G'day Cap'n Tom!
Ruth my deAH you are such a lovely creature that I must admit to being smitten with your beauty! If only I were younger and could give chase once again. <grin> Set 'em up if you please, a Lars special for me, snacks for the critters, a small jar of pickled pig's feet for Boris and of course, keep the change!
Ask and ye shall receive! Isn't that how the saying goes That's quite a treat from CM3 I'm NOT Shane! A 5- to the man from West Virginia! A great report on the festivities over at the Mentor Village Emporium movie house! It was indeed a grand affair and we enjoyed all of the "hoopla" associated with it and hope that all who wound up in the "clink" are now free to roam 'n ramble as they see fit. I did notice the anti-aircraft batteries in place over at the Second Class Saloon and wondered whether the "Zeps" were targeted. Also saw some of their biker crowd, decked out in their best leather 'n chains, all waiting for balcony seating. Yes, a grand tme was had byall and your report is a most accurate accounting. Many, many thanks!
Not being close to the aficionado (Tom's word) that you are when it comes to all things trains, I had to look up a couple of your references just for self-clarification. Thought perhaps some others would benefit by this "in depth research" too! <grin>
Fred Ott's Sneeze reference, click the Url:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Ott
Crush, Texas reference, click the Url:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crush,_Texas
Be sure to "click" on the historical marker!
Agan, nice work, CM3 I'm NOT Shane! You surely have insights regarding railroading and rail related history that far surpasses anyone I've come across to date. Appreciate your sharing this with us.
A question was posed of me by Dave Klepper regarding my trip to 'n from Plattsburgh, NY, etc. Let me simply say this about that. There was no way I had the time or patience to do verbal jousting with the idiots I came in contact with representing Amtrak on that day. Things were quite unsettled as they were. Irrespective of who maintains the trains, the language differences and so forth. The facts are that in today's rail environment, Amtrak could have and should have simply called the Conductor on board. My initial call to them was made to their 1 800 USA Rail number with English speaking people. The call was made while the train was still a bit south of Montreal. It's all a moot point anyway.
How did we get home Pretty much how we got to Penn Station for the start, by car. Number two son was waiting for us and drove us back via the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. We arrived at the house just a bit afterr 2 AM. A long, long day.
Had I been alone, the late arrival wouldn't have concerned me one bit, for I truly hate to see train trips come to an end. However, this was just a bit over the top for the Mrs., who accompanied me rather than listen to my whining and complaining about not being able to travel by train. <grin>
Hope you stop by again and I urge you to read up on what you've missed, makes it far easier to join in on the conversations that way. [welcome] aboard!
Thanks Tom for that fine piece on the EuroStar - really a beauty and I'm always learning about the "other guys" trains on this thread of yours! Well done, mate - keep up the fine work!
Appreciate the heads up by e-mail and here regarding what's going on. Surely miss both Doug 'n Rob and my hope is that the former will be resuming his rightful place in the near future and the latter gets the access back to join us right away.
Eric 'n DL, always a pleasure to read your messages. Same for Pete. You three guys have become MVPs 'round here - as Tom would say, "Most Valuable Patrons!"
Ruth, I'll have a frosty mug of Schaefer, then it's time to answer the call. No, not THAT one, the Mrs. is bellowing calling my name again! <grin>
Until the next time!
Lars
Good Afternoon BArkeep and All Present; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox. The following arrived carefully wrapped around a brick that came through the window just a little while ago.
Greetings From Our Studios High Atop Mighty Majestic Mt. Mentor.
The lines "Another opening, another show" ran through your reporters head as he dressed for the Mentor Theatre's Anniversary Extravaganza. As always, we traveled by sedan chair down to the festively lit village below. In fact, just about everybody in the festive village was lit in honor of the occasion. Aerial coverage was provided by the Mentor Vintage Flying Korps (aka Those Magnificent Lads in Their Fokers and Spads) as the Zeppelin has been under wraps for awhile - probably just as well, as the locals would have used the spotlights set up in front of the theatre to target the mighty airship as it floated overhead. It's never agood idea to stir up the folks from Second Class.
All present enjoyed seeing and being seen as they walked down the red carpet, were fingerprinted, photographed, and deloused before entering the building. The high rollers sat downstairs, the Second Class folks in the balcony. Your reporter stayed in the wings with his back to the wall and a carefully-planned escape route nearby.
The Mentor Fusiliers Ladies Auxiliary led off the proceedings with a medley of Civil War tunes (some of them looked as though they remembered the selections when they were new). Music included renderings (as in bacon fat) of "The Vacant Chair," "Lorena," "I'm a Good Old Rebel," "Jine the Cavalry," and "Just Before the Battle Mother." There wasn't a dry eye in the house although your reporter couldn't be sure if it was because of the quality of the selections or if because some of the high notes were a bit quivery (kind of like a dog whistle.) Anyway, we understand that there will be a fundraiser in the near future to replace the shattered mirrors in the lobby.
Frostbite (our emcee - he's the only one that showed up in his own tuxedo) directed our attention to the orchestra pit where the mighty Wurlitzer rose from its hiding place under the floorboards with Boris at the keyboard. It's hard to describe the effect that this had on the audience, but conjure up a mental image of a large, burly, creature wearing an opera cape made from feed sacks - you'll get the picture.
All enjoyed participating in the sing along; there was no bouncing ball to follow, but Awk did the best he could, flying from word-to-word on the screen as the Second Place boys took shots at him from the balcony. As Man Mountain Mike said to me, "Any activity is better when a moving target is involved."
Next came a newsreel with captured archival footage of the recent Christmas party. Your reporter wonders how they smuggled that film out of the vault. This was followed by two short subjects; "Fred Ott's Sneeze," (always a crowd-pleaser) and a film showing the head-on locomotive collision that occurred years ago at Crush, TX. The Mentor and Southern Narrow Gauge folks in the audience were heard talking among themselves as to how they could stage a similar activity as it was probably the only way they could get new motive power. After all, there's not as many trees in the area as there used to be, and it's increasingly difficult to get wood for their locomotives.
Both features were well-received as was the unpleasantness that broke out between Union and Confederate partisans in the lobby after the films were over. All adjourned to the Tavern by the Tracks after the excitement died down. Your reporter took advantage of the situation to evade the dragnet, board the sedan chair, and make his way out of town. We are, however, endeavoring to find out why the telegraph lines were cut, the poles dynamited and a lot of M&S NG rail turned into Sherman Neckties.
That's all from our studios for now - Say good night, Tex.
work safe
from: http://www.viarail.ca/
G'day Gents!
Ruth, take a break as I'll be here for an hour or so.
Found a URL that may be of interest to Eric:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/01/18/town.moving.reut/index.html
Seems this particular monumental undertaking will also involve the relocation of rail lines, etc. Are you familiar with the area
Just returned from some outside "stuff" and noticed that petrol up at "Collusion Corner" is not at $1.97 (rounded). Given the significant drop in the world oil market price, I'm amazed that it's only dropped a few cents. Doesn't work that way when the world prices go up, does it
Dave: I hope this is the beginning of something positive and you are [welcome] here. As many of us already know, you possess an enormous amount of knowledge regarding passenger rail and we'd love to exchange some thoughts with you. Best way to fit in around here is to simply follow the lead of the others and all will fall into place.
Pete: You'll never guess where I found Juneau upon my return home. He was sleeping on "your bed"!! Now, that used to be the room and bed he "claimed" as his own once he was permitted to have the run of the house. For the past year, he's avoided it in favor of our room. Now he's baaaaaaaaack. Yes, you've found a friend and he misses having you around!
Been thinking about coming up with something different to keep us going with regard to Classic Trains, while avoiding any copyright or other infringements. Since this Thread is new and doesn't hold the enormous amount of data found on our "original" Thread (rapidly disappearing into the back pages), I suppose unless stated, not too many will recognize a rerun, eh
So, here's a little something to ensure our Good Standing with the Classic Trains people:
RAILWAYS of EUROPE #2 - Eurostar (London - Paris - Brussels) Eurostar Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources. Eurostar Eurostar at Vauxhall (GNU Free Documentation) Franchise:: Eurostar Main Route(s):: London-Lille-Brussels, London-Paris Other Route(s):: Lille-Disneyland Paris-Avignon, Lille-Bourg-St-Maurice Fleet size:: 27 Stations: 11 Parent company: Eurostar Group Website: www.eurostar.com This article is about high-speed trains between London and Brussels / Paris. For Italian trains called Eurostar, see Eurostar Italia. Eurostar is a train service that connects London with Paris and Brussels. Trains cross the English Channel via the Channel Tunnel. The French and Belgian sections of the route use the same high-speed rail lines as the TGV and Thalys, and in England a new line is being built to the same standard. This is a two-phase project known as the Channel Tunnel Rail Link project (CTRL). The first revenue-earning Eurostar trains ran in November 1994. Eurostar has established a dominant share of the market on the routes it serves - 68% for London-Paris and 63% for London-Brussels, as of November 2004. The company points out that these passenger figures represent a saving of 393,000 carbon dioxide-producing short-haul flights. The journey time from London to Paris is currently 2 hours 35 minutes; London to Brussels is 2 hours 20 minutes. These times will be cut by 20 minutes in 2007 when the construction of the second phase of CTRL is completed, bringing the British portion of the route up to the same standards as the French and Belgian sections. Completion of the CTRL will also allow a significant increase in the number of Eurostar trains serving London. After phase two is completed, up to 8 trains per hour in each direction could travel the route from London to the continent, as timetabling would be unaffected by peak hour restrictions at London Waterloo and conflicts between Waterloo and Fawkham Junction. In addition to the three destination cities, some Eurostar services currently stop en route at Ashford in Kent and at Calais Frethun and Lille in northern France. From 2007 all Eurostar trains will be routed through the CTRL to a new London terminus at St Pancras. The company had intended to retain some services to the existing Waterloo terminal, but this was ruled out on cost grounds. Some trains will additionally serve new stations at Ebbsfleet near Dartford in north-west Kent and Stratford International station in east London (not to be confused with Stratford station, or Stratford Regional station as it will be called when Stratford International station is opened) Organisation Eurostar services are now managed under a unified management, the Eurostar Group. In each country a member company undertakes Eurostar operation:
o EUKL managed (under contract) by InterCapital and Regional Rail (ICRR), a consortium of:
Greetings one and all,
Sorry I messsed up on the protocol for my first post on the new thread. I had occasionally posted comments on the old.
