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Posted by CShaveRR on Monday, November 12, 2007 7:47 PM

Well, today was totally off-topic for me.  We checked out the I-355 extension that opened today.  The bridge is almost as impressive from the road as it is from below, but the driver doesn't have a very good view over the edge (to the tracks).  The industrial spur near I-55 is crossed with an overpass, and is actually identified as "BNSF RR".  We did see the switcher at work, with a pair of Geeps and a goodly number of box cars and covered hoppers.

If I ever want to observe Metra, CSX, or IAIS action in or around New Lenox, this would be the road for me to take.  Otherwise, I have more direct (and cheaper) alternatives to anywhere I need to go.

Chris, while you're in, Pat and I were answering phones for WFMT today.  If you miss them out your way, they now have free streaming on the Internet:  www.wfmt.com .  Same goes for anyone else who wants a civilized variety of classical music.

Carl

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Posted by CopCarSS on Monday, November 12, 2007 1:12 PM

Murph, a few questions:

1) Does your wife enjoy the versatility of your current SLR, or does she usually keep the same lens on it?

2) Does she shoot in a lot of dim situations? If so, does she use a flash or high speed film?

3) Does she ever make any big enlargements (beyond, say, 8x10)?

4) Does she shoot fast moving sports or situations that require a camera that can focus and shoot quickly?

5) Do you have a rough budget for the replacement?

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Monday, November 12, 2007 12:40 PM
      Can some of you camera-smart folks help me out?  We're going to be in the market for a digital camera.  Our last SLR dinosaur is slowly dying.  My wife, the main user of the camera, is the mom at every family or school event that takes a roll of photos, and send reprints to appreciative parents.  What is a good, simple to use (I hope)digital camera for this type of use, and what should a guy expect to pay for one?  Thanks

Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.

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Posted by Modelcar on Sunday, November 11, 2007 7:49 PM

...Yes, Carl...That is still a flood museum.  That is a former A. Carnegie building....I believe that building survived the great 1889 flood....

At one time they transported city buses on that incline.  Not any more of course.  I believe you can still put your automobile on it though.  2" cables are the means of support for the cars.  Of course the weight of both cars...{one's up while the other is down at the bottom}, balance the system and it really doesn't require much power to operate it.  You can see the mechanical  part of it from the new system that is at the top now.  Cables wind on a massive size wheel that even has a large lever and brake material on it.  It's fasinating to watch.  Believe the electric motor {a very old type}, that powers it is only 250 hp...It's been a while since I looked down thru the viewing windows at that stuff.....and I'm trying to remember the figures, etc...

But we've ridden up it with a car many years ago as high school kids.

I agree with you of the comments re: Freight Car America.

Quentin

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Posted by CShaveRR on Sunday, November 11, 2007 3:38 PM

Now that I'm in a lounging attitude (my weekend is just starting!), I just survived a case of fortunate timing.  I knew that my favorite freight train (UP's ZWASKP) was getting close when I left work today, so I adjusted my route home to cross the main line--seven times instead of once.  At the seventh and final crossing, I saw the train coming around the curve.  In spite of the fact that it had only two units (delivering under half of the power it should have rated on UP) and was 67 cars long (as opposed to a "normal" length of 55 big reefers), it was coming through earlier than it has for the past several weeks.  It will probably be in daylight east of Cleveland tomorrow.

My view of the train was almost obscured by a slow-moving train of empty coal gons going in the opposite direction.  Had I stuck around another half-hour I would have caught at least two more trains.

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by CShaveRR on Sunday, November 11, 2007 3:29 PM

Do they still have the Johnstown Flood Museum in what was (I believe) an old library down below?

Last time I rode the incline it had the capability of carrying a vehicle up or down the hill as well--doesn't look like it can do that now.

As for Freight Car America, I guess it's still producing cars there, but one wonders how much longer.  Labor's probably cheaper in Danville and Roanoke.  The handwriting was on the wall when they changed the name to Freight Car America from Johnstown America.

