Come on back to the caboose and get a cup of coffee [or sweet ice tea] Part IV

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Can we get the Chief to proclaim National Train Day in Roseyvile?
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NATIONAL TRAIN DAY:

To raise awareness of the vital role rail plays in our nation's transportation system, Amtrak announced today that it will celebrate its first annual National Train Day during six weeks of celebrations culminating on Saturday, May 10, 2008. "With ridership growing to record levels, we continue to see a strong demand for rail travel as a link between growing communities," said Alex Kummant, President and CEO of Amtrak. "Passenger and freight service is on the rise, and there's never been a better time to celebrate the railroad industry and passenger rail service in the U.S." Amtrak's celebration of National Train Day will begin six weeks prior to May 10 with special promotions, events, partnerships and an advertising campaign.

On May 10 Amtrak will host events at four of its largest stations, Washington, New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, where visitors may take part in a variety of activities including live musical perform ances, exhibits, trip planning, VIP appearances and trip giveaways. Serving as spokesperson for National Train Day is television personality Al Roker. Mr. Roker will experience, first-hand, the benefits of rail travel when he travels from New York to Washington, by train, for the day's festivities. "I'm thrilled to be a part of Amtrak's National Train Day because as a native New Yorker, I can attest to the vital role trains play in our everyday lives," Roker said. "Whether it's a quick business trip or a leisurely vacation, the train is a great way to get there."
  • Growing Popularity: Al Roker is not alone. Amtrak's ridership and revenue have never been stronger. During fiscal year 2007, more than 25.8 million passengers traveled on Amtrak, setting a record for the most passengers ever since Amtrak began operation in 1971. Total ticket revenue for fiscal year 2007 was more than $1.5 billion, an increase of 11 percent over the previous year. It was the fifth straight year of increases for Amtrak, and the trend continues. For the first quarter of fiscal year 2008, more than 7 million passengers traveled on Amtrak, an increase of 11 percent, and revenue was up 14.6 percent to more than $434 million. "Increasingly Americans are turning to rail to complement other modes of transportation," said Kummant. "With more than 500 stations in 46 states, Amtrak is a relevant transportation option for many Americans whether they live in small towns or in large metropolitan areas."
  • Travel Green: More than just a convenient way to travel, Amtrak is also energy efficient. Traveling by rail contributes less per passenger mile to greenhouse gas emissions than either cars or airplanes. According to U.S. Department of Energy data, Amtrak is 17 percent more efficient than domestic airline travel and 21 percent more efficient than auto travel on a per-passenger-mile basis. When combined with all modes of transportation, passenger railroads emit only 0.2 percent of the travel industry's total greenhouse gases. In addition, Amtrak is a charter member of the growing Chicago Climate Exchange, the world's first legally-binding integrated greenhouse gas reduction and trading system. When Amtrak joined the Exchange in 2003, it committed to cutting diesel emissions by 6 percent by 2010. This represents the largest percentage of reduction committed to in the United States on a voluntary basis and is the first commitment made by a transportation company. By choosing to tra vel by rail, Amtrak passengers are already a step ahead because the carbon footprint generated by their trip is smaller than that of most other modes of transportation.
  • Heritage and Future: The date of National Train Day, May 10, holds special meaning as it is the anniversary of the completion of the first transcontinental railroad at Promontory Point, Utah in 1869. At Promontory Point, the east coast and west coast were connected for the first time by rail. From Promontory Point in 1869 to the creation of Amtrak in 1970 to the launch of Acela Express in 2000, Amtrak employees across the country will celebrate the history of train travel while looking towards the future on National Train Day.
For more information on National Train Day and planned events, visit NationalTrainDay.com. Event details will be announced as they become available. (Amtrak - - posted 3/03)

Don....Thank you very much for the package. It was on the doorstep when I arrived home from work. :thumb:

 

jeffrey-wimberl

Active Member
It's official! I now have my Athearn BB F7 A-B set under DCC control. They're running well with no flickers or shorts. I did a speed test on them and I can't believe how fast they were going. They outran my Proto 2000 PA-1, and it's a speed demon. Right now I have the throttle turned one inch and they're running a scale 45 mph. They can creep really slow too. I'm going to have to get more of these DZ125's when I can afford them. Let's see, I have a $132 tax refund coming in, I wonder...
 