Apologies, and it won't happen again. Thanks for your consideration and very best wishes all!
foto credit: www.viarail.ca
Back again with Part Deux and the acknowledgments:
Lars at 2:25 PM yesterday: Good to see ya in your familiar slot - the mid-afternoon's haven't been quite the same without you.
Yes, both Pete ‘n I have discussed those "hits" on our Thread and we surely do attract quite a few "browsers." Pretty much goes for all of the Forums and Threads, probably far more who "look" than participate. So be it; everyone is as extroverted as we!
Pete at 6:05 PM yesterday: The Wolfman has arrived and always good to see ya perched on that special stool of yours! Boris keeps it in tip-top repair, seat belts ‘n all! <grin>
Juneau did it again this morning as he went into "your room," sniffed about, and came out with that "I wonder where he is" look. You found a friend, fer sure, fer sure! Nothing better, in my opinion - I'll take the canines anytime over the bipedal of the earth.
The sound system used on the Can-Am is provided by MRC and there are two of ‘em installed beneath the layout, at either end. Speakers placed to give the proper effect. Really impressed with the realism and it is quite the addition. There are all kinds of effects, so when the Rendezvous Gang arrives, I'll have to go thru ‘em all - even have some steam whistles, "chuffs" and other appropriate noises to make it all realistic.
Eric at 12:45 AM today: Hope that hearing loss isn't permanent. I know what you mean about dBs to the degree where bones can shatter. I'm quite surprised that I haven't suffered permanent loss after all of the years with the "cans" on my head while listening to the "dits ‘n dahs" with a different frequency in either ear, and top mounted speakers for others. Aside from being borderline insane, the hearing usually went next! <grin>
DL at 4:53 AM today: An early report from you here, but not so 6 time zones to the east for you! Certainly appreciate your continued patronage of the bar and fine contributions. Always a treat to find a Post from you, Sir!
Surely do hope that you'll be able to find an Email account soon, as so many discussion points that we keep out of the bar are "lost" for you. At present we have a pressing issue that just may shut us down, so stay tuned.
Simply LOVED viewing those DMUs. Always enjoy seeing ‘em and am wondering, is that NSE. 54287 an articulated unit Nice looking livery and wonder how they "ride"
Couldn't agree with you more regarding answering a letter with a letter, an Email with an Email and a phone call with a phone call. The protocol is surely lost these days and my thinking is the recipient (Amtrak) doesn't want to commit to writing anything that could come back to "bite ‘em" at a later date. VIA Rail is good about responding in writing, Amtrak isn't. Then again, different business ethics and so forth between different societies says a lot. However, I am satisfied to have gotten my "points" across and it's over. Having had slices of an organization under my charge over the course of my career, my attitude was if no one tells me, how am I supposed to know That's the impetus behind these things. And I DO send off positive feedback as well; works both ways fer sure, fer sure.
Hope you weren't offended by my commentary earlier on - wasn't directed at you. Simply one of my reminders to all of the way "things" are done ‘round here in order to keep the ship on an even keel.
Ruth, a round on the house - Boris ring the bell!
Tom
And a Good Morning to all on this Thursday! Here in mid-continent USA, the temps are expected to reach the high 30s (F), perhaps even 40! Some snow forecast for the weekend, which can come in "tons" as far as Juneau and I are concerned! <grin>
The coffee is freshly ground ‘n brewed, pastries are fresh from The Mentor Village Bakery and our Menu Board is replete with tasty offerings of <light> and <traditional> breakfast fare! So, dig right in!
In the "For what it's worth department" - the ground rules for this bar are provided on Page One. We've been pretty much holding to them since we opened back on April 12th, 2005 and I see no reason to change. So, let's remember to NOT go overboard with the "welcomes" until it can be shown that someone does indeed wish to participate in the manner described. Inclusiveness, acknowledgments, avoiding the one-way Postings and above all, leave all emotional baggage on the front porch. Let the Proprietor be the first to "welcome," which will happen once there's a degree of "promise" shown by the newly arrived. Those who present themselves as negative or combative simply will continue to be ignored ‘round here.
For: Dave Klepper - as you know, we've had a "history" and you are welcome here just as long as you understand the way we do "business." Interaction is the key and of course, this is a cyber bar 'n grill environmen created for FUN and the exchange of information relating to Classic Trains.
The Emails have been received from Pete - Rob - Eric ‘n Lars. Many THANX guys, I knew we'd stand as one on this!
Rob, very sorry to learn that you cannot access the Forums, once again. It's becoming quite the problem and I'll really look into moving the bar elsewhere as suggested. Doesn't appear as if we have any other viable choice. CM3 had put together a spate of thoughts covering this and I'll be communicating those to you soon. Thanx, Rob, for the communiqué!! Then, you aren't reading this, are you <groan>
I had been holding back on putting this out, hoping that Doug would be able to follow through with a "blurb" or two. But, it is time to let you know that he will no longer be a "regular" at the bar. This is indeed a significant loss to us. Without delving into the personal, let's simply leave it at there's little time in his daily schedule for the continuation of the efforts he's put forth ‘round here for so long. He'll surely be missed, and promises that should the situation present itself, he'll try to swing by on weekends. And yes, he'll still be attending our Rendezvous! in May.
Acknowledgments to follow . . .
Reminder: Ruth has the bar until Leon the Night Man comes in at 5 PM ‘til closing. Tonite is Fish 'n Chips Nite with at 5 PM sharp!
Boris, serve ‘em all of the "spiked" OJ they can handle!
Good morning all in
Pancake breakfast, coffee and some pastries please.
Thanks for those links Tom. Yep, I kinda thought the fire engine site was pretty detailed but I guess the line of thought is once you've found the site (and it seems reasonably credible) might as well link it anyway!
Horns - seems a bit daft to put one on your SUV but each to his own, as we say! Not sure where I read the point I originally made - could in fact have been in Classic Trains perhaps (which reminds me, the next issue should be due soon).
Good that Amtrak at least rang you (although I must say if I make a written complaint - I like a written reply, preferably from the person who manages the bit of the service that's gone wrong - helps me feel at least the matter went on file. I fear these organisations think ringing you back is acceptable, and I fear they do it because they don't want to employ people who have the skill to write a proper letter. Call me old fashioned but there we are.
Eric: Yep Britannia class were, I think, the last main line express passenger steam loco to be designed in the UK and built in any quantity - from 1951. In the post war years the streamlining had gone out of fashion and the importance was for ease of maintenance, hence easy access to moving parts and no streamline casing.
Pete, talking of streamlining, I thought people might be interested to see these pics of the GWR railcars, also Bugatti influenced I think. Stylish wise, I'd put these up with a Budd RDC.
http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/aec2.htm
(Rob, some of these were built by Gloucester Carriage and Wagon, who built the original TTC subway cars)
As you say, a Green Goddess would be a good buy for a preserved line.
I know Chiltern Railways still operate a 121 DMU as you state. I did not know about south wales, but I'm sure you are correct.
So others know what we're talking about - see:
http://www.railcar.co.uk/his120-129/121liv.htm
Your picture of the Peak reminded me of a story related by a colleague who used to be a signalman at Trent Junction. These Peaks were the heaviest locos around, so on icy or snowy days they would send one out light engine before first train of the day to clear ice and snow out of points etc and help ensure track circuit systems worked.
I have the GCR winter event in my diary. Domestic business got in the way of me visiting their autumn gala so I'm keen not to be cheated out of this one. I'll report back of course. I saw the aim was to get the Brit up and running in 2007 - has it not been steamed since the last BR run in 1968, do you know?
Lars - you mentioned ‘viewers' not participators, and then we had a call in from someone who might fit that category - viz
Daveklepper - welcome to the bar friend, as a relative newcomer myself can I buy you a drink? No doubt others will explain the protocol, but suffice to say I learned pretty quick it is usual practice to greet the other correspondents just like you would if you met someone in the street. Picked up on your mention of Downers Grove. My father had his first ‘full time' job near there and my parents lived in Downers Grove in the mid 1960s. I've visited there with them on several occasions subsequently and have good memories of the place.
