Blair Terry and his father Brien are pictured here in front of the “Back to the Future” motion picture locomotive while on a vacation trip to Universal Studio in Orlando, FL, April 6, 2016.
There is no submission for this feature this month. If you have a “spot” you’d like to submit, please do so. Get a photo that does not reveal the location. If you have an old photo but it contains the location, drop it off at Coldwell Banker Terry & Associates, 1096 North Main St, Madisonville, and I will scan it, then return the photo to you. I can “fuzz” out the identity if necessary. Please put your photo in an envelop clearly marked with my name, your name, phone number, email, etc. Mona Forker, our receptionist will put it in my mail box.
Well, we’ve experienced another tragedy in the railroad industry. As I’m sure all have heard, two Amtrak track workers were killed earlier this month due to what looks like human error or some sort of communication glitch. Either way, we should send up a prayer for their families.
It is a strong reminder how quickly a situation can turn deadly when multiple tons of massed energy are speeding down the tracks. Take time to check your surroundings when standing track-side. It occasionally occurs to me to think about my escape route should a passing train derail—granted, the chances are slim– but when so close to such machinery it crosses our minds.
Also take time to do an amateur inspection of track, possible obstructions, etc. in your location. As impersonal as the major railroads may seem these days, they don’t put those 800 numbers on the cross bucks for nothing. Put the numbers in your smart phones. I know we’ve had chapter members report broken rail and stuck air horns in the past.
So let’s be good neighbors and wisely choose our photo spots and watching locations as we continue to enjoy plenty of RR activity in our area and abroad.
Keep the news and pictures coming! Bill
By Bill Farrell, President, West Kentucky Chapter of the NRHS
The time sure has passed since our last meeting; it just seems like last week we were conducting the March meeting. All the membership cards have been mailed out to the membership. If you have not received yours please contact me so I can re-issue a new card.
This is the second issue of the “Pennyrail”, by Bill Thomas this year. Matt in the past did a great job with the news letter. Bill is doing a great job of dissemination of information to the club members. If you have anything worth publishing in the “Pennyrail” please submit it to Bill for publication. I think we need to have a deadline on information to Bill in order to give him time to assemble the newsletter. We can talk about it in the meeting on Monday evening.
I hope everyone had a chance to get out and get a picture for the photography contest. All pictures needed to be submitted to Jim Pearson by April 11th. Jim will announce the winners at the April Monday evening. If you have one of the trophies from the last photo contest please bring it with you or try to get it back in time for the meeting. Blair and I were in Florida last week for spring break and got some great pictures of the Florida East Coast Railroad. Needless to say I thought about all of you in Kentucky with the cool weather.
I need to set a date for a work day on the modular layout. It is very close to completion and we need to get the modules out to the members that want them. All we need to do is plaster cloth the top, wiring, and insert the legs. We need to do this within the next three week and get this project out of the way and into the hands of the members. In the last meeting the membership agreed that a module can go to a non Western Kentucky Chapter/NRHS member. So if you know of someone who is interested in “O” scale railroading and they would like to be part of the modular group invite them.
Remember to bring “Show and Tell” along with Raffle items to the meeting. This month refreshments will be provided by Betty & Donny Knight, the program by Thomas Bryan.
Chapter member, Bill Corum got out with the action while CSX crews replaced rail along their main line between Madisonville and Earlington, KY, earlier this month. – Photos by Bill Corum
The other entries were:
We will have our chapter member photo contest from April 1-8th for shooting and email your entry(s) (no more than two entries per member) to Jim Pearson by the 12th of April. Open subject as long as it’s train related. You have to be a chapter member to participate.
Send entries to: jim@jimpearsonphotography.com.
Jim will judge and have results at the April meeting.
We will produce a club calendar for 2017 from the photos submitted.
We hope you get out and participate!!
Our chapter member Jim Pearson produced this timelapse of CSX changing out the switch at Mortons Junction, Mortons Gap, Ky. He used his Nikon D800 to shoot a photo every 2 seconds and shot for a total of 8 hours which resulted in the video you see here.
Title – Montana Rail Link, EMDs in the Rockies Volume 1, The East End
Producer – C. Vision Productions
Format – DVD Wide Screen
Playing Time – 2 hrs.
Purchased From – Trainvideodepot.com
Date Purchased – 3/3/16
Price Paid – $26.95
Yes, my fellow Chapter members, yet another Montana Rail Link video review. Sorry, but I had short notice that we were going to resume my reviews and this is the best I can do for this month.
I have videos on the MRL by Pentrex, by Plets Express, by 7idea Productions, by Highball Productions, and now by C. Vision Productions. That might give you the impression that the Montana Rail Link is one of my favorite railroads. Yep, it is.
This is Volume 1, which covers the eastern half of the MRL, as the title indicates. MRL mainline Subdivisions 1 and 2 are included but we also see some of subdivisions 5, 6, and 13. We travel west from Jones Junction, the eastern terminus of the MRL, to Helena, MT, the western end of Subdivision 2.
Some of the geographic features we encounter are: the Yellowstone River, Bozeman Pass, Winston Hill, and Jefferson Canyon, a truly beautiful location.
The MRL put some SD-45’s back into service in 2014 and these are seen in action in this video.
C. Vision did a fantastic job in producing this video. Montana’s beautiful scenery is presented in wide screen format with top notch video quality. The railroad action is good with a variety of freight behind those gorgeous locomotives proudly displaying their deep blue MRL livery. Maps are used to keep the viewer aware of his location along the route and the narration keeps him informed about the action he is watching. I cannot think of any way that this video could have been improved. I highly recommend it.
I guarantee you that I will be purchasing Volume 2 when it becomes available.
To the left you see a picture of my Papaw (my mother’s father) holding me on his knee, about 1965. Mamaw seems to be coaxing me to smile. This shot was taken at my aunt’s and uncle’s home on Hog Jowl Road, Walker Co. GA, about 10 miles from the TAG (Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia RR) as the crow flies. I owe this man my interest in trains. He spent countless hours running me all over Chattanooga, TN, chasing trains. I later learned he did the same to my mother. I saw TVRM in its infancy but didn’t know it. The Incline Rwy was always a special treat. Southern’s Big John cement hoppers rumbled by their home in Redbank 2-3 times a day. Precious memories. Send me your memories in print and I’ll publish them for all to enjoy. It’s a great way to share, inspire, and keep the memories alive! – Bill Thomas, Editor
Rick Bivins’ model mountain and bridge in process and after his friend Josh added some color. Click on photos to view larger. – Photos by Rick Bivins