That Seventies Issue - TRAINS

[eolafan]

Thanks to the staff and writers at TAINS magazine for the latest issue dealing with the 1970's. I lived right through that decade and it was my first full decade of being a railfan, so I especially recall it with fondness. The issue brought back many fond memories of a very colorful and interesting time in railroading where I lived at the time (Wausau, WI and Chicago, IL). Jim

[Anonymous]

Nostalgia is nice, but I can't say I care for the sharp turn of the magazine away from today's railroad issues and back towards fandom. I think a lot of the gains seen in Mark Hemphill's tenure such as industry advertising and greater discussions of the here and now in actual railroading terms are endangered. And yes I have seen that the typical here and now columns on locomotives and the industry today have been retained and I applaud that. When TRAINS serves to inform fans and the industry both I think it provides more value everywhere. Having lived through the 70s and seen the changes and hardships I also thought the flip title based on the TV show was lame.

LC

[Anonymous]

TRAINS has always had non-contemporary features. I bought it in the '60s to learn hwhat it was all about as a foundation. Same goes for today. I agree with Jay.
If we didn't have these types of features, all it would be is a million pics of BNSF, UP, NS, and CSX motive power with a pic or two of a recent dinner train.
Mitch

[richardy]

I hope Railroad Reading has not been dumped. I always enjoy first person short stories and appreciated that I could read them each month. A long story on the seventies is one thing but a whole issue? By devoting the whole issue to the seventies it turns off those that would rather forget the era. I hope this is not a trend, if so I don't like where the magazine is going but then the editors probably don't care what I like. I'll wait for the April issue before I make a final decision.

[adrianspeeder]

Man the 70's seem like a looooooog time ago. What were the dinosaurs like then?

Adrianspeeder

ps: hehehehehehe

[eolafan]

I agree that one extreme or another, being either 100% nostalgia or 100% contemporary issues would not be for me, but a reasonable mix is what I am looking for from TRAINS, and I believe we are seeing just that currently.

[SrBldr]

I just recieved my first issue last week and really am enjoying the Magazine. I just got my That 70's issue yesterday the 29th so have not had a chance to look at it.
And the 70's were not all that long ago. I remember watching the old huge steam engines in the late 50's pulling long trains out of Ogden heading east.
SrBldr[:)]

[JoeKoh]

Matt liked the issue because of the "kitty" on the cover.Being born in 1970 it helps explain some of the whats and whys the changes that took place while i was growing up.I think trains does a good job in mixing the past the present and what might become in the railroad industry.
stay safe
Joe

[Anonymous]

TRAINS has always mixed the past with the present. Nothing has changed with this issue.

[Modelcar]

...I'd just like to get the current issue....

[daveklepper]

I like the issue in general, but there were a few examples of the magazine trying to be

"CUTE"

and I prefer not having that kind of thing in Trains. Good autobiographical stories are fine, but comparing a railroad system with some fictional television characters was a waste of space in my opinion, and I think many readers agree.

[Anonymous]

This was not their first issue of a single topic/theme. Never cared for the concept. Seems like mountain passes was the previous one but last month's long article on the UP nearly took over the whole magazine.

Sometimes I think it's the art department that takes over from the editorial personnel. Borders around articles use up a lot of white space - you have a much larger 'gutter' with the rule running down the middle. If they want to create blank paper to make the issue thicker, I'd rather they go back to having an m quad, or at least a double space, after the period at the end of a sentence.

Once your eyesight goes, those periods get lost in the shuffle!. I've had to re-read several times because of the run-on effect the 'missing' period provides.

Art, the Septugenian, but for only two more years.

[locomutt]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Modelcar

...I'd just like to get the current issue....

[#ditto] I'm with "Modelcar", haven't gotten new issue yet!

[espeefoamer]

I'm still waiting for my issue to come in the mail.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by artmark

TRAINS has always had non-contemporary features. I bought it in the '60s to learn hwhat it was all about as a foundation. Same goes for today. I agree with Jay.
If we didn't have these types of features, all it would be is a million pics of BNSF, UP, NS, and CSX motive power with a pic or two of a recent dinner train.
Mitch

Mitch-

You are missing my point. It is not one feature about the past we are talking about here. It is a change of direction. First, ALL the feature articles in the March issue are from the 70s. By my count there are 14 feature articles inthe issue all dealing with the 70s. I find some quite interesting, but I read Classic TRAINS when I want a complete magazine about the past. Also, as others have noted Railroad Reading has disappeared, Mark Hemphill's column is gone (although Mark did write the SP article which is most interesting) and the look and feel is definitely changing.