All the best
DL
Good, bad, and ugly:
Don't blame Amtrak for the ugly. First, did you bother to call Amtrak back to have them call of a search when the wallet was located? Second, you should know that Amtrak does not service its own trains in Montreal, VIA or CN do it for them. So the chances of getting the communications through and back (and not all VIA and CN low-rank service employees speak English, some only know French) are not very great.
I had similar experiences, including once spending a third night on the train, some hours in Chicago Union Station when, the CZ arrived at around 2AM instead of 2PM. And the expense of a ticket from Chicago back to Downers Grove was from my wallet. Fortunately after work a fellow worker who lived in Naperville drove me to pick up my car at Aurora. But I told everyone I would gladly do it again.
At 2AM, how did you get from Penn Station to your home? I guess if I had had sufficient cash in my wallet at the time, I'd use a cab, rather than the subway, not for security, just the long waits between subway trains on cold platforms. Or did you find a decent paid parking garrage near Penn Station without exhobitant rates?
Good morning Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!
Sorry Leon, just a cup of coffee! Thank you!
A stressfull day and only time for a quick visit tonight!
Tom – A 4 car consist is far better than no consist at all! Interesting info on the Train horn! The horns on the X2000 are very loud (150 dB+) and after receiving a blast straight into my left ear at a distance of 5 ft I lost most of my hearing on that ear. Wow, that was loud! CM3 – The trucks on T44 is basically of the same kind as on the X2000, radial Self-Steering trucks (a k a “soft” truck). The wheelsets and axles steer themselves around curves, which reduces the forces exerted on the track.DL – That became more and more of a problem, to find engineers able to operate steam engines. When I started there were still engineers that knew how, but they retired in great numbers the following years. Oliver Cromwell is indeed a very good looking steam locomotive! Not stream lined, but good looking!Lars – I have also noticed the number of hits compared to the posts. That picture of me was taken next to an electrified narrow gauge railroad that is now long gone. Pete – After living here in Phoenix for 14 years my blood is so thin I have to drink anti-freeze in the wintertime so my blood doesn’t turn into ice! The Swedish steam locos were stored in some old roundhouses and especially built sheds around the country. Many of them were kept in plastic tents inside those sheds and inside the tents dried air was circulated in order to keep the corrosion at a minimum. Once every so many years they pulled out the locos and run some test runs with them. Somewhere I have a picture from inside on of those sheds. I’ll see if I can find it and post it.
Eric
Hi Tom and all.
A pint of Hansons and a Round for all please RUTH.
MIKE Thanks for the great links.Very scenic line along Lake Champlain and I agree with Tom the D&H livery was one of the best there was.
JAMES YES the Big Boy locomotives are certainly massive when you stand along side one of them. Especially when you are used to size of the locos in the UK. I believe that the TENDER on a Big Boy weighs more than the whole UK Duchess class loco does, and that was one of our bigger locos.
Looking forward to seeing some of your painting.
ERIC You are welcome to the drink. Slighly warmer today with some cloud cover, I must admit though I can handle the cold better than the really hot weather.
Glad you liked the pic. The early Diesel Multiple Units (DMU)s were called Bug- Bins by some railfans it was quite a few years before I was told that the name came from the Bugatti Units.
Any more info you have on the Swedish steam locos that were held in reserve would be great
CM3 It will be interesting to see if this NFL game does take place, apparently it will be the first competitve game outside N.America.
I was wondering if the coal mines here still use large D.C. motors for the winding gear here as the company I worked for used to build very large ones for the UK coal industry.
DL Many thanks for those links to the locos we were talking about yesterday . The map on the link of the loco climbing Bethnal Green grade reminded me of how fascinating the railway system around the east end of London was in steam days when the docks were in full operation..
Great links to the Green Goddess Fire engines.They would be a good buy for some preserved lines as a precaution in the high fire risk days on their lines.
Are you going to the Great Central Winter event. It will be good to get a progress report on Oliver Cromwell. A thing I have noticed is how well the Standard classes of steam loco looked when they were photographed newly built or ex works.Some locos looked better when they had a little work grime on them, whereas the Standards never did. But maybe it is just me.
We will have to talk about loco whistles a bit more, perhaps there was a difference over here between different railroads as there was in Britain. The Princess Elizabeth loco in preservation days used to have an American Chime whistle which was positioned out of sight and was very rarely sounded, it would be interesting to know if she still has it.
Something I lost in yesterday's post was a comment on the first generation ex class 101 DMU you saw at Derby.I believe that two single-car first generation DMUs are still in passenger use on BR. One on the Aylesbury to Princes Risborough branch and one on the Cardiff Bay branch, have you heard of these. They must be 50 years old now.
LARS Glad you like the pic of the Peak loco. These were a good class of loco although heavy for the horsepower they produced, 138 tons for 2,500 HP. They were the main locos on the Midland Main line before the introduction of the High Speed Trains on that line.
None of my family worked on the railway, which is a bit strange as it was a railway town . My father and grandfather used to take me to watch the trains when I was very young so I guess that was where I got my love of trains. I dare say if steam was not being phased out when I started work I may well have tried to work on the railway, but it was to the factory where my father worked.
The secret of the beer fridge is still safe. Tom would get the beer and would let mine warm up a little.Seriously though I could not have been in a better place than Tom's when the ice storm struck..
As to the bar, I was new to a personal computer when I discovered Our Place and I used to visit a lot when Tom noticed me an invited me aboard,in those days at the bottom of the page were the names of the people who were viewing the site at the time, which was very handy and another thing we have lost on the new forum.
Tom and I had a quick look at the old Our Place and the number of views that is as had since it was closed is amazing, there must be a lot of folks who enjoy us it would be great if they would just call in.
TOM It seems I lost a couple of things when I transferred from the processor to the forum,one was on the loco horns on the Can-Am and how realistic they are. Great link to the loco horns, they certainly to me sound very melodic indeed.
I dimly recall reading an article many many years ago in a British magazine about a top manager on an American railroad being shown a new steam locomotive fitted with a then new chime whistle, when asked what he thought he said." I'm not sure, that whistle sounds so melodious its liable to attract the cows rather than frieghtening them away".
Great info i
G'day Cap'n Tom & fellow travelers at the bar!
Ruth my deAH, a cuppa Joe with one of those "BK splashes" if you please. Feeling a bit chilly this day <brrrrrr>! However, you surely put the warmth back into a man's heart with just the look of ya! A round for the house, treats for the critters and of course a small jar of pickled pig's feet for our friend, Boris!
Replied to your e-mail, Tom and as always, will do my part.
So, where was I The catch-up was rather easy between the time I departed for a long weekend and my return yesterday. Not all that much to digest in terms of the posts, but quite a few Urls and references. Those are what takes the time. Anyway, the group has definitely taken a downshift in terms of numbers, but even without the "regulars" from the past, we're still here and still functioning! Isn't that the idea You betchaboots!
Been experiencing one of those slow downs with the computer and haven't a clue regarding why or what to do. One of my boys is an "expert" with this and will be over tonight with his "black bag" to apply a fix. Hope it works as I'm really getting annoyed with it. There's a delay in the appearance of the characters I'm typing. In other words, I can type out 3 or 4 characters on the keyboard, but they don't appear right away. Kind of like when you have a phone call and there's that delay "thing." Very annoying.
Surely looks as if Tom 'n Pete's trip to Chicago wound up being quite the adventure. You guys got back in the nick of time before the ice set in. Better to have been stranded at Tom's place than aboard a train without an adquate supply of beer, wouldn't you agree <grin> I'm sure Pete's no worse for wear and enjoyed the hospitality of our Proprietor, the Can-Am trainroom, Juneau, etc. You've gotten a leg up on us for the Rendezvous as by now you probably have the secret code for the beer fridge memorized!
Hey guys! We need to figure out a way to keep things running 'round here when Tom's away. I know we all try to do our best, but surely we can get these long periods of "nothing" turned into "something" if we gave just a bit more effort. Anyway, I for one appreciate those of you who are still here, whether it be frequently or infrequently: CM3 - Pete - Rob - Doug - Mike - Eric - DL - James and of course, Tom.
Has anyone taken a look at the "hits' we get on this thread compared to the posts we make I'm impressed as it appears to be running at 10%, which surely isn't bad. Just check out some of the more active sites (threads) and you'll see what I mean. So people are peeking in, just not participating. Ya know, I figure that there are boat loads out there who just prefer to look rather than participate. I began that way many years ago. Before this bar I was really active on these forums with a different "handle." Got so turned off by the JOs that I swore I'd never come back. Then one day I found this bar and the rest is history. Perhaps we'll get one or two more who are curious enough and then get "hooked."
When I departed for our trip this bar was on page 5. I've been looking for that "special report" from CM3 I'm NOT Shane! about the festivities last week at the Emporium Theatre's Anniversary bash. Where is it
Pete, that's a fine looking loco back on page 6. B&O in my family goes back many decades. I broke the mold so to speak and went to sea instead. Had a chance to work the rails, but the call of the sea was for me once my Navy hitch ended I knew I was hooked. Yeah, all working stiffs in the family, but we learned to use knives, forks and napkins quite well! <grin>
Tom, a great compilation for the January 'events' in the history of Canadian Railways. Those are chock full o' great info!
