Trackside with Erik and Mike, Vol. 38: September 12, 2005

[Bergie]

This week's installment of Trackside with Erik and Mike is now live within the Railroading section on the Trains.com home page. Please read this week's column and then vote for your favorite photo below. Click here to read Trackside with Erik and Mike Vol. 38.

[Anonymous]

The IC unit caught me, so Mikes photo this time. But I liked Eriks a lot too!

[Anonymous]

I had to go with Erik's. If anything the story caught my attention. But the photo is great too. I love autorack trains.

uspscsx

[northwesterner]

I had to go wirh Erik's photo for two reasons: 1) I love a good story, and this one only took4 photos and a minimum of text to explain, ans 2) this is my old stomping grounds from kidhood. Erik, where you at old Kirk Road taking thos photos?

[Anonymous]

Eric's Photo was awesome. Perfectly focused, and a neat subject. I love how the headlights of the SD70 reflect off the coal cars, and how the autoracks look on the grade.

That shot is a book cover!

[bow]


[;)] Happy railfanning to all!

Chris

[Anonymous]

Great pics!!! Great story to go along with Erik's pic, but Mike's head to head meet just seems more interesting. Too bad that Erik's pic didn't include the engine and the broken coupler.......

[Noah Hofrichter]

I dunno. Everybody keeps saying Erik's is better, but I have a mind to disagree. Mainly for three reasons:

1. Mike's is so well composed. He thought to get the Signal, the Milepost, both trains, and the crew member doing the roll-by, all in one shot.

2. Erik's has an aweful lot of track in front of the locomotive. The first thing I noticed in the photo was the ballast and the track, not the locomotive. On Mike's I was imediately drawn to the IC unit, then the second, farther train, and from there to the milepost.

3. And a small fact was the subject. Erik's is your run of the mill, every day UP train. Mike's is something that you don't see so often anymore, now with the CN owning the WC and IC.

So, after a little debating, I went with Mike's. Sorry Erik, better luck next time.

Noah

[espeefoamer]

Mike's photo gets two thumbs up[tup][tup]! I liked the IC SD40-2 in the foreground and the WC unit behind it. Also there is an IC unit on the point of the northbound. All units in the photo are the older standard cab diesels.I also like the OL logo on the unit in the foreground[:D].

[Anonymous]

Eric's story only lacked the picture of the coupling to make it perfect......next time Eric

[DICKK]

I liked the effect of the auto train seemingly coming up out of nowhere. Makes it look like it is hanging on the end of the earth. I voted for Erik.

[mandelswamp]

Another contest and another tough choice to make. Mike's shot is quite nice but something about Erik's photo seemed better. I think it was the combination of the disabled unit coal train and the passing train of auto carriers plus the shiny UP engine. Am I worong or does the WSOR crewmember in Mike's shot seems more attentive to examining the approaching train than the UP conductor, who appears to be posing for Erik's photo rather than inspecting his train? Once again, you both did an outstanding job but there is something about Erik's that made me pick his shot over Mike's.

[Anonymous]

While I liked both photos a lot, the reason I voted for Eric's shot is that it is something you just don't see all of the time-- train service personnel riding along on the front door of the locomotive doing roll-by inspections. Personally, I though Mike's shot was actually the better "photo," but the story captured in Erik's was very unique, so I went that direction.

I think that is something we have to remember about this competition. It not about our favorite shots of trains. It's about the essense of the event captured on film or digitally. What does the photo convey to us? These guys are at the top of their game!

[Anonymous]

This week's vote was a hard call as both stories behind the pictures really added to the richness of the photos. I voted for Erik's just out of sympathy for the conductor and his turn of good luck.

[LVJJJ]

lighting, lighting, lighting, mike's is too dark, erik's is just write, had to go with erik. it's too difficult for the old eyes to take in all of the details on all of the interesting locos in mike's, nice but dark photo. Larry in sunny Las Vegas.

[cherokee woman]

I like both pictures; but I'm voting for Mike's because he caught both trains in his
shot.