Chief Eagles

Active Member
Will do Buckeye. Bad storms running around NC now. Hope we get more rain out of this stuff. Wind is spinning that John Deere windmill. Glad it is bolted to a big thick [tractor with forklift on back could hardly lift it] block of white granite. Have not had time to unpack and program my new Lionel SD80 NS. Still in box. Dr's apt went well. Tummy and esophagus are fine. Might have a big curve in small intestine right under my lower left rib. Dr. is going to check that out. Got severe pain there at times. If so, do I get another zipper except this one would be on the side and not down the breastbone. :eek: Doug and all others feeling puney, get well. Later
 

Brutus

Member
Chief, is that diverticulosis? If so, it's what some test showed I had when they were looking for stones. I can't find that test report now, I guess I lost it. Added even more fiber to my diet and seems to be doing better....

Laz, my buddy Jeff swears by Bourbon and Thera-flu, but I would rather die! :eek: Sounds pretty horrible to me!

Big days for Kurt and Jeffrey today - sounds like some excellent buys, guys :thumb: I love those docksiders and have 3 of them now, the LL, Transylvania and Copper Range. Jeffrey, I have DCC from an HO set I bought before and I'm holding onto it in case I do some On30 on my layout, we'll see. Sounds like a great upgrade and I might be asking you some questions about it one of these days. In the meantime, sounds great and glad to hear it worked so well :thumb:

Jefelectric, you just wait and you'll be changing great grandchildren before you know it :rolleyes:

Chuck - National Train Day, must be in the stars :thumb:
 

Chief Eagles

Active Member
Jim, strange thing is, it hurts sometimes when you don't eat. We'll see. Oinkers are something. Sure is bad that Oink led that guy to paint his water dark blue. Man is wading in a stream fishing. That means he is in shallow water. That means probably clear and you can see the bottom and rocks. Oink will be scrambling to do some recovering and try to make us look bad. Raining hard. Beating down some. Tried engine and it has problems. Charles advertised it new. Had been run and has sound problems too. Not like them to misgrade one like that. He'll take it back. Sent him an email. Later
 

kpolak

Member
Big days for Kurt and Jeffrey today - sounds like some excellent buys, guys :thumb: I love those docksiders and have 3 of them now, the LL, Transylvania and Copper Range. Sounds like a great upgrade and I might be asking you some questions about it one of these days. In the meantime, sounds great and glad to hear it worked so well :thumb:

I'm still thinking of the LL docksider....HHhmmm....I think I need to spend some $$ on the layout and get it going, before I spend any more on trains. I saw some Korber models, and am thinking about them, or maybe some Ameritown stuff just to get things going.

Brutus: Hope Chewy is OK!

Chief: Is this fallout from your trip?

3+ inches of snow here, and still light snow comming down.

Been reading Heratics, GK Chesterton on online (free) at Project Gutenburgh...Interesting written in 1900's, and populace views seem to be similar to today.

Kurt
 

dwiemer

Member
Chief, hope they used a different scope than the one they use to check the "other" end.:eek: Glad things checked out OK so far, but I know you want the issue resolved.
Doug, hope you and the family are on the mend. We have had revolving health issues. With kids, it is going to happen.:cry:
Brutus, thanks for keeping me in mind.
I have 3 Docksiders and love them. I know the Whizzer sound makes some look down on them, but I have some other sound effects units to use. I would love to have these with Legacy and use them in yard work.:cool:
Well, better run as I have a early case.
Take care and God Bless,
Dennis
 
Chief, hope they used a different scope than the one they use to check the "other" end.:eek: Glad things checked out OK so far, but I know you want the issue resolved.

In Roseyville they only have one scope and it goes both ways 24/7 :mrgreen:

In snowed. That was a surprise. :-o

Off to work.
 