Eric, loved that photo of you on page 6 while on the bike when you were a kid! Priceless stuff. Other pix well received too, of course! Also liked the spread you provided of the light rail construction in Phoenix. I've always thought of the place as being more atuned to camels than traction! Your pix have outstanding clarity, well done! <grin>
Tom, the movie selections are terrific. Wouldn't have any connection to the icing events in St. Louis would they Ice Station Zebra and the flick about the Titanic. Great irony, huh <grin> Also, apprecite the compliment by way of those pix spreads you provided on page 7 of my dome stuff from months and months ago. Flattering to be brought back that way!
James, that ALCO is outstanding on page 7. Love the look of those locos. Your pix have great clarity too.
Mike, you came through with some neat looking pix via the Urls. Good supplements to the posts.
And of course DL, Doug 'n CM3 with your continuing efforts to provide us with not only entertaining input, but informative as well. Makes for quite the place to hand one's hat.
Ruth, this time make it a JD on the rocks, then I gotta skedaddle. The Mrs. is bellowing calling my name!
foto credit: http://www.viarail.ca/
A noon appearance by the boss, just to keep Ruth on her toes! Give ‘em a drink on me, and Boris - ring the bell!
There's an Email out there for Rob - Pete 'n Lars . . .
Just wanted to get to the morning's acknowledgments, before events of the day overtake Moi!
CM3 at 9:09 AM today: Appreciate the round and of course the quarters. Am seriously contemplating a change to our "hours," but surely wouldn't want to cancel out all of the revenue generated by you for the week days! <grin>
DL at 10:36 AM today: Check out this URL for some info relative to the term "conductor"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conductor_(transportation)
I received a phone call from an Amtrak customer service representative regarding the Email I sent. Pretty much had to go through my text with them to ensure my points were fully understood. And here I thought I knew how to communicate! <grin> Anyway, "they" will see to the issue and thanked me for the feedback. At least they are paying attention to comments and were prompt with a response.
Most times I've experienced terrific service aboard VIA Rail, but there have been a few disappointments. I recall one complete AH working the dining car aboard the "Canadian." He made a huge issue out of a request for an additional dinner roll! Can you believe that For the price of that trip in a bedroom with meals included, you'd think they'd serve the blasted things to you in bed! <grin> Settled it pretty much the way I settle most things like this - an abundance of dinner rolls for all seated at our table.
Some nice URLs and perhaps a bit more info on fire engines than I'd ever need. But still in the "classic" sense of it all. Well done!
I think the 5 guys posing on the Flying Scotsman are more like the founding fathers of the Can-Am RR! Great photo! And the Oliver Cromwell is indeed a fine looking machine!
Don't rightly know of the origin of the North American "horn" sound. Whether anecdotal or fact, your origin sounds plausible to me. I'll have to check it out . . . But until then, here's a URL you may find of interest:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Train_horn
Hello Tom
I'll have a pancake breakfast please, along with some of those goodies you just advertised.
I tend to think a train restaurant car would be one place a doggie bag would not be a good option!. Sorry to hear about abrupt service - very much like my experience on The Ocean diner last year. Maybe the staff had been on a training session at the average UK restaurant (!) A shame, since these things are much more noticeable in North America where high standards of service, in my opinion, are much more the norm.
Route 66 - are you saying there are OTHER roads in the USA? Well I suppose there must be Route 1 to Route 65 but surely that's the lot - are you saying all those dusty tracks pictured in westerns have numbers too? <grin, grin>
On a more serious note thanks for the W Va news link - certainly still a dangerous job, and retreat mining seems quite risky when you think about the logistics of it. (Just read your post CM3 - yep it sounded pretty risky, reminded me of the 15 (?) who died here in UK in mid 1990s in what I think was the last major UK underground accident - which was when a roof section collapsed at Bilsthorpe colliery (now closed), originally blamed on roof bolts failing but later thought to be due to a collapsed pillar of coal)
Eric - if you guys were not trained to drive the strategic reserve steam locos, who would have driven them in the event of their use being required - the older guys?
James - thanks for the info on that roadbed - would have been great to see large trains running up that line ‘under the wires' in that great countryside. Tend to think it would make a great trans continental cycleway or something now.
Lars - enjoyed reading your trip report. Agree with you, hard to see why some of these staff treat such things as ‘just a job' - shame not to get any enjoyment out of it. Mate of mine is now a train driver in the north of England, but before that started off as a passenger guard (Conductor I think you would call it), one time I was on a train he was on duty on, and he took time to draw my attention to line side things of interest, and to recount stories about particular locations told to him by some of the old lags who had driven the route for many years (inc in steam years). Interesting anecdotes, and clearly he really enjoyed that aspect of the job and the knowledge he had. I guess just the way some people are about life. Sad to hear about the appalling delay on the return. I guess this would have been the route I'd have taken had I had time to run down to NY from Montreal on my visit last year?
Thanks to Mike for illustrating Lars' story. Also Mike, nice to see the pictures of the Health and Safety Inspector guys waiting on the construction staff at Park Ave <grin>
Pete - Thanks for the streamliner info. Just so others can get a feel - some links here
This is the streamlined B17 (shows how similar it was to the A4 like the Dwight D Eisenhower or Dominion of Canada preserved in USA & Canada):
http://www.prints4u.co.uk/malroot/bgreen/bgbig.htm
And here is a pic of another LNER streamliner
http://www.scienceandsociety.co.uk/results.asp?image=10415322&wwwflag=2&imagepos=1
I see that late Jan is the occasion for the Great Central Railway Winter event - looks like quite a few demonstration freights will be run. I see they have ‘Oliver Cromwell' under repair there - A Brittania as mentioned: http://www.nrm.org.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/2004/oliver.asp
Interestingly the Green Goddess 1950s fire engines were in action again quite recently, but it looks like some have recently been sold by the UK Government:, and there is the suggestion here that all 1000 of them will be sold before too long. I understand some of the ones that were sold had less that 2,000 miles on the odometer!
See
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4285557.stm
and
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lincolnshire/4266381.stm
An interesting history of how these cold war relics came to survive in maintenance ready state is here.
http://www.romar.org.uk/page33facts2gg.html
Pete - you mention the US locomotive Diesel Horn. Hopefully other people can confirm if I'm right but I recall reading that when Diesels were being introduced in the USA people missed the sound of the steam whistle (as well they should!), and as a consequence the industry worked to devise a diesel air horn that was appropriately melodic - and so it came to pass.
It is a shame that the UK Diesel Horn's just sound like truck horns - a much less satisfying noise! Mind you I do regularly hear one of the InterCity 125 Horns late at night from my house around the time I go to bed as one of the later arrivals from London comes in, and I also tend to hear one about the time I leave the house for work in the morning. At least tells you all's well with the world when you hear it. Shame GM did not fit our Class 66 type locomotives with the more melodic North American air horn!
Regards
Good Morning Barkeep and all Present; coffee, please; round for the house, and $ for the jukebox.
A few observations.
Lars - Plattsburgh is truly upstate. Wonder if the Giants will be able to win their road game in London next year?
Mike - Enjoyable pictures of PAs at Willsboro and vintage shots of NYC. How did the photographer get that picture of the Mentor Gazette's last staff meeting on the high steel? BTW, the New York Central bldg. is at the left of the picture.
Pete - Thanks for the kind words.
James - AEM7s replaced the G motors (if anything could) on the NEC.
Eric - Yes, trucks on the T44.
A short sidebar on mining for today. The accident mentioned in the link occurred during retreat mining (aka pulling pillars). Definition of this activity (from USBM Dictionary ) is, "To work rooms, rooms-and-pillars to finish coal extraction in any area which has been penetrated to its limits by advance work; workings in the general opposite direction of advance work and which when completed, will permit the area to be abandoned as finished." I think you can see that this is not for the faint hearted.
Work safe
Mid-week in mid-continent USA and all's well! Take advantage of our "special" this AM - free pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery with each <light> or <traditional> breakfast ordered from the Menu Board - a new thing for mid-week here at the Saloon by the Siding! And of course, a steaming mug of freshly ground ‘n brewed Joe to wash it all down . . .
Seems like the gang has returned, although Rob ‘n Doug are surely missed and makes the mind go wondering if all's well.
Let's get directly to the acknowledgments:
Lars at 1:10 PM yesterday: Great to have you back on board, Mate! Many thanx for the rundown on your trip to Plattsburgh aboard Amtrak. Sounded okay to me, for these days "We takes, what we gets!" Aside from the fiasco of running ‘round in circles looking for something that isn't lost at all, makes for the kind of stress none of us relish. Bet the bride felt a bit foolish over that one, eh <grin> Hey! It happens to the best of us. How many times have we looked "everywhere" for the car keys that are "right there"!! Or the eye glasses perched on your nose Or . . . . been there, done that, fer sure, fer sure!
I've never been to Plattsburgh nor have I spent any time in the Lake Champlaign area. One of those things I missed out on way back when. Now that I'm a "fixture" here in mid-continent, I seriously doubt that our travel plans will take us to upstate New York ever again. I do have some fond memories of this place and that - mostly visited by car however. I used to ride the NYC from Grand Central Terminal up to Albany and back just for the fun of it. But that was sooooooooo long ago.
Again, many thanx for the "report" and appreciate very much the Email you sent.
Mike at 8:11 PM yesterday: That D&H is a beauty and perhaps next to the Santa Fe "war bonnet" livery, the best for an Alco I've seen. I'll give it at least a "tie" in the siberianmo "ratings"! <grin> Good to see ya back in the place.
