General Discussion

http://www.stillwatergazette.com/articles/2009/11/04/headlines/905wc3zephyr.txt

My mom and I would prefer it run again than a trail and who knows who walking past the back yard any time of the day or night. If running again, whats the chance they can get back the link to UP through downtown and into Bayport? And then whats the chance they can get a steam engine in here?

I really think that the Minnesota Zephyr dinner train was a superb operation and will be missed. It offered excellent food and service and offered a classic dining experience. It stopped in no small part due to the NIMBY babies that inhabit Stillwater Minnesota. I really hope that they can find another location in the Twin Cities and start operations again.These NIMBY babies couldn't even tolerate a dinner train running at 5 MPH. Back in 1989 when the Minnesota Transportation Museum tried running an ex NP 4-6-0 along the same line; I heard one woman tell MTM members that locomotive terrified her children so they wouldn't come out of their house and play. MTM now runs in Osceola Wisconsin where they are appreciated.

If those kids had grown up in the early 1900s they would have ended up in a psych ward cause of all the steam engines running around. If I could have lived in that time I think the sight of steam engines every day would extend my life by a good 10 years just from the happiness.

 Boyd you seem to be somewhat of a buff on the Zephyr. Now never having been there before, I can only go off of what i have heard. I have heard that it was more of an elegant dinner than a train ride. I mean 5 miles an hour, sheesh thats not really a train ride experience IMHO. What are your thoughts?

 As I sit at the computer I can see their tracks outside behind the house. I rode on it December 14 last year. We have rented an apt here for 12 years. Yes its more of a dinner than a train ride and its slow and the track needs work. A window above my table leaked onto the table. Most of your fellow train riders are old enough to have ridden passenger trains when they were young. It rocks back & forth even at 5 mph. I wish I had lived here when they were running the steam engine and freaking out neighborhood kids into psych wards. Don't know who they were but are probably nimby tree huggers.