Trackside with Erik and Mike, Vol. 65... with Video!

[emmar]

I liked both pictures this week.  Erik's was interesting with the backlighting but he didn't quite pull it off.  Mike's shot was very well done, but I think he should have used one of the ones with the elevator in it.  The added interest of the elevator made the photo very interesting.  Although the CN&W loco was a great catch.  Can't wait for next week!

[wcnut]

I would really like to go with the C&NW shot, just for nostalgia, but I do like Erik's.  There is that cold, Wisconsin winter that I truly miss captured in the shot.  Mikes is a great shot, however, maybe it's because I have many of them myself from that bridge that lean more towards Erik's.  Either way, congrats on 3 years, and send some of that white stuff to Connecticut!

 Greg
"wcnut" stuck in no-snow CT!

[mikeyuhas]

Too bad WGLB 100.1 FM doesn't come in so good anymore...

Wow! I hadn't given any thought to WGLB in a very long time until I read your post, Mike. That's certainly a trip down memory lane!

[WSOR 3801]

You guys are out in my neck of the hood taking pictures.  Maybe you'll have to stop in some day.  I currently live two houses from the Adams line.  Too bad WGLB 100.1 FM doesn't come in so good anymore...

Maybe I'll recognize Mr. Krug when he's out taking pictures of me.

[CTGreybeard]

I went with Erik on this one.  A bit different from the "usual" 3/4, around the curve, loco shot.

 

Bill W 

[espeefoamer]

Just like the Colts in the SUPER BOWL, Mike wins the contest this week! The overhead shot was really great,especially with the C&NW unit on the point of a manifest freight.You guys were crazy to go out in weather that cold,but the photo was worth it!

[kschmidt]

Eric and Mike,

Congrats on 3rd Anniversary of Trackside.   As far as being nuts I have to be out in the weather and Monday it was cold -10 when the morning started. But its Wisconsin and thats what winter is.  I remember -26 below and we are still alive, its an adventure. 

Mike, it was nice to finally meet you in person on Friday night at the NRHS meeting in Fox Point. Nice to put a face with a name and email address.  We will have to work on sharing some virtual "cake" to celebrate the anniversary.

Eric, it has been a while since we have been trackside.  I have a week off coming in March, maybe the three of us can get together for a "Trackside" adventure, hopefully we can stay out of the deep snow, and who knows it might be a bit warmer by then. 

Keith Schmidt

[edblysard]

Part of what was "nuts" abut it is that you guys are knee deep in snow...and I have to mow the lawn this afternoon!

Beyond that, it looked like you folks had a lot of fun, which is the whole point of chasing trains and taking photos.

 

Bet the train crews had a blast taking your photo with their cell phone cameras to show the other guys back at the shanty!

[Poppa_Zit]

So you guys have to use vacation time to provide this wonderful feature?

Not to mention using vacation days to freeze your tuchus off? That don't sound fair.

Sounds like you guys need an agent to negotiate your next contracts.

[mandelswamp]

Mike, of all the shots you presented this week, I liked your Eastbound Canadian Pacific train near Oconomowoc, Wisconsin best.  The one you submitted for the voting seemed too run of the mill for me.  Erik, you got my vote this week because of the interesting sky (is that really the sun over the lead locomotive or just a strange sky effect?) and the see-through nature of the following tunnel motor.  Happy 3rd Anniversary to both of you and to Trackside with Erik and Mike.  Loved the video too!

[mikeyuhas]

What's nuts is getting paid to chase trains. I am jealous of Erik and Mike.

Jerry,

You can be jealous all you want... but Erik and I weren't getting paid to chase trains, freeze our tocheses off, or delight in each others (and your) company. No, this was vacation time for both of us*.

Next time I'm out shooting trains during working hours I'll be sure to pack a copy of my signed yellow Kalmbach Publishing Co. vacation slip to prove it! 

* Well, at least it was for me. I'm not certain about Bergie.

[krugcpa]

Hi Dave,

Thank you for the compliment...was it a compliment?

What's nuts is getting paid to chase trains. I am jealous of Erik and Mike.

What was great is that these two are as irreverent and fun in person, together, as in the style that they convey in their column and now on video.

Here's a link to a shot I took on that chase:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=641037

Enjoying my fifteen minutes - oops - seconds of fame(?),

Jerry

[zardoz]

11 degrees outside with a good wind blowing?

And you're out videotaping trains?

I can just imagine what the train crews thought......

[Bergie]

Nice video, and kudos to you for putting up with the cold to shoot it.   Winter railfanning makes you appreciate what the crews go through!  One suggestion - like 90% of railfans, you shut off the camcorder after the power passed, thereby missing the real interesting part of the train, which is the freight car consist!  I would understand if it were a unit coal train with 110 identical cars, but those were mixed freights with lots of interesting cars!  Maybe next time you can leave the camcorder run for the entire train.  Remember, the railroads wouldn't stay in business very long if all they did is run light power back and forth, even if it is one of the last units in CNW paint.

...And we wouldn't stay in business very long if I showed the entire video I shot, which did indeed span the entire train. You see, since that video is hosted (i.e. it costs money to show it), I need to be mindful of the length. Thus, 4 minutes instead of 24.

Thanks for reading!  Bergie

[dknelson]

First off,

You guys are nuts...really stripped out nuts.

Not just a little rounded off at the edges, but full blown, stripped threads, all chewed up on the side nuts...

Yes they are nuts and I say that as someone who has met both of them.  If the Red Green Show featured trains it would closely resemble this video.  