Pete at 8:17 PM yesterday: Quite a Post from you and now that I've witnessed the way these are prepared - one finger typing - I can well imagine how much time that took you! Much appreciated and of course, most interesting stuff from our "resident Brit"! Can o' beer on a stick works every time!
As we discussed several times while we were together, things here at the bar are truly feast or famine. Just look at the span of time between Posts during daylight. I'd say we've become an evening pub fer sure, fer sure. Ruth is concerned about being let go, for staffing an empty bar is beginning to drain the finite resources of the upstairs tub o' cash. <grin> We've got to figure out a way to raise some bucks. Fortunately, I hold the title to this place, land included, in spite of Vito the Hit and his 2nd National Bank of Mentor Village forever trying to come up with a way to wrestle it from me. <geesh>
Your mention of the train horns here in NAmerica brings to mind the sounds of the Can-Am train room and the HO layout. Similar sounds, eh Don't quite know how they capture all of those authentic railroad sounds and then put it all on "chips," but they do and it works quite well.
Should make mention that Juneau is still looking for you. He knows something is different and has checked out "your" room only to find it quite lonely since your departure. You two got along quite well and undoubtedly he's "claimed" you as part of his pack.
James at 8:47 PM & 8:55 PM yesterday: Appears as if your "catch up" is nearly complete. In the old days of this bar, we'd have amassed at least triple the number of Pages compared to present times. Actually, it is better this way insofar as trying to keep abreast of this ‘n that, especially after absences.
Glad you enjoyed the B&O offering. Takes a great deal of talent to put something like that to canvas, something I surely don't have. My late oldest son had that ability, he could (and did) paint and draw pictures that were so "real" that it simply amazed us all. Surely didn't get that from me. I recall one time he had borrowed a photo from his mother with me in uniform - looked at it for quite awhile. Returned the photo, then sketched out a most vivid multi-colored 8 x 10 of me which today hangs in a private place here at home. Just amazing. I'm sure the guys will appreciate your work; looking forward to it.
Duluth sounds like my kinda place in the winter. After spending time in the arctic and places far north, there's just something about the winter . . .
Yes, Alco PAs are quite the locos and that D&H livery is indeed one of the very best.
Eric at 1:05 AM today: A visit from our "resident desert Swede" - say that three times fast! - and as always, good to see ya!
Concur regarding the 4 car consist for the newly instituted "Lincoln Service," however sure is far better than no service, eh The days of long trains are long gone in these parts. There is a rather direct route to Chicago by highway which is extremely busy along with a new bus service that I believe provides service every 2 hours or so. The train has 5 round trips and quite frankly I was surprised at the ridership on the day w
Good morning Captain Tom and all present!!
Boris, good to see you again! I'll just have acup of coffee, thank you! Keep the change!
Just stopping by for a few minutes to see what happened today.
Tom – You are right, I am having “flashbacks” when I see the thermometer showing 24° F and have to go outside. No pleasant memories, that is for sure. I got enough during some real cold and snowy winters operating trains. Sometimes I got to a siding and they couldn’t control the switch because it was frozen and full of snow and ice. Then it was my job to get out and try to remove enough snow and ice and crank the switch into a locked position. It was a pretty short train, the Lincoln Service! If it wasn’t so late I would scan a picture of the X2000 in Springfield. It was on display there and one grade crossing was blocked which got the attention of the police. After some discussions between Amtrak and the police they let us stay where we were. Bloomington-Normal is another city where we spent some time. I have to find those pictures!
DL – The X2000 drew a lot of attention wherever we went. Media covered every inch of the tour around the country. A couple of the big morning shows were broadcasted from the X2000 in Washington D.C., and so on. Even I was interviewed on TV and radio a number of times. When I started my training to become a locomotive engineer in the mid 70’s, there was talk about that some of us would also get training on steam locomotives. But it never happened.
CM3 – Nice to see you again, Sir! Those trucks on that diesel, do you mean the ones on the Class T44?Lars – You must have had a great weekend even though some “incidents” happened! I would say that is normal. It happens to me all the time. Lake Champlain is beautiful! We actually traveled that way with the X2000 to and from Canada. We also went to Fort Ticonderoga in May 1993 where the train was on display for a an hour or so. But that is quite a bit south of Plattsburgh.Mike – Thanks for the url’s. Some nice pictures from the area where Lars spent the weekend!Pete – Thanks for the drink! I prefer 24°F any time over 1°F! But I would say that everything below 75°F is too cold. Nice picture of the “Bugatti” steam locomotive!James – Thanks for the info about the picture! No, you will not see any AEM-7’s in Chicago. They are all used on the North East Corridor. It must have been something else you saw.
Time to hit the sack!
Pete, Mike, I must have missed you while I was posting.
Mike- Liked the pictures. That D&H Alco PA1, was quite a picture. Who can't like the Alco PA1 Big Alcos......
Pete- Liked the Great Britain steamer you have there. They are some really big steamers. Thanks for the pic.
Happy railroading
James
G-day Tom and all present.
Leon- could you make it a coffee and a sandwich with the works please.
Well I'm back and ready to post!
Rob- Now I'm going to be talking about something way back when. You had posted some trolley pics that were pretty cool. I really liked the trolleys equiped with the plows on the front. Could plow some snow with those.
I have also been enjoying your classical juice on the Dieselization of the B&O and the merger of the C&O and B&O. Some interesting times back then. I sometimes wonder what it would have been like to see some of the new diesel locomotives come out instead of steam. They must have been unbelievable, is all I can say. Diesel.... Whats that?
Eric- From a few pages back you asked when the picture was taken with the E7A in it. It was in the 60s. Don't know the exact date to the picture though.
I also saw the picture of the AEM-7. In Chicago I saw a few of those wandering around. There pretty quite except for the traction motor blower. I wonder if I will see any when I'm in Chicago in March. I usually do. But they are pretty cool. Nice shot
I was looking at the Class T44 and T43 and couldn't help think that they were center cabs. They are in someways. But they are a really cool looking switch engine. Some cool shots there too. I also liked the picture of the heavey weight car sitting on the truck wheels. Red neck style train.
Pete- I was looking at some pics a few pages back and I really liked the Union Pacific Big Boy. I still can't believe how big those steam engines are. And what is this about the Breen bay packers? A building? Well I guess when your in the heart of the cheese head state, you would see something like that.
I liked the A4 steamers also. They are a huge steamer. There like the Pacifics here in America. Really big and powerful.
And to answer both your question and DL's, Yes the line was the electrified portion of the Milwaukee. The Milwaukee was electrified from Miles City, Montana, to pretty much all the way to Seattle and Tacoma. There was a 200 or so mile area in the electrified area that wasn't electrified.
Tom- The Mentor Village Emporium Theatre is Huge!! That is one big theatre. I would like to see a play in there. That would be cool.
Also liked the B&O painted picture. I guess I have never mentioned it before, But I am a painter myself. At the moment I am working on a picture of a set of Box cabs sitting out in Montana. I will have the picture finished in about a month. So I will have to get a picture of it and show you guys. I also did another of the Oliver bridge here in Superior, Wisconsin. That turned out pretty cool.
Also enjoyed the Great Britian steam you presented everybody. Some pretty nice steam locomotives over there in Great Britain.
Lars- Enjoyed the pics of the B&O. I especially liked the smaller steam engines you show up with. The 2-6-0 and the 4-4-2. They are really nice. I have always liked the smaller switching steam engines. Thanks.
CM3- I don't know a lot about logging railroads but when I looked up that Heisler, I didn't know what to think. That is one really odd looking locomotive, just like the shay and climax. But they are some really unique locomotives. All those pistons outside, makes for a cool show of steam.
Doug- I enjoyed reading the Great Pickleworks wreck. That must have been a really nasty wreck. I can't imagine what went through the minds of some of those people. I have a book called, Train wrecks. It shows a lot of the type of train wrecks that you posted about. Many of them look really nasty. They have one were a train derailed in the middle of this town and took out some of the houses with it. The F-units didn't look so good.
Mike-A nice selection of pics from you.But the picture that caught my eye the most was the Zeplin/ Blimp.That thing is the coolest looking floating oblect. I get the shivers looking at that thing float in the sky like that. It's scary to think that thing is full of helium.
DL- I enjoyed all the links you gave us. The history on the Timetable was a good one. I have learned more about the Great Britain railways here than anywhere else. I like learning about the other railroads around the world. Some cool stuff out there. Thanks for all of it.
BTW: Here in Duluth, MN, We are getting about 10 below zero at night and then warming up to about 10 above zeron in the midst of the day. We had a nasty wind coming off the lake this morning..bbbbrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
A pint of Kimberley please RUTH, did DL say any one for a drink.
I was reading the posts and have lost the connection so I will write this in the word processor as far as I was able to read.
ERIC I see you had 24 F temperature, this morning it was 1F here with ice on the sidewalks although the roads are clear. Talking of weather the thing I noticed in England was in recent years it did seem that the wind was a lot stronger than it used to be.
DL Good to see you in. I think when the two Alans went to Kimberley the last brew was going to be December 22 it is a real shame to see another good English range of beers going.
I well remember the talk in the late 70s of a secret cache of steam locos but I believe that enthusiasts have found out data on all the BR locos that were scrapped. I don't know if you remember many years back there was a strike by firemen and the army stepped in with those "Green Goddess" Fire Engines which no one seem to know they existed, so I guess this gave rise to the rumour that steam locos may be hidden away somewhere.