Obviously Jim Wrinn needs to find his footing as Editor and perhaps future issues will be different, but I hope we're not seeing a new trend that will again split TRAINS core audience both railfans and railroaders.

LC

[cnw4001]

I too am among those who subscribe to Trains for news more than memories. I enjoy the retrospectives but the last time my subscription was not renewed the magazine had most of the space devoted to the past. Mark's efforts at becoming more contemporary were among the reasons I again subscribed.

As has been pointed out there is a new editor and he'll have to do a bit of trial and error while making his view of the publication known.

My only wish is that Trains would cover more of the exciting things which are happening outside North America.

Dale

[Anonymous]

QUOTE:
My only wish is that Trains would cover more of the exciting things which are happening outside North America.

There was an issue a while back about all the railway in Iraq.
I saw the cover and didn't think I would be interested, but I did read it and was pleasantly surprised.

I, however, really am not too interested in RRing outside of North America, there are PLENTY of magazines out there all about British Railways, and what not, if I want to read about them, I'll just buy one of those ones.

[Anonymous]

This issue is an interesting one. I like the idea of viewing Trains by the decade.

There has been some truly excellent writing in TRAIN magazine this past year, but this issues article on the demise of the ROCK ISLAND railroad is not one of them. In fact, it is the type of writing I don't expect to see in any good magazine.

The author writes like a burned out hippie left over from the '60s. We don't really need to hear about his angst, politics, girlfriends, bad manners, or anything else. This magazine is about TRAINS, not about Me, Me, Me.

Whatever his problem, it's way past time to get over it. And it's time for the Editor to be more selective.

[joesap1]

Boy, this new issue has certainly got some dander up. I, like some others, have yet to receive the "70's Issue."
I agree with what has been said about variety. I like news about the past and the present. Phillips and Hemphill's columns are excellent. Railroad Reading is always good for a chuckle and a fond rememberance.
Let's hope that this issue is only a one time deal and that things return to normal next month.
Does the new editor ever peruse these forums?

[Anonymous]

Does the new editor ever peruse these forums?

[Anonymous]

There is an excellent photo on page 92-93 of a CRI&P train leaving northbound from Manly, Iowa. My Dad was a CRI&P telegraph op there in the '20s. 3 railroads crossed there and they would handle over a hundred trains per day on multiple tracks. Mom recalled there were many days when he would return from work with his lunchbox unopened due to no time to eat. Manly, Iowa is much quieter now.

Just 5 miles up the track north of where this photo was taken is the town of Kensett, Iowa. In 1934 he was station agent there and that's where I was born. [:)]

[Anonymous]

Regarding the issue of past vs present, can it not be said that the old adage might hold true here, e.g. learn from the past to apply actions for the future? On that point, I will agree the 70's issue isn't all it could have been, in that it didn't really connect the actions of 1970's railroading with today's rail issues. Only the article on SP can be said to make such connections between then and now, although there were a few historical errors, nothing major.

For example, I would have liked for Greg McDonnell's short piece on the Milwaukee Road to have mentioned how the Milwaukee retrenchment left the Northern Tier States under virtual monopolistic control of BN/BNSF. He also could have better explored some of the holes in the arguments that allowed for the PCE retrenchment, given that the subject was dissected into explicit and suprising revelations on this very forum. Certainly the way the Milwaukee was withdrawn from the PNW has left a lot of unanswered questions.

The article on the formation of Amtrak certainly has relevence for the current hot issues regarding Amtrak today.

I also wi***he Penn Central blurb would have been a little more indepth.

The "That 70's Look" logo is kitsch, but so are pro-Amtrak articles, so its par the fhe course.