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by Modelcar on Saturday, November 10, 2007 9:02 PM

....Carl:  That restaurant many not have been there at the time of your visit.  The area at the top was updated with the restaurant, small museum of the Johnstown history....and that observation deck that is built out over the drop off...I'd guess perhaps about 20 years ago or so all that was created new at the top of the Incline.

That valley once employed upwards of 25,000 workers in the steel industry....Both Bethlem and USS Steel facilities.  Railroad cars have been built there by the thousands.  Still is a facility {rail cars}, but believe they have min. work now....I really don't know the precise status of it now.  I know they had a big layoff this Spring and or Summer.

It used to be known as Freight Car America. 

That is about 20 miles from our home town.

Quentin

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Posted by CShaveRR on Saturday, November 10, 2007 5:16 PM

Nice!  We were there many, many years ago.  I don't remember a restaurant up top back then, but if we had the chance I'd be inclined to try it out.

Bedtime, must be!

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by Modelcar on Saturday, November 10, 2007 9:36 AM

....Carl, I just never thought about putting up an avatar as I had become so frustrated trying to set up to display photos on here in the past, I just passed it off as....don't even try....ha.  Then one of our posters mentioned how simply to install an avatar yesterday or day before and I found following his instructions, there was nothing difficult about doing that....hence, the current display.

Note: Over on the Diner thread, I explain where the photo was taken.  It has steel wheels and rails connected to the subject.

Quentin

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Posted by CShaveRR on Saturday, November 10, 2007 5:28 AM
Hey, I recognize that guy!  (So does Pat.)  Nice avatar, Quentin!

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by Modelcar on Friday, November 9, 2007 9:45 PM

.....Yes, I believe 765 was built in '49 or '50.  It's in Ft. Wayne.  {And has visited Muncie many times}.

Quentin

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Posted by CopCarSS on Friday, November 9, 2007 4:49 PM

Just got back from picking up a permit at Denver. The BNSF has some industrial trackage down by the public works building. Lo and behold, sitting there along with a yellowbonnet geep was BNSF #1411, a GP10 originally built as a GP7 for the GN in 1950!!! Egads, who'd of thunk that a Class 1 would still be running 1st gen stuff in 2007. She's been around since steam was still ruling the rails on many railroads (weren't there some NKP Berks built in 1949?)

Too bad she wasn't on the point. I couldn't get a decent picture of her where she was. I guess I'll just have to keep an eye out and see if I can get a decent shot of her at some point.

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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Posted by CopCarSS on Friday, November 9, 2007 7:55 AM
 CShaveRR wrote:

I also asked about whether any disruptions/detours were likely in the coming weeks, but got no answer.

I think the chance to detour over some rare-mileage tracks would be worth $4.30, don't you?

Carl - Thanks for the information. I would gladly pay $4.30 just to go over Kate Shelley! The rest of the rare mileage would just be a total bonus!

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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Posted by CShaveRR on Thursday, November 8, 2007 8:26 PM

Chris, here's what happened in the most recent instance (from TrainOrders.com):

Service Alert:

Eastbound
California Zephyr Train 6 - No Service For Passengers BOARDING between Creston, Iowa and Naperville

Tuesday, November 6 Only

On November 6, eastbound Train 6 (originating in Emeryville, CA, on November 4) will operate on an alternate route and will not make any stops between Omaha and Chicago, due to track work being performed by BNSF Railway. As a result, eastbound service will not be provided FROM the following stations:

Creston, Osceola, Ottumwa, Mount Pleasant and Burlington, IA

Galesburg, Princeton and Naperville, IL

Motorcoach service will be provided TO these stations. Eastbound passengers traveling to these stations will detrain at Omaha, where motorcoach service will be provided to their destination. Please note: Passengers may not board at these locations. The motorcoach will discharge passengers only.