But ... what about well known Milwaukee railfan Jerry Krug who was also out there that same day?  Jerry is not nuts.   He is an accountant and no more nuts than any other accountant.

And what about this week?  It is 20 degrees COLDER than what the guys were experiencing last week, and also windier.  Maybe they should go to the Mitchell Park Domes horticulture park and shoot the nice garden railroad that is set up there....

Dave Nelson

[senshi]

I have to go with Mike this time.  And I will admit it is complete and utterly a biased vote, an unpatched CNW dash 9 in the lead just wins for me.

Long live the Northwestern.

[fuzzybroken]

I really liked Erik's shot this time!  Getting the sun into the photo was a really neat touch, and the see-through T-2 grilles were also cool -- as was (and is!) the weather!!!

Bergie, you need to do a little editing on your article... (Shinny?  Sounds painful...)  I already asked Mike about the Helm unit, did you get a shot of the unit by itself?  I think it's a GP38-2, FWIW, I believe 3804 from the blurred video of it going by, but a shot by itself would be nice...  And finally, the link to Click here to comment on this week's photos in our reader forum. goes to Trains.com, not the forum!!!

Anyways, guys, glad you braved the cold, awesome video and pictures!

[CNW 6000]

Seriously...no doubt here.  Snow+WI+CNW?  WINNER!

[Datafever]

Wow.  I had no idea that I was voting for the underdog this week.  I thought that Erik did an excellent job in capturing the highlights of the backlit train.  Technically, it just seems to me that Erik's shot was much more difficult.

[lhtalbot]

Once again, two good pictures. I went with Mike's as it seems a little more interesting.

What camera did you use for the video? I tried to tell from the shot of Mike doing his commentary, but could not.

I have been skunked on the Adams more than once. Glad the weather was nicer when I was out there. Definitely need a scanner out there, but my old relic is on it's last legs.

Larry in Wauwatosa

[freightcarguy]

Nice video, and kudos to you for putting up with the cold to shoot it.   Winter railfanning makes you appreciate what the crews go through!  One suggestion - like 90% of railfans, you shut off the camcorder after the power passed, thereby missing the real interesting part of the train, which is the freight car consist!  I would understand if it were a unit coal train with 110 identical cars, but those were mixed freights with lots of interesting cars!  Maybe next time you can leave the camcorder run for the entire train.  Remember, the railroads wouldn't stay in business very long if all they did is run light power back and forth, even if it is one of the last units in CNW paint.

[Noah Hofrichter]

Definately a very tough choice this time! Both shots were pretty good considering the lighting and whether, but In the end though I had to go with Mike's. While Erik's was creative, it just didn't really seem to work quite right, although I understand the mood you were going for. I had to go with the good old train shot, especially since it had the unpatched CNW leading!

I'm amazed you guys were able to chase as far as you did on the Adams line. I know at least up near Adams and Dolton where I usually go chasing is basically impossible because the railroad cuts diagonal across the state and all of the roads are perfectly North-South or East-West. Usually up there you set up for one shot and then forget about it after that!

I really, really liked the videos too guys! You'll definately have to do things like that more often.

Noah

[gemotor]

Well, it's Mike's photo this time, although neither one inspired me much.  I like the subdued colors of the winter landscape in Mike's photo.  The train:  another wedgie.  Erik's photo is an almost there shot - had the sun been given a clearer window, the rays would have been outstanding.  As was, just the luck of the Dutch which is my frequent excuse.  Congratulations on three good years, men, looking forward to another good one.

[Poppa_Zit]

Typical Wisconsin weather -- 50 weeks of snow and two weeks of bad ice.

I liked both shots. Too bad I can't give a half-vote to each of you this time.

While cold, it looks like you guys still had fun. DAMHIKT, but quite often "stupid" is part of "fun". 

P.S. The video reveals Mike to be a real hambone. May I present him with this "Oscar!"

[Chris Owens]

I really enjoyed both, but Mike got my vote....................

[LVJJJ]

Dang you guys, another tuff choice, but I prefer Erik's side-view sun shot.  I also prefer the old EMD's over the newer GE's.  I don't think Erik and Mike were that crazy to be out in the cold, it was 3 degrees above zero.  Larry of the NW

[asnjoe24]

First of all, congratulations to Erik and Mike for three years of Trackside! May you two have many more great columns!!

The extended post with accompanying video was quite the delight! Very nicely done, gentlemen! The only thing that could have made it better would to have seen Erik on camera also, rather than just hearing his voice.

My choice for this week's vote is Erik's side profile shot of the UP SD40-2 with the cloud obscured sun in the background. Once more, the atmosphere of the photo seems to appeal to me more than anything. Mike's shot of the lead former CNW Dash 9 also has great lighting to bring out that CNW paint scheme; nice to see that the UP has not fully repainted all of those units. There's kind of "rural" feel that the sunlight seems to evoke in Mike's photo that I like.

- Bryan

[CShaveRR]

Ed, I agree with you wholeheartedly, except for one thing.

There is no "good" wind at 11 degrees.

[edblysard]

First off,

You guys are nuts...really stripped out nuts.

Not just a little rounded off at the edges, but full blown, stripped threads, all chewed up on the side nuts...

11 degrees outside with a good wind blowing?

And you're out videotaping trains?

 

Oh well, to each his own.

So, while sitting here on the back porch watching the possum raid the dog's bowl, I kept jumping back and forth...finally went with Mike's shot...just says "Trains" more that Erik's.

Now that that major decision is over with, I think I will get some iced tea and sit back, watch the sun set and enjoy the 70 degree evening down here in the swamp.