[Anonymous]

Are we really sure that the 70's issue is the brainstorm of the new editor? An issue is a long time in the making; I am pretty sure that the staff has several issues in various stages while planning waaaay ahead. Mark Hemphill would be one who could say what the time span is between the initial plan date and the delivery date to the hobby dealer or your mail box.
Art

[Anonymous]

Maybe its because Im new to this whole hobby an all, but I thought the 70s issue was great. Not everyone was alive during the 70s such as myself so it was a great learning tool. Have subscribed to Trains for a year now, going on to my 2nd and never thought once that it wasent worth the money. When the day comes that I become as smart as you all about railroading, maybe I'll take what I read differently and complain and nit pick more often, but Im not like that so I doubt that will ever happens. Lets hope not.[:)]

Steve

[Mookie]

Here is a perfect example of what a good forum should be: The grass is green/purple, the sun is yellow/blue, Trains is/isn't.

When we quit disagreeing, there will be no more forum.

Long live the forum and Trains Magazine!

Mook

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

I received the new issue this past weekend and I found it to be quite interesting since it goes back to my college days and the years immediately afterward. The article about Erie Lackawanna was interesting because it showed how its final collapse was a long time coming.

I may not be completely interested in every article in every issue of TRAINS when I first get it out of the mailbox but they're all worth reading and within a few days I have read and re-read the issue from cover to cover and find myself to be satisfied and eagerly awaiting next month's issue.

To futuremodal: Your plea for subsidized grain rates out of Montana and your rant against BNSF's so-called monopoly is starting to wear thin, especially when you place it in every thread imaginable. There may be many unanswered questions about MILW's retrenchment and since the clock can't be reversed, they will probably stay that way. The statute of limitations has long since expired if any criminal matters are involved.

[espeefoamer]

Now that I know there's an SP areticle in the new isasue I can't wait 'till it comes[:p].

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CSSHEGEWISCH

To futuremodal: Your plea for subsidized grain rates out of Montana and your rant against BNSF's so-called monopoly is starting to wear thin, especially when you place it in every thread imaginable. There may be many unanswered questions about MILW's retrenchment and since the clock can't be reversed, they will probably stay that way. The statute of limitations has long since expired if any criminal matters are involved.

C'mon, CSSHE, don't be so blatantly disingenuous regarding what I say. No one said anything about subsidizing grain rates out of Montana, rather we lament the fact that there is no real rail competition out of Montana since the retrenchment of Milwaukee. If what you are inferring is that the wish for the feds to mitigate the situation and provide the groundwork for a second Class I across the Norther Tier would somehow be a subsidy, you are wrong. Mitigation is not subsidy, and there is no statute of limitations on righting a wrong.

Unless you think that any government action that benefits one party to the detriment of another is a subsidy. If that's the case, then it can also be argued that the decision by the feds to allow the Milwaukee to pull up its tracks west of Miles City is a direct subsidy to BN/BNSF, since it allowed BN to basically double its grain moving charges, all other things being equal. No one at this time is saying that anything criminal occurred, rather misplaced regulatory action was taken that resulted in extreme hardship for these folks over the last two decades.

You can call it a rant or whatever term you need to help you alleviate your collective guilt over the situation, but the fact remains that the rates BNSF charges out of Montana are double what they should be given a truly competitive market. Logic dictates grain moving rates should be in the $20/mt range, not the $40/mt range. It doesn't take a rocket economist to know that this practice is monopolistic, cut and dried. When the profits from every third crop are going straight into BNSF's bank account, something is seriously amiss.

[oltmannd]

Let the shippers ship by truck, or air, or UPS or first class mail or let'em build their own RR! The shippers have access to the same capital markets the RRs do. There is nothing stopping them from building out to whereever they want to go.

Or, according to your logic, if the farmers can't make any money in their current situation, they should move and/or find another line of work. Nobody is holding them hostage.

It's bad enough BNSF has to compete against subsidized truckers. You want BNSF to subsidize famers? Subsidization of farmers is the government's job!

[locomutt]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Mookie

Here is a perfect example of what a good forum should be: The grass is green/purple, the sun is yellow/blue, Trains is/isn't.

When we quit disagreeing, there will be no more forum.

Long live the forum and Trains Magazine!

Mook

Mookie,THAT is very well said,lets hope both continue for quite awhile!

NOW: Good News/Bad News about the latest issue of "Trains"!

The Good News: It arrived in the mail today!!![:p][:)]

The Bad News: CW got it first,and I'm going to have to wait a bit longer
to read it!!![:(][:(][:(][xx(]