Naperville Travel Alternative
Metra commuter service is also available between Chicago and Naperville. Passengers destined for Naperville may choose to remain on the train until it arrives at Chicago. At Chicago Union Station, passengers may purchase a Metra ticket for $4.30 (at their own expense) and board the Metra Burlington Northern commuter train to Naperville. For Metra schedules and other information, call (312) 836-7000 or visit www.metrarail.com.

We appreciate your patronage and apologize for any inconvenience.

PSN 1107-208

I also asked about whether any disruptions/detours were likely in the coming weeks, but got no answer.

I think the chance to detour over some rare-mileage tracks would be worth $4.30, don't you?

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by CopCarSS on Thursday, November 8, 2007 8:16 AM

Morning All,

Thanks for the nice comments on the PPG shot! And dd, thanks for the info on the CZ. If they do route me to Chicago with plans of busing me to Naperville, I might just jump on a dinky and head back into Aurora. I actually did that from NPV a couple time before I showed my Mom how to get to the Naperville station.

Meanwhile, it's been awhile since I've been out and about on the Moffat Line, so I'm thinking about heading up that way this weekend. I guess I had better go check the weather first. A sunny day in Denver can be a blizzard up by the tunnel!

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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Posted by blhanel on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 10:25 PM

I would guess that they would do the same here if it had to detour again- it wouldn't surprise me to see the CZ stop at Beverly to transfer Mt. Pleasant's arrivals/departures from/to a bus, as it's just an hour ride straight south.

PM on the way, Chris, just in case Carl's out of touch.Big Smile [:D]

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Posted by dldance on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 7:51 PM
 CopCarSS wrote:

That works, Carl. Will be in touch if there's any interesting happenings.

BTW, how does Amtrak deal with stations not covered in the re-route? I know the two routes roughly parallel each other, but apart from Omaha and Chicago, I don't think there are any shared cities.

So speaking both from the curiosity of a railfan, and someone who would potentially be affected (unless the UP has re-routed itself through Naperville since last time I was back home Wink [;)]), I am a little curious about how they take care of the passengers.

When the CZ was rerouted across Wyoming - IIRC Amtrak bussed passengers to/from Grand Junction to Denver and to/from Provo to SLC while suspending service to smaller stations in between such as Helper, Green River and Winter Park.  No stops were made in Wyoming.  I would expect similar service adjustments between Omaha and Chicago.

dd

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Posted by CNW 6000 on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 4:23 PM
Nice shot Chris!

Dan

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Posted by spokyone on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 4:11 PM
Congrats Chris on your pic. I looked at many other pics. They are great indeed, but I guess I like to look at RR pics better.
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Posted by TimChgo9 on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 3:01 PM
 CopCarSS wrote:

Sweet! I'll be in touch with you probably towards the end of next week when the weather picture should be a little clearer (gads, that's a terrible attempt at being punny).

Meanwhile, this morning brought me some great news. I finally made the cut over at the Pentax Photo Gallery! PPG is an online photo gallery that features the best work from Pentaxians worldwide. I've tried with 23 shots so far and none have gotten in. This morning, I found this on the website.

Interestingly enough, of the shots that I submitted, I thought this had little or no chance. Maybe it helps that it's from Pentax USA's hometown (Golden, CO). Wink [;)]

Now I just have to see about getting a couple more in there! I guess that means I had better find another 23 shots so I can get one in!

BTW, I recommend everyone stopping in and taking a look at some of the stuff presented at PPG, especially in the "Premier Collection." There is some simply stunning work in there. You can enter the main page here.

Chris... that is an awesome shot!  I love it.  Congratulations.

"Chairman of the Awkward Squad" "We live in an amazing, amazing world that is just wasted on the biggest generation of spoiled idiots." Flashing red lights are a warning.....heed it. " I don't give a hoot about what people have to say, I'm laughing as I'm analyzed" What if the "hokey pokey" is what it's all about?? View photos at: http://www.eyefetch.com/profile.aspx?user=timChgo9
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Posted by CopCarSS on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 2:41 PM

That works, Carl. Will be in touch if there's any interesting happenings.

