the Milwaukee Road Fox Lake, IL line in the early fifties. Nice shots of the new trolleys. BTW do you know if all those old Twin Cities wooden trolley car bodies are still lined up in that field in South Dakota? Many years ago I ran across them and photographed them. They were in pretty good shape then, bur I'm sure time....and fires...have taken their toll by now. I remember that among the signs inside were notices that it was against the law to spit on the floors of the cars. What kind of slobs rode those cars? Odd-d

[Anonymous]

Tony,

a 4-8-4 is a Northern... on the LV they were caled Wyomings. =)