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6

Big Steam in 2019

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Did I tell you I won the Power Ball? Yeah, I’m that guy who picked up millions by buying a lottery ticket at a convenience store in New Berlin, Wis. Now, after waking up rebuilders Scott Lindsay and Gary Bensman to start working three shifts a day until their done on my top 20 list of locomotives I want to see run (another topic in itself), I still have stupid money to go watch big mainline steam this year. Here’s what I plan to do. I start off next month in Wyoming and Ut...

0

Rail suppliers highlight shortline industry’s innovation, endurance

Posted one year ago by Brian Schmidt

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association’s CONNECTIONS meeting brings together railroads and suppliers each year. This year’s show in Orlando runs April 6-9 and features a number of both new and traditional industry suppliers. CorrSolve Corrosion Solutions is a first time exhibitor at the show. The company was founded 30 years ago to supply the aerospace industry and is getting more involved in the rail industry. Inside Sales Manager Leonel Rodriguez says that the...

13

The two kinds of Trains Magazine fans

Posted one year ago by Brian Schmidt

We meet a lot of people at trade shows, and today at the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association CONNECTIONS show in Orlando was no exception. They can generally be distilled down to two categories. The first group comes up to us and gushes: “Oh, I LOVE the magazine. I’ve been getting it for 40 years.” Often, that statement is follow with, “And my dad had a subscription before that.” I fall in to this category as my first Kalmbach subscription, Model...

7

Trains magazine chase guide to Big Boy No. 4014's Cheyenne-Ogden route, May 2019

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

So, it’s less than a month away from the day when Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 leaves Cheyenne, Wyo., on its epic inaugural journey across original Big Boy territory to Ogden, Utah. I can’t believe it. You can’t believe it. But believe it. It’s going to happen. A lot of people are coming from a long way to see this. Most have not been to this part of the UP before. So, let’s get you some suggested locations for viewing and photography. Let’s take th...

3

Forecast: Sunshine (State) ahead

Posted one year ago by Brian Schmidt

I'm heading to sunny Florida April 7-9 for the 2019 American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association "Connections" convention near Orlando. The short line show is my favorite because it brings everyone together: shortline, regional, and Class I railroads; suppliers; and analysts. I last attended the show in 2016, held at National Harbor, Md., which is pictured here. I'm planning to share lots of photos on social media while I'm at the trade show to bring you all the latest in the rail ind...

22

An unsanctimonious ending to my first ride on the Chicago L

Posted one year ago by Angela Pusztai-Pasternak

My family planned a visit to the city to visit my brother at DePaul University on a sticky, hot day. We met him at his dorm and then walked through the Student Center building. It was a Friday afternoon and it was teeming with vendors. I had brought a few dollars and purchased a couple of handwoven bracelets. I tied them on as soon as I had them. I was a teenager and dressed up a little, knowing that I’d be visiting my big brother at college. We’d only been living in Joliet, Ill., fo...

2

Lessons learned from trackside and on board with Skookum at Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

We concluded our Trains magazine-sponsored photo charter Monday at the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad, where we enjoyed several days of steam preservation operations. There, we were reminded of some important truths. We learned a few new lessons, too while taking in all of the motion in the running gear of 2-4-4-2 Skookum, the classic good looks of Polson Logging 2-8-2 No. 2, and the well- proportioned and mighty McCloud River 2-6-2 No. 25 along Tillamook Bay and in the foothills of the Coast Rang...

5

Skookum Lives: Trains Oregon Coast Scenic photo charter, day 2

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

GARIBALDI, Ore. – Day two of our Trains magazine photo charter at Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad defied a lot of odds. In the rainy Pacific Northwest we had sun. And for the long awaited return of Skookum, the engine made its longest trip to date: Skookum, which Oregon Coast Scenic restored to operation after what should best be described as a near death experienced for the locomotive in 1955, had a journal bearing issue Thursday. Another tender bearing gave the crews fits for a fe...

2

A day with Skookum and friends on the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

GARIBALDI, Ore. – A few years , ago, a day like the one we experienced today at the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad would have been impossible. Who would think that three legendary locomotives of Western logging railroad history would be on one magnificently scenic railroad, much less all of them in steam. But on Thursday, the first day of our Trains-sponsored photo charter at Oregon Coast Scenic such a scenario unfolded for myself and 43 participants from the Pacific Northwest, nationwide...

4

Skookum and Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Today is a travel day for me. I’m on the way from Milwaukee to Portland (currently bumping along over Iowa at 40,000 feet -- surely not even the Rock Island in its dying days was this bad!) and eventually the Pacific shores at Garibaldi, Ore., a lovely seaside village and world headquarters of the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad. I’m heading there for our Trains magazine-sponsored photo charter with the legendary 2-4-4-2 No. 7 Skookum. An update on some last-minute drama with the photo ...