Good Morning..............
Well, it isn't raining. A little snow. 28 degrees. Going up to 36 today with cloudy skies.
Today, I am driving up to Cambridge for groceries. It will be a fun trip. Gas is at $3.09 a gallon. I found coffe on sale for 2 dollars less, locally. Food prices are high.
Time to have breakfast in the Dining car.
Everyone have a nice day,
Chuck
 
L

laz57

HI GIZ,
Well got about 3 inches o rain last nite very heavy at times woke me up twice. Got a little water in basement not to much. No train damage.
BRUTUS, YUK Bourbon and Thera flu? I'll stick with grandfathers ROCK & RYE. At least it tasted good.
Have a good one.
B GOOD or B GONE,
laz57
 

spankybird

OTTS Founder
Good Morning All from NE Ohio
where we have Snow on top of 1/4" to 1/2" of Ice! :eek:

don't forget to vote on the photo contest http://forum.zealot.com/t157210/

Don - thanks for the package, it will be a great help at the museum. I will send you a letter for your tax deduction.

Chuck & Buckeye - Willoughby is planning a "It's history of the rails" days. We are contacting all the local clubs and museums to have displays, so OTTS and the museum along with NMRA Div 5 will be there.

Speaking of Div 5, don't forget the big train show at Lakeland Community College on March 15 and 16. 4 gyms full of trains!
 

Chief Eagles

Active Member
Morning all. Kurt, get one of those Docksiders and put the mini commander kit in it. In fact, Mother Nature and I will send you and St J. some snow. :eek::wave::twisted: Breakfast time [bacon and waffles]. Need coffee. Had coughing spell about midnight and had to take some cough meds. [codeine] and need to sober up. Sunny and cooler after a big line [well several big lines] of storms went through about midnight. Got lots of rain. Later
 

TomPM

Another Fried Egg Fan
Good morning folks

Is this still March? It was 55 F as I left this morning. High today is supposed to reach 56 F and then start falling. We had some heavy rain and wind overnight. Branches were down all over the neighborhood. Twice during the night once around 1 AM and the second time around 4:30 AM I was awaken by very loud thunderstorms rolling through.

I finally figured out a way to hang the backdrop without destroying half the layout and was able to do a photo session. This meant that I had to tidy up some more of the layout.

Yesterday’s meetings went sort of as expected. Two went through fine. The third was a battle. One of the consultants started to get mad and testy with me. I guess it was a case of how dare I ask them to follow the rules and criteria. They will be resubmitting the corrected project at a later date.

I hope everybody has a good day.
 

jeffrey-wimberl

Active Member
Good morning.

It's 37 and clear. Expecting a high of 68 and getting partly cloudy toward late afternoon.

I did the installation of my new Digitrax DZ125 decoders into my Athearn BB F7 A-B set last night. The two locos are running like champs and pulling like crazy.

Today's Weather for:
Sundown, LA 71446-6114 3/5/2008


Wind Chill: 32°F
Humidity: 90%
Dew Point: 33°F

So Far Today
High: 37°F
Low: 35°F
Rain: 0.00"
Rain Rate: 0.00"/h
Gust: 5mph SE

Today High: 68 Sunny...warmer. Highs in the upper 60s. South winds around 10 mph.

Tonight Low: 48 Partly cloudy. Not as cool. Lows in the upper 40s. South winds around 10 mph in the evening becoming light and variable.

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sir james

Member
Good morning, SE Mi. is covered with snow again 61/2 inches in the driveway. Schools closed again so wife is babysitting till after 3, Guess that leaves me with trains. which I could do anyway.Later all,,,S.J. :cool:
 

jefelectric

Member
Good morning,

We had 2.3" of rain in the last 24, it looks to be about over for now. Sure glad it wasn't snow. Had a little water in one area of the layout again. Need to get out when it dries off and do some caulking. That is the second time in a couple of months and hadn't had any water problems for years. It is just enough to be annoying.

Going to work on the train inventory again today.

Prayers for those not feeling well.

I have a Bethlehem Steel docksider with TMCC by ERR. Runs great, wish there was room for sound.
 

Jonadel

Member
Arrived back home last night after a wonderful week in Florida, what a great time. Only spent one day doing "touristy" things (Universal) other wise it was spent with family or walking on the beach at Vero, I could easily see us spending a month or two in Florida once the boss retires. We stayed four nights with her college room mate and husband, they have a beautiful home one block from the ocean, great place to watch the sunset with a glass of wine. When we drove to the airport yesterday at exactly this time it was 86, today's temp here......... 28 :curse:

We did get to Daytona Beach last Friday for the opening of bike week and got a personal tour of the speedway from a volunteer, FANTASTIC, she had clearance to take us everywhere. We were in the right place at the right time.

Chief-- your bike is ready to be picked up!
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