The two locos that were fitted with the streamline A4 outline were Nos 61659 East Anglian and 61670 City Of London; they were of the B17/6 class 4-6-0s introduced in 1937 and de-streamlined in 1951. Their tractive effort was 28,555lb compared to 35,455 lb of an A4. The locos were allocated to Norwich shed. In 1951 the BR Standard 'Britannia' pacifics were introduced on the former Great Eastern main lines and would have taken over the principle expresses like "The East Anglian"
The other locos that had a similar appearance to the A4s were 4 of the P2 2-8-2s that were designed by Sir Nigel Gresley in 1934 for the Edinburgh to Aberdeen line of the LNER. These locos were converted to Pacifics by Gresley's successor and lost the Streamlining in 1943. The 4-6-4 W1 No 60700 also had a streamline casing when it was converted from an experimental high pressure, water-tube loco in 1937.
A4 Pacific No 60007 'Sir Nigel Gresley on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway
In the days on my all- line rover it was all on the cushions in the compartments on the overnights, there were a lot of overnight trains then. I was much younger then I don't think I could do it now.
Yes the Girder Bridge at Rugby was the site from 1897 to 1939 of the enormous signal gantry. The Great Central was made to pay for this as the girder bridge interfered with the sighting of the signals already there, so the signals were repeated at a higher level. There were 44 signal arms on 26 posts.
Thanks for the links to Bradshaws and the West Somerset Sleeping Car; this does look a superb vehicle. I have added the BR timetable to my favourites.
Got the Internet back.
CM3 Great to see you in. Tom had ME peddling the generator with a can of beer on a pole as incentive. Enjoying the old baseball stories between Tom and you.
DL Yes the portion sizes take some getting used to over here. A good example is when the English folks came over for my wedding, my cousin ordered Baby -Back ribs and was just amazed at the size. She though because they were called baby they would be small. The trouble is the food here is always good I have found and the eat all you want buffets are too big a temptation.
Tom had told me to look out for Route 66, and they have sign posted it when the road leaves the by-pass to a town and along the way where Route 66 runs parallel to the Highway.
LARS Great to see you back. Glad you enjoyed most of your trip and glad the wife's wallet was found OK. Although arriving back 6 hours late at 2 am is no fun at all. I can't help thinking of those poor folks who were without trains and with no substitute road transport this weekend between Kansas City and St Louis, some of which did not have such a good friend like Tom to help them.
There is some thing Magical about the sound of a train horn in North America a different sound to the ones used in the UK.
I heard on BBC World news that a competitive NFL game is to be held in London, The Giants and the Dolphins were mentioned.
TOM Great description of our Chicago trip. One Question I would like to ask DOUG is I noticed that some of the Metro locos carried names, I wonder if there is a web site with the names on.
The Amtrak menu was even too much for the puter it went down as I tried to look at it.The food was good and the ‘Sweet Temptation Chocolate Cake was too much of a temptation for me.
It must have been a great trip with the Sightseer Lounge along the Missouri. On my trip out to Kirkwood I took the side away from the river for a change and was surprised by the old track beds that were visible between Hermann and Washington Missouri, some paralleling the present line and some heading off. As you said some must have served small towns, it would be very interesting to have an old map showing the old lines.
It is very sad news about the miners who lost their lives. We sometimes forget the dangerous jobs some people do so we can enjoy electricity and other things we take for granted.
Well it seems as though this as transferred from the proceesor OK, So a round for all please LEON.
Pete.
A round for the house Tom
Interesting travelogue Lars, thanks for typing.
Lake Champlain from Amtrak window
http://www.trainweb.com/cgi-bin/photos/showmvc1.cgi?mvc/r990107b/+travel/stevelog/sg990107.html
The old Adirondack was a D&H train
http://www.cvrma.org/pictures/MISC/dfrr5_044_d&h_laurentian_lake_champlain_1969.jpg
and partly New York Central, so it left from Grand Central Terminal
http://images.nypl.org/?id=96642&t=w
and went under Park Ave
http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/3454/ghd9ct.png
These old dudes fought in the War of 1812
http://mdhsimage.mdhs.org/Library/Images/Mellon%20Images/Z5access/z5-0348.jpg
Mike
‘Tis the return of the Larsman! Ruth, set ‘em up, drinks all around and Boris you cloven-footed Cyclops of a man go ahead and ring the gong!
Well, we did it! Finally convinced the Mrs. to accompany me on an Amtrak trip to upstate New York and we returned last night. We could call the experience the good, the bad and the ugly! <grin> Actually, I'm not all that happy with our experience, aside from the fact that riding the rails with the sounds and sights of passing things still holds a certain fascination for me. Both legs of the trip brought back many good thoughts of the New York Central and the Water Level Route! <ahhhhh>
I had heard horror stories of the Adirondack train that Amtrak operates between Penn Station in NYC and Montreal. Now we KNOW. But, perhaps I should back up just a bit.
Ruth, you lovely thing, I'd like a Lars "special" if you please along with a tankard of Keiths Ale, a saucer of brine for Tex, a tray of seeds for Awk, ice cubes for Frostbite, and yes, a small jar of pickled pig's feet for Boris! <phew>
We have close friends who are wintering in Florida at the present. They have a home in Plattsburgh, NY. He's a long-time shipmate of mine, we sailed together on many a voyage. The wives get along famously. That all helps. Anyway, they swung by our home en route the southland and somewhere in the discussion the subject of their empty house came up. I should note that some years back, we were in California, and they stayed at our home while vacationing in this part of the state. So, they reciprocated, and offered us the use of their place anytime we wished during their absence.
So, it was the long weekend that appealed to us and the "how to get there" became a topic to dwell upon. I figured that driving would be a pain in the patoot at this time of year given the uncertainty of the weather and so forth. So, it was either flying or taking the train.
It's supposed to be about a 6 ½ hour run to Plattsburgh and all sounded perfect. Actually, we did arrive pretty close to the scheduled time and the on board services, such as they were, lived up to the billing. Certainly glad that we weren't on that train for an overnighter. That wouldn't have been fun. Anyway, the coach cars were nothing to write home about, somewhat vintage Amtrak. Sorry, but I'm not the expert on these things. We sat on the side providing the best views of the Hudson River as we progressed northward and for the return. For anyone who knows the lay of the land, that IS beautiful country. Didn't see the snow cover in years past, but where there was white, it was captivating. My Mrs. insisted that I take the window seat, as she immersed herself in a novel. I don't think 6 words passed between us for hours on end. <yay> Only kidding! Clickety-clack, horn blaring in advance of the crossings, gently swaying coach, ahhhhh, just as I remembered.
Didn't find the on board people to be overly friendly, nor rude. Just kinda impassive to it all. Again, lived up to my remembrances. Don't know what it is about some of these people, but if I was that blasé about what I did for a living, I'd change my job. Again, I'm off track here.
Thought the material condition of the car was fine, didn't see anything that bothered me and the heat worked fine! Not over bearing, as some cars can be, but pretty much just right. Surprised the both of us, as we figured we'd lose weight en route Plattsburgh!
Train arrived, no baggage car, wrestled the suitcases off - Good Grief Charlie Brown, she packs a lot of gear - took a cab to the house. Made ourselves at home and had a great, relaxing time of it. For those who may not know, this area is VERY historic with all kinds of places to visit. Rob would love it as the War of 1812 tourist sites are all over the place. Lake Champlaign is regarded by many as the 6th Great Lake. It is a very large fresh water lake and sits between New York and Vermont. Most picturesque, for sure!
Don't want to bore you with any of the rest of this other than to say our return trip was over 4 hours late getting into Penn Station. That put us home after 2 AM, and we were beat. Fortunately, we did get home ahead of the cold front moving in on this area along with some anticipated bad times with ice.
The good is that we got away and I had a chance to get my "train fix," as Tom likes to put it.
The bad is that we got home so blasted late thanks to whatever delayed us. The train arrived in Plattsburgh just about a half hour late from Montreal. We just had so many 'slow speed' situations moving southbound and stops in sidings seemingly forever.
And the ugly is that we spent an inordinate amount of time searching for my wife's wallet while in Plattsburgh ONLY to discover that she had left it at home on the dresser! <arrrrrrrrrrrrgggggghhhhh> Dontchajust hate it when that happens Never did hear back from Amtrak regarding whether she left it on the train. That was an experience in and of itself. Trying to get in touch with someone who could actually look into the situation. Ya know - today the trains are in radio and telephone contact. There is absolutely no way that I believe Amtrak couldn't have simply communicated to the train conductor directly and had someone check the seating area where we were. But that didn't happen. Pretty much BS over the phone, more listening to nonsense than getting anything done. She discovered her "loss" right after we got into the house at Plattsburgh - after unpacking. It wasn't until we called home to see how things were going and told of her "loss" that my son's wife saw the wallet was on the dresser!
Well, we're back and I'll dig into what I've missed a bit later on. Still recharging the batteries, so to speak.
DL - try this: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/01/13/miners-killed.html
Don't know what in the world happened to the URL, but I checked it before Posting and it came up correctly. Really weird, eh Anyway, thanx for letting me know!