7

Bill Withuhn's book of a lifetime: American Steam Locomotives

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

There is a sad tender full of irony that the late Bill Withuhn’s masterpiece work on U.S. steam locomotive development has been published in the days before we get to see one of the all-time masterpieces of steam, Union Pacific’s Big Boy, on the high iron for the first time in 60 years. Withuhn, who died in 2017, was the steam locomotive aficionado and curator of transportation for the Smithsonian. His life’s work was this book, “American Steam Locomotives: Design and de...

0

What's good for a late winter afternoon? Union Pacific Winter Olympics unit No. 2001

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Some late winter days after work are great for going home, making dinner, and binge watching college basketball. And some days are great for shutting off the computer at work, grabbing the family, and heading trackside. Wednesday was one of the latter days. For a good bit of Wednesday, the Wisconsin railfan grapevine was aflutter with talk of Union Pacific SD70M No. 2001, one of two specially-painted units for the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics 17 years ago, that was headed south on a Canadia...

6

On the passing of Joe Boardman: Appreciation for a bit of wit and wisdom

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Everyone comes into your life for a purpose. That advice is well known, but it is also something of a mystery: Some people are givens as to their role in your being. Your life partner, your friends, your employers or employees, and so many others are easy to understand how they impact your life. Others are not so easy. And some are there some who, if you are a careful listener, will share advice or just a particular view of looking at things that is worth holding onto. The death early this morni...

2

Big Boy 4014: Waiting on a schedule

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

So, you and the rest of Train World are waiting on Union Pacific to announce the schedule for Big Boy 4-8-8-4 No. 4014. It was supposed to be out a month ago. But now it’s late (as if delays are anything new in railroading) and you’re frustrated. You want to take time off. You want to make travel plans. You want to revel in the thought of standing trackside with significant amounts of the rest of humanity in the likes of Creston, Wyo., or Morgan, Utah, in approximately two mont...

3

Where will the next Trains photo charter be?

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Our Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad photo charter is next week with legendary steam locomotive Skookum. Skookum is the 1909 Baldwin-built 2-4-4-2 that rolled over in the woods and was left for dead in 1955. It’s a locomotive that should definitely adopt Mark Twain’s quote about reports of its demise being great exaggerated as its own tag line. Skookum is back in steam, and about 85 Trains customers will get to enjoy its first public outing in a pair of sold out events. If you’re a...

7

In praise of the bandana

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

At lunchtime I read a wonderful essay in Saturday’s Wall Street Journal (yes, I’m days behind in my reading) called “In Praise of the Ever-Practical Handkerchief,” by Rutgers law professor Stuart Green. I can relate to this for two reasons: First, my late father was a handkerchief guy. I never knew a day when he didn’t carry a carefully folded white hanky in his pocket, except for days when he was mowing the lawn, working in the garden, or clearing our fence row. S...

49

The existential life of a female railfan

Posted one year ago by Angela Pusztai-Pasternak

I’m an elephant. Not my favorite metaphor, but it works in this case. I am one of few elephants, anyway. I’m a female immersed in this hobby that if measured by our readership is 99.5 percent (maybe higher) male. Even in the railroad industry, females are a minority. I don’t know the precise statistics, but I know it’s not 50-50. I’m not one to use the girl card. In fact, I’ve avoided writing about this for that precise reason. I’d like to think there&rs...

3

20 questions for advisors of the John Emery Rail Heritage Trust

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

On Tuesday, the John Emery Trust announced its 2019 grant recipients. The trust made its largest grant amount to date, $500,000, to 29 organizations. [See the item here: http://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/2019/02/26-emery-trust-awards-500000-to-29-railway-preservation-projects] Before the choices were announced, I asked the trust's advisors to tell us more about this increasingly important mission, how it is working, and how others can get involved. 1. What is the trust’s mission? The ...

14

The loneliest diesel in America

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

The loneliest diesel locomotive in America lives with two steam locomotives that will be the subject of great attention this year. I’m talking about the General Electric 25-tonner at Golden Spike National Historic Site at Promontory Summit, Utah. The little critter, when I was on site last June to do research for our forthcoming special anniversary issue “Journey to Promontory” and our made-for-PBS video of the same name, was parked at the end of the track as far away from th...

19

Big Boy 4014, a hydrostatic test, and why UP can beat the usual six month rule

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Earlier this week, Union Pacific announced it has completed a successful hydrostatic test of the boiler on Big Boy No. 4014. That is the kind of news that says, “without doubt, this engine is going to run again, and soon.” Until you get that test completed, there’s still the potential for more boiler work. Once, it’s over, the heart of the engine is beating once more. A hydrostatic test is required by the Federal Railroad Administration in which warm water in the boile...

