Trackside with Erik and Mike, Vol. 31: May 16, 2005

[Anonymous]

OOOPS , I goofed I gave credit to Mike, When it sould have "GONE BIG TIME TO "ERIC", any way both had gooood Photos.

[Anonymous]

I voted for Mike's as I like power plus freight , both photos were very good, execpt for all the green, the power just blended in with the background in my humble opinion.

[jgfuller]

As a former CNW man, I must vote for Mike's photo ... with the added benefit of jointed rail and [what used to be] Double Track. The mile post adds just the right touch!

[warriorpilot]

Wow! The UP units back to back, the whole train in the shot, the way the haze kinda obscures the background, that's a great shot Mike.

Wow again! I'm continually redirected to the train IN THE GOLF COURSE! It's a whole lotta green, and the locos don't exactly jump off the page at you, but the fact that the rails run RIGHT THROUGH THE 18TH FAIRWAY just keeps drawing me back.

My vote went with Erik.

[Teditor]

I went with Mike, when I first saw the BN train I thought it was from Microsoft Similator or TRAINZ, looked too angular for my liking, guess I am a UP fan also, even though I might never get to see one, both guys are great photographers, my outlook just came out different this time I guess.

[Anonymous]

The track ahead in Mikes photo shows a big dip on the left rail. Is this for real?

[Anonymous]

Golly, how can I vote for a photo of a train when I couldn't see it amongst all that green grass?

Jimbo

[wcnut]

While I do tip my hat to Mike for hunting on the Adams Sub, for the non-Wisconsinites it can be extremely trying to get anything on that line, I went with Erik's shot. Although Erik's comment about the Wis winter almost swayed me the other way :) Love the cold! Anyway, beautiful lines sweeping through the shot. You have somewhat of a zig-zag leading your eye through the picture... looks like a walkway, then the tracks, and finally the edge of the tree line. Also, I am drawn to the non-traditional composition of the train itself. Something I have been working on myself.

Greg "wcnut"

[Anonymous]

ERIK'S SHOT , "GREEN AMIDST GREEN", IS RATHER UNUSUAL; IT LOOKS LIKE THE BNSF IS PART OF THE "SCENERY"! I WAS WONDERING IF THE TRACKS WERE CONSIDERED "UNPLAYABLE LIE"?

[CopCarSS]

Erik, you got my vote this week. While I would have liked to see more of the train, the patterns and the greenery got it. Mike, yours was a nice shot, but I had issues with the sky......it almost looks like something from another planet. It was a strange sunset that turned me off of the picture somewhat.

As always guys, great work. Keep it up!

Chris
Denver, CO

[Anonymous]

Liked the twilight effects in Mike's photo. Erik's caught my eye, but the composition didn't seem to work out - more train would've meant less grass, more grass means the locos look off center. I liked how the BN green worked with the cut grass and spring foliage. I also preferred Mike's 'cause it's recent.

[jjlamkin]

Sorry, Erik I had to go with Mike's photo this time, even though it was more of a roster shot. I wish Erik's photo had more of the rest of the train in it, at least all of the second locomotive. I know he was trying to get a different affect with the cut grass and all, but my first impression was, hey the second loco is chopped off!! Keep up the GREAT job with the "Trackside" installments, it really gets the forum members going.
Jim

[jimmac230]

Mike has the vote because after reading the story, He had to work for the shot. Erik has a great shot, but I wonder if he was mixing business with pleasure that particular day. You both do great work and keep it coming......

[dknelson]

I believe the golf course in Erik's lovely shot is the one you can see from far up above at Grandads Bluff, where you can see for miles into MN and maybe even into Iowa, but straight down below you is the golf course and the BNSF mainline. The main comes out of a swampy area of sloughs and oxbows, south across the golf course, and continues south through a residential area.
I believe the CB&Q's LaCrosse depot was in the same vicinity. From up above it is like looking down on an N scale layout from the roof of a house. Curiously the golfers I watched seem to pay no attention to the trains, although at times it looks like it could take a while to get over to the next hole on the other side of the tracks.
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

As a retired golf professional and now a confirmed train "nut", recently qualified brakeman for the NC Transportation Museum, I can really appreciate Eric's winning photo. I have played courses where tracks ran beside a fairway but never through one. That has to be paradise!

Projoem