BTW, how does Amtrak deal with stations not covered in the re-route? I know the two routes roughly parallel each other, but apart from Omaha and Chicago, I don't think there are any shared cities.

So speaking both from the curiosity of a railfan, and someone who would potentially be affected (unless the UP has re-routed itself through Naperville since last time I was back home Wink [;)]), I am a little curious about how they take care of the passengers.

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 2:20 PM
Chris, if the situation comes up I'd be happy to relay--for more reasons than one!

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by CopCarSS on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 2:08 PM

Carl - I do think that Mooks liked that one. If all else fails, the train has some of her favorite tank cars on the rear. Mischief [:-,]

Brian - I'll be on the CZ a week from today. I'll do my best to pester the crew and find out if we'll be using a different set of tracks. If you send me your phone number, I'll give you a call if I can do so at a reasonable hour.

I do know that they e-mailed me a modified schedule. Haven't really looked at what changed on it, though. Still have a mountain of paperwork on my desk that needs to be completed before I can even begin to think about my trip.

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 1:15 PM
Probably would have been too dark for you to shoot it in your regular haunts, Brian.  I think I was asleep when it finally got here (though I would have used eyelid-jacks had I known about it!).

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by blhanel on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 1:09 PM
 CShaveRR wrote:

Just got some bad news of sorts:  remember when we were talking last month about Amtrak detouring over the former CNW because of BNSF trackwork in Iowa?  Well, it happened yesterday--the eastbound California Zephyr took the UP and arrived at Chicago a good five hours later than normal (they scheduled it for about a 30-mph average--probably due to traffic considerations).

//grumble-grumbleCensored [censored]

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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 10:52 AM

That did it, Chris!  Nice bio, and nice shot!  Isn't that the one that Mookie commented on very positively a while back?  She was right!

Back to work--out of the four large maples in our back yard, only one has lost most of its leaves.  Another is thinning out, but the two remaining ones are still green!

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by CopCarSS on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 10:38 AM

Carl- The links should be fixed now. I forgot to add "http://" in front of "www."

JSGreen - Thanks! The watermark gets added by the gallery folks. They specifically request that you not have any watermarks or borders on submitted shots.

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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Posted by JSGreen on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 10:06 AM

Nice picture, Chris.  Congradulations!

Was the copyright info watermark on your original submission, or did the photo site people add that? 

...I may have a one track mind, but at least it's not Narrow (gauge) Wink.....
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Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 9:28 AM

Our congratulations, Chris!  Couldn't get your link to do anything, but will look as soon as I can.

Just got some bad news of sorts:  remember when we were talking last month about Amtrak detouring over the former CNW because of BNSF trackwork in Iowa?  Well, it happened yesterday--the eastbound California Zephyr took the UP and arrived at Chicago a good five hours later than normal (they scheduled it for about a 30-mph average--probably due to traffic considerations).

The detour was due to the replacement of a diamond on the BNSF in Ottumwa, Iowa.

Out for leaf detail on this brisk but sunny morning--I'll keep an ear out for trains going past.

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

  • Member since
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Posted by CopCarSS on Wednesday, November 7, 2007 9:10 AM

Sweet! I'll be in touch with you probably towards the end of next week when the weather picture should be a little clearer (gads, that's a terrible attempt at being punny).

Meanwhile, this morning brought me some great news. I finally made the cut over at the Pentax Photo Gallery! PPG is an online photo gallery that features the best work from Pentaxians worldwide. I've tried with 23 shots so far and none have gotten in. This morning, I found this on the website.

Interestingly enough, of the shots that I submitted, I thought this had little or no chance. Maybe it helps that it's from Pentax USA's hometown (Golden, CO). Wink [;)]

Now I just have to see about getting a couple more in there! I guess that means I had better find another 23 shots so I can get one in!

BTW, I recommend everyone stopping in and taking a look at some of the stuff presented at PPG, especially in the "Premier Collection." There is some simply stunning work in there. You can enter the main page here.

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

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