8

Five things you can do right now to see Big Boy No. 4014 in action this May

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Welcome to February, the month Union Pacific says it plans to announce its schedule for Big Boy No. 4014’s inaugural run from Cheyenne, Wyo., to Ogden, Utah, and back in May. Wow. Just typing those words is exciting to this old steam fan (first steam experience at age 5 in 1966 with Graham County Shay No. 1926 and Southern Railway 4501) who’s seen a lot of locomotives in steam (from the Tom Thumb and Best Friend of Charleston replicas to UP Challenger No. 3985 and Norfolk & W...

5

It's bitterly cold today, and it was cold on Jan. 10, 1982, too

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Jan. 10, 1982. I was 20 years old, and driving from my hometown to University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill to start the second semester of my junior year. It was an almost 6-hour drive, and it was also the coldest day in my life until this week. The high that day in North Carolina was zero, and the condensation on the inside of my Pontiac froze up. The heater couldn’t keep up with the cold. I couldn’t help but think about that day this week with our subzero temperatures and wind ch...

9

The race for steam: 4014 and 1309

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Union Pacific astutely dubbed its 150th celebration of the Golden Spike “the race to Promontory” to give credit to both the UP and Central Pacific construction crews that built the first transcontinental railroad and to make it interesting for us to study. This year, in a manner, we have another similar competition: The race for steam. The contestants: UP Big Boy 4-8-8-4 No. 4014 at UP’s steam shop in Cheyenne, Wyo., and Western Maryland Scenic Railroad’s Chesapeake &...

8

Insomnia, a Clint Eastwood movie, and the last rolling stock from Promontory

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

I am normally a sound sleeper. But recently, after letting our dog out and then getting her back in the house and making my way to bed, I couldn’t’ go back to sleep. Instead of just lying there, I got up and decided to see if there was a movie on. Sure enough, there was a film on that I’d just seen a reference to in a feature story that’s in our March issue (which will be in subscriber hands in the next few days and on sale at bookstores and newsstands Feb. 12). I didn&...

9

You'll be glad when you watch the short video The Railroader

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

I am about to commit a major blunder when it comes to Internet marketing. A few words from now, I’m going to suggest that you go to another company’s Website to view a video. My bosses would be extremely upset for not sending you to the many outstanding short and free videos we’ve made at www.TrainsMag.com. But just for today, I’m going to suggest you look elsewhere, specifically to National Geographic Short Film Showcase to see The Railroader. Once you’ve seen it...

13

What do we do May 10, 2019 if the federal government is still shut down?

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

As the federal government shutdown rolls on, a few people are asking an important question about May 10, 2019: What will the thousands of people who want to celebrate the event do if the National Park Service site at Promontory Summit is still closed that day? What happens if we’re not all gathered around two gleaming 4-4-0 replicas and impersonators of Durant and Stanford? What will happen to the party that was planned for the 150th anniversary of the first transcontinental railroad? Wh...

6

Is it too late to make plans to see Big Boy 4014 or the Golden Spike?

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

Is it too late to make travel plans to attend the Golden Spike ceremony and see Big Boy No. 4014 in Utah in May? What’s the schedule for No. 4014’s trip from Cheyenne to Ogden? Are the hotels all sold out? Ah, questions. I hear them all the time, and I know everyone is anticipating both of these big events. A few friends have even gone as far as to book rooms on speculation across Wyoming and in Utah. They may be right on the money or they may be way off. But lacking a f...

22

"No, that's impossible" and other myths about railway preservation

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

NASHVILLE – Impossible. Never will happen. Can’t be done. American railway preservation has many of those. I hear about them in casual conversation. I read about them online. They are the least hopeful railroads, locomotives, rolling stock, depots, etc., on the earth. Sometimes that assessment is true. Other times, it is for lack of trying. But from time to time someone or some group or organization punches a gaping hole in steely impossible. It makes things happen. It gets the j...

29

Sampling Brightline: a trip report

Posted one year ago by David Lassen

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — As I begin writing this, I am sitting in an airport terminal notably lacking in sufficient seating for passengers waiting for flights. Before having the good fortune to find this seat — nowhere near my gate, but you can’t have everything — I was herded through slower-than-usual security (truthfully, I don’t really blame the TSA people who aren’t being paid if they’re calling in sick), and had a mediocre, overpriced breakfast. Luck...

10

No. 576 and the Shawshank Redemption

Posted one year ago by Jim Wrinn

NASHVILLE – There is a scene in my favorite movie, The Shawshank Redemption, in which escaped prisoner Andy DuFresne (actor Tim Robbins) is smiling broadly as he drives a convertible along gorgeous cliffs overlooking a spectacular seashore. Narrator Morgan Freeman describes the moment like this: “Andy Dufresne, headed for the Pacific.” If you’ve seen the movie, you know what sort of hell DuFresne has endured as a wrongly imprisoned man, and how he outwitted his captors ...

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