Didn't even think to ask about a "doggie bag" aboard the train. Wouldn't have been my "style" - as what does one DO with a bag of cooked food, if they'd even give you one. Neither Pete nor I were all that enamored with the service in the diner. Found it to be a bit on the abrupt side, and we felt perhaps a bit racial as well. Sorry to have to say that, but it happens. I let Amtrak know my feelings in a communique to them.
That particular rail route passes through more than one small Illinois city. It is a treat to view the sights and jsut a throwback to what America was like many decades past.
So you KNOW about Route 66, eh Did it connect with Great Britain
Last appearance of the 10,00th Post Contest is on Page One - no updates since. Sorry if I misread the point of your question. Surely wondered about you over that one! <grin> We call it arithmetic - math is a higher level. Ya know, like figuring out how to exchange foreign currency at a bar!
Later!
Hi Tom
Good morning to you. Please feel free to join me in a drink of your choice.
I thought what you just posted WAS a trip report - certainly enjoyed reading it. Nice to see the Menu - looks like Amtrak have expanded the menu since my last trip, really nice choice. Interesting you should mention protion size as I found portions rather smaller on the train than usual US standards - no problem with that as you don't take much excercise on board of course. In fact one of the amusing 'cultural differences' I've noticed across the pond is about portion size - in the UK one is expected to 'clean the plate', in the US I think the norm is to show a bountiful platefull, and of course you can take a doggy bag if you wish (which would never happen here). Pete will have a view on this I'm sure!
Anyway, we were in this restaurant in Chicago and got a fair size serving, and I ate it all up as we do here - no chance of a second course after that, but of course the waitress wanted to sell me one and looked dissapointed when I said I was full up, and explained if they wanted you to buy pudding they should serve smaller portions! I guess the cultural difference dawned on me afterwards!
As I say, enjoyed your report - and of course to an enthusiast for the North American way - Route 66 needs no introdcution to me - interesting info. I love the way the rail road goes right through the town in some cases - tends not to happen here because the town was there first, wheras in North America I guess there was no town without the railway!
10,000 post - I was more wondering who was still in the race actually. I'm with you on the maths!
Think you re-posted the amtrak link ratther than the mine link for CM3 - but I'd be interested in that story - what with being in what is supposed to still be coal contry here.
A rare mid-morning Post from the barkeep - used to be the "norm" up until we began our downward glide in terms of numbers . . .
Very much appreciate the return of DL ‘n CM3 to the group. These long absences are killers for us lately. Both of you provide much "fodder" discussion and I hope we get some exchanges going.
DL at 8:38 AM today: Here's a URL that will show you the menu we ordered from aboard The Texas Eagle en route St. Louis on Friday evening.
http://www.amtrak.com/pdf/menus/SampleMenu1_6-1-2006.pdf
Pete ‘n I were both amazed at the enormous amount of food put on the plates. Far too much for me to consume and brought to mind just how different the portions are in this country and elsewhere ‘round the globe. Anyway, the roast chicken (half!) was just fine and so was the "ton" of veggies and rice! <swg>
The route between St. Louis and Chicago is rather flat and not at all as scenic as the one between here and Kansas City. However, there is plenty to remain occupied, and that we did.
Our departure on Friday morning was aboard the Lincoln Service, a newly instituted round trip paid for by the state of Illinois. It departed on a rather nasty early morning, weatherwise, at 6:35 AM. The equipment for our train was a Genesis loco, a Horizon café car w/business class seating (where we were) and 3 horizon coaches. We crossed the Mississippi into Illinois in darkness, but the sights were just fine with both sides well illuminated and the rains rather light thereby keeping our views in tact.
It is flat land into Springfield (capital city of Illinois) a two hour run from St. Louis. The train actually passes through the center of the small city which makes it really nice for access to the wonderful sights and places to visit. Of course, we remained onboard as the "load" of passengers climbed aboard for northerly destinations. The Springfield area has the best of the topography in my opinion, as there are hills, creeks and other elevations to break up the monotony of flat land travel.
Major station stops to Chicago after Springfield are Lincoln, Bloomington-Normal and Joliet ("home" of a Rat's Patoot Room of a "different" sort! )
One of the highlights of the route taken is that quite a bit of the UP right-of-way parallels the old Route 66 highway between Chicago and Los Angeles. You may not know this, but that highway was further ‘storied' in a long running TV series featuring a couple of "yay-hoos" in their Corvette, traveling here ‘n there, etc. Soupy and sappy crap. But, I digress!
As mentioned earlier, I'm not going to put together a trip report as such - maybe Pete will. However, I'll drop off bits here ‘n there when it appears that there is interest. Pix on Sunday, or sooner if I weaken!
We were NOT shunted off to sidings for freights, nor did we see any aside from one and that was close to Chicago. We did pull into a siding for a couple of southbound Amtraks, but that was it. More later . . . Should mention that there are 5 daily round trips between St. Louis ‘n Chicago, of which 2 have been recently added thanx to the generosity of the Illinois taxpayers through their State Legislature and Governor.
Not trying to be glib or cute here, but the 10,000th Post can be calculated thusly: On page one of this "new" Thread, the count is shown for the "old." Final number was 9,013 for replies (Posts). Just take the current number from the "new" and add it. Right now it shows as 138 - so we've got a way to go to make it to 10 thousand. <grin>
CM3 at 8:53 AM today: The Duke - The "Say-Hey Kid" and Mick. Yes, I remember watching them all back in the 50s. Being a die-hard Dodger fan, of course Snider was my guy! I saw Mickey Mantle as a rookie and remember his first of many injuries. The guy was unbelievable in all aspects of the game. He could outrun a stiff breeze, could catch a gnat in mid-flight and when he hit ‘em, they were gone-zo! Willie Mays was the most exciting of the bunch and never let the fans down. He played as if he loved what he was doing and it showed. A terrific player and from what I've listened to and viewed, a fine person too. The Duke was pretty much the hitter, a leftie who seemed to have a knack for coming through in the clutch. Great on defense too, but no where close to Mantle and Mays. The three of them were perennial All-Stars, rightly so. Hard to believe that all this time has passed. I had their rookie baseball cards! Had - as in past tense. In fact, at one time I could have presented the starting line ups for all three of New York's teams for perhaps 5 years running. Alas - long gone, as with my Lionel trains. <sniff> <sniff> The things we give up upon entering ‘adulthood,' eh
I could tell you many stories about the old ballpark - Abe Stark being just one. Good "fodder" for the Rendezvous. Even might divulge some info about Moi in right field at Ebbets Field. Not for release in the Ether!
Yes, of all the Titanic flicks, A Night to Remember is my favorite as well. Having had the opportunity of spending many a month in the cold north Atlantic, including a wreath ceremony at the spot, I'm ever fascinated by the story. This particular movie pretty much chronicles what happened and the way it happened as opposed to intertwining the "stuff" that others blend in.
If I could harness Juneau in order to produce electrical energy, we'd be able to cut loose from the local utility company! <swg> Siberian Huskies LOVE this stuff! Speaking of which, the skies are blue, the winds are slight, the temps are frigid and the walking is a tad difficult with icy spots here ‘n there. But it IS invigorating and makes me want to be outdoors.
Thought we'd not see you this AM, as I read about the latest tragedy in a WVA mine.
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/01/13/miners-killed.html
Figured you might be involved in the follow-up.
Later (maybe)!
Good Morning Barkeep and All Present; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox.
A little ice here this a.m., but all in all, not too bad; escpecially compared to what's going on elsewhere. Just a few comments and I'll try and get back later.
Mike - Pictures of Penn Station were good. The "hole" where the pictures were made is on the southbound side of Penn Station, before you go under the river. Duke Snider? Excellent! Think of it (Lars will appreciate this one) Mantle, Mays, and snider all playing at the same time, albeit in different boroughs. I believe Mays was still the best out of the lot. Tom - I'll bet you remember Abe Stark - "Hit Sign, Win Suit."
James - Thanks for the pictures
Eric - Also thanks for pictures and builder information. Trucks on that diesel were right interesting.
Ton - It's gotta get better re power. IIRC, At least your lines are buried. If your K9 Korps has as much energy as mine, hitch 'em up to a belt line and let them "run" the generator. Mine did "splash and dash" this a.m. and were back inside asleep after I took the Huns to school. Also - excellent movie choices. "Night to Remember," IMHO was probably the best of all of the Titanic films. I agree with the Superliner comment. Had the fortune to ride the "Empire Builder" with those cars; the view is tremendous. "Cardinal" also had Superliners for quite awhile; tight fit going into Washington, but we always made it intact.
Will try and post again today.
Anybody I left out, I apologize. Hly smokes, DLs post landed. Most enjoyable; I am going to check out the links a little later.
Hello all
I'll have a pint of Kimberley plus some food from the bar. Time at last for a proper post so some catching up to start off with.
First of all, I enjoyed the B&O theme day with contributions from most apart from myself! Good stuff.
Mike - enjoyed the picture links - keep ‘em coming!
James - enjoyed your pics - that abandoned road bed gave a good sense of the landscape too. Like Pete said, was that the electrified route?
Rob - thanks for your museum link.
Doug - enjoyed the story.
CM3 & Lars - some interesting stuff from yourselves
Eric - interesting story about the headlight illumination from the lay by on the X2000 tour. Does this suggest there is in fact an appetite amongst the ordinary US citizen for a decent high speed network perhaps - clearly people found your tour something to watch out for. I suppose post 9-11 they would all have been arrested for something or other.
Interesting also to read about the strategic reserve of Swedish steam locos held during the cold war! There was always a myth that the UK govt had done this and the locos were held in a secret location somewhere - away from where the trainspotters could ever find them - alas I think it is just a myth.
Tom - what is the update on the 10,000th post? Good to read about your and Pete's Chicago trip, and the events afterwards. No need for a full trip report but I'd be interested to hear about the scenery on the route. I certainly enjoyed the sightseer lounge when on the Amtrak C-Zephyr - spent most of the daylight hours there (when not in the dining car of course)! Amazing how the miles go by, and the hours pass by with the moving pictures just keeping you entertained - never boring!
Pete - you are right, plenty to do in Chicago. I recall the Museum of Science and Industry has some railroad exhibits - no doubt Doug will outline these.
Rolling back the pages a bit, thanks for your links to the A4 info at Green Bay - looks like they do a good job of keeping the loco in good order - very nice to see - and interesting explanatory stuff on the website too. I'd forgotten some of the names were linked with the wool industry, I'd thought they were all birds. By the way, was there not a smaller LNER design for the East Anglian lines with the same body style as the A4, but a smaller wheel arrangement?
Co-Bo - yes, don't know why Hornby Dublo did not model something that had a higher profile from the period - eg a WR Warship or Western class machine. I always thought it a shame that their Deltic was not quite scale length either. Still, it still looks good in front of a rake of their MK1 carriages. Your comment about All Line roving in the 70s reminded me of a chap I work with who did that - not so long ago he was showing me his note book from the period with all the locos and routes listed. Interesting stuff. Did you do overnights on the compartment cushions then or plump for a sleeper?
Some other updates, I see in my latest copy of Rail that Network Rail removed the old GCR bridge at Rugby over Christmas in an engineering possession - is this the famous bridge near the big semaphore gantry of old?
Took a train trip to Derby the other eve but the other half missed the train so this forced a trip to a decent pub near the station - behind the bar was Kimberley Bitter with a label: ‘Goodbye Old Friend - from the last brew' - so that has probably been the last taste of it I'll get.
Whilst waiting for the return train at about 11.30pm at Derby (in important UK railway town) this special test train ran in to the station - an ultra sonic test train converted out of a 1950s generation diesel railcar - some pics here - although it is now painted all over yellow - unlike in these pictures.
http://www.railcar.co.uk/his100-109/101/50167non.htm
Also - I see Network Rail have put the whole UK national Timetable on the web.
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/aspx/3828.aspx
You click on the table numbers adjacent to the station you require and it downloads the relevant pages. In due course the whole timetable will be downloadable. This is since the decisions was taken to no longer publish the paper version as of May 2007. A decent UK rail map can be downloaded too. Being able to print off tables that you want to look at is, in my opinion, better than the journey planner software hitherto available.
For anyone interested - a short history of the UK timetable (dating back to Bradshaw and worth a read, is here (download the word doc - about 4 pages):
http://www.atoc-comms.org/docs.asp?cat=studies
And here is something of no relevance to anything else - a GWR (UK) 1897 sleeping car rescued from part of a house (!) - see B& W pics and restored over 20 year to superb condition - found this link by chance and thought people might be interested!
http://www.wsr.org.uk/903813062006.htm
Anyone need a drink?
Cheers
Tuesday morning and back to work for many! Why not begin the day with us right here at the Tavern by the Tracks. It's a fine start to the day with some pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery, fresh coffee and of course our <light> ‘n <traditional> breakfasts from the Menu Board!
Very much appreciated the late nite visits from Pete ‘n Eric. We can use the revenue as Tilla ‘n Cashinator haven't been "singing" as of late. <grin>
University is back in session beginning this AM, so the bride is off to work. Well, someone has to in order to keep me functioning in the manner to which I've grown accustomed!
Rather frigid on the Juneau-walk this morning as the temps are in the teens, slight breeze and slippery footing. Some very light snow making it's way to the ground which all adds to the charm of it all for people like us - just love the winter!
Eric - I can well imagine what some of the people in Phoenix must be experiencing with this cold wave in the desert. As so many in that area are ‘from' other places, they may be having "flashbacks" to times and locations long ago. Hurricane winds in Sweden or anywhere else, no matter what time of year, is something to take extreme care with. Is that "normal" for your former part of the world
Pete - Glad you made it home safely and thanx for the call. Seems UP routed Amtrak properly this time with no shunting you off to passing sidings. Wonder if we'll ever know just how many freights were lined up in either direction before the service on the line was resumed Something we'll probably never know. You're a "lucky duck" you are - Superliners again !!! I've only managed to travel the route to KCity twice (each way) aboard them and as I mentioned to you, we had a Sightseer Lounge car as well. It was terrific for the scenery is splendid, especially along the Missouri River with the eagles diving for meal service and so forth. Remember those trips vividly. I hated to see the return of the Horizon and Amfleet equipment after traveling in style.
No "Theme for the Day!" this week and I'll resume it once we see some signs of return to normalcy 'round here . . . .
Reminder: Ruth has the bar from 9 AM until Leon the Night Man comes in at 5 PM ‘til closing.
Good evening Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!
Leon, just a Sugar Cured Ham Sandwich, please! Coffee!
A very quiet Monday here at the bar! I guess many had today off and/or other things to do.
Pete – Glad to hear that you were spared the ice from the third front. We had the coldest morning (24°) in 17 years this morning! No fun at all. It must be even better (than being spared the ice) to be able to come home again to your bride after the extended weekend away! Tom – Thanks for the drink! It sounds like UP and Amtrak have had a lot of problems thsi weekend and that always create a great deal of confusion. Back in the old country they had a severe storm this weekend with winds of hurricane force and thousands of trees down, many blocking railroad tracks. And creating a lot of confusion. Many trains cancelled, a few running.
Tonight I am having some problems with the text. It is moving around without my help.
A pint of the usual please LEON.
Arrived back in Jeff City about an hour or so late, but considering the conditions not too bad at all.It was Superliners and two locomotives. The line was very busy with freight traffic and the dispatchers done a good job keeping us moving..
Very grateful to TOM and bride for looking after me on my extended stay and for sorting out Amtrak for me . It was indeed a great trip to Chicago and the Sightseer Lounge really is a wonderful experience.
With regards to the smillies over the text all mine seem to be OK.
I will post some pics tomorrow to make up for my missing the pics Sunday.
Another pint LEON them off to .
Back again for a brief round of comments and then it's early to bed! Been that kinda loooooong weekend.
Pete left Kirkwood at 5:05 PM en route Jeff City aboard Amtrak # 313. Should be home by now, or certainly at least close to it. Was kind of a 3-ring circus trying to get his reservation using the "800" number for Amtrak. First agent told us that service was to be resumed this afternoon, but that the train was full and he'd have to wait ‘til the AM. Second agent told us that there was no service for today and reservations could be made for the AM. Third agent said service was indeed to resume this afternoon and there were 4 seats left. Wonder what the fourth agent would have told us <grin> Well, it's been a rough time of it for the UP, as the route used is theirs and it was heavily hit by falling trees and debris between St. Louis and Jeff City. Lots of freight disruptions and of course nothing moved since very early Saturday morning.
For anyone who has never had the experience to travel aboard Amtrak Superliner equipment, you've missed something special. The long distance trains feature a Sightseer Lounge car, which is really an upper level dome car, full length. Below is a snack bar and seating area for light dining and so forth. Also, a full-service diner with several seatings so that no one goes away without at least having an opportunity to be served. Just an all around nice experience. Of course there were "things" that could've and should've been better, but I'd rather dwell on the positive tonight.
This isn't meant to be a "trip report," and I'm not sure whether I'll put one together. Rather, just a bit here ‘n there on our trip from St. Louis to Chicago and return. More later . . .
Am a bit surprised at the numbers who made it in since we began our trip. Of course, with Lars away too, and the long weekend upon us for some, it illustrates more than ever how this place is down to the precious few. Hardly what it was during our halcyon days, eh
Many thanx to Eric for providing some fine Pix for us along the way, along with an inclusive narrative Post.
Yes, having a generator for times like these does indeed provide a degree of comfort many others do not have. I'd guess we were "down" for about 8 hours, which is a lot less than the 150 thousand who were out of power at any one time in the area where I live. "Be Prepared," something learned a long time ago!
Mike, those were some super fine URLs. Haven't seen or heard from you in awhile and am glad you found your way back! Particularly enjoyed the PRR, NH and the Duke Snider "stuff." Seeing old Ebbetts Field surely brought a fond remembrance as well. Thanx!
Pete, I know that I caused you grief through my brow-beating to get you on-line while here. <grin> But watching how you approach this thing called "typing" it's a wonder that you get out such fine stuff at all! Reminds me of watching a monkey trying to make love to a bowling ball. No offense, Mate - just a bit on the humorous side!
Doug, hope all went well for you this weekend and we'll find you back at the bar soon. Not to worry about hooking up with us in Chicago, there will be another trip! Count on it.
James, fine Pix and appreciate your taking the time to stop by yesterday. Fortunately we haven't amassed that many pages, so it shouldn't be all that difficult to catch up on the Posts.
Let's all hope that we see a return to our "normal" bar when tomorrow arrives. Until then, drinks on me!
Leon the Night Man has the bar ‘til closing.
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