Of Presidents and Kings



      This week has brought about a lot of interesting things trackside let's begin with Tuesday and Wednesday  not much went on in the special realm I heard the Q226 but never the less I only missed it by a minute. (I had to be to work and I refuse to be late over a train even though I love the iron that much) So let's fast forward to Thursday, the morning brought zero trains but as I was at work when I received the text that the Nickel Plate Berkshire number 765  That belongs to the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society was coming into Akron for her annual excursion for steam in the valley. I had a place I wanted to shoot in mind but some troublemakers had showed up and I decided not to keep any bad company so I moved up the hill to the second place I had in mind. As I arrived I was met by a friend whom I had not  seen in fifteen years. As the afternoon progressed so did the 765 and along with her came the rest of my friends. While waiting on the final leg of her journey into downtown we all got into position to take the picture and was courteous and respectful enough to stay out of each others way. Here is the shot I was able to capture.....

765 Passing the Hotel Matthews monument.
While the only reason this worked was we had to be respectful and courteous of each other......

Marc and I after the 765 came by (Photo by George Sillett)

When you are respectful and courteous and take the time to show it to others good things like this happen, nobody lost and everybody will win it just is the facts.
While that day faded into one of the most beautiful days I have had in a while.
Friday Morning came and along with a Surprise on Q253. What was my surprise? It was CSX 7812 the Former CSX 1992 that pulled the POTUS (President Of The United States) for Bill Clinton (what a neat surprise I had there) after the surprise visitor, I made a new Friend name Tameka, she has always been friendly and has said good morning to me. After that I went to work, but today laid the ground work for some great chases. The first one I want to mention was the rock train that had special power a former lease engine still in it's green and silver screen we went to a spot of my choice and I nailed the shot.

Rocks and Rain
While it seemed to want to rain all day today we was able along with some other usual trains to capture Q015 with over 10,000 feet of train a king sized monster. Although just before him the dispatcher ran Q355 down the opposite track to be able to get the Q015 around the Q389 and the Q355 that was just ahead of the Q389 

Q389 running reverse main

Q015 rolling west past the two peddler freights
With this blog I want to close today with a dedication to my Railroad Friends I often see the sacrifices these guys make transporting the goods and services we take for granted. From the ones like my buddy Dave whom has to repair and keep up the track to the conductors like my buddy Randy whom spends a rainy Saturday riding a shove through Akron moving stone ,while most of us love to spend a day like today in the warmth and comfort of our homes, guys like him make a often unappreciated and dangerous sacrifice to make sure not only we have Stone to build with but Coal to keep us in lights, food for your table, and the goodies you enjoy so much,
One the cowboy's whom rides the steel horses
While most professional sports players have fans, I am proud to say I am a fan of these guys when you move the tonnage they do given the circumstances, sacrifices  and the pay they are a special force not to be reckoned with. With this I close dedicating this blog to all those railroad buddies I know personally and the ones whom give me the old blast on the horn while I am trackside whom I have yet to meet a special thank you comes from me to you. Until next time Take care, remember God is still in charge

If you Enjoyed Follow me on the following : 

 
 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Radio Call

Image
The real man smiles in trouble, gathers strength from distress, and grows brave by reflection. ~Thomas Paine ~         After a long and much needed sabbatical I am back, to say I was at my wits end when I posted my last post before Christmas would be an understatement. I walked away from almost every aspect of railroad photography and photography in general. To say I was fed up with the hobby in general,  plus having people back in my  life who did not approve of my hobby and set out to make my life a living hell and it would eventually affect my health. I decided to just stick to watching trains in the morning and a few trips while I pursued my new hobby of amateur radio obtaining the highest class license available. Now it is rare that I would ever find what would happen next, but I wound up finding my way back to the tracks. One of my few after work catches Now last summer I joined a local ham radio club but I mostly kept quiet about about my passion for  tr
Read more

The Life Of a Urban Railfan

Image
My name is Elmer and I am a freelance railroad photographer. Most of my work involves trains, however as a railfan in an urban environment. I  write about my days and some of the different things I do here in my blog. As a photographer I try to include the environment in which the train  operates. Being in a urban setting provides plenty of opportunities as well as challenges. Opportunities like being able to Photograph various backgrounds including the sky and city scape along with the trains. Some of the challenges I face are having to shoot from odd angles, bridges, publicly accessible parking decks and various odd places that not only are difficult to get to in a urban environment but also present some limitations to my equipment  things such as fences, trees, and other structures.  Early Morning Coke Train For the most part I have learned to stay in my lane meaning stick with the one thing I have known about, and that is trains I have done photo shoots for parties and
Read more

Running from the night

Image
          This week began on this past Saturday, trains  have been thin this week but I had the chance to get some great photo opportunities. One of the best pictures I feel in my opinion never even had a train in it. On a way to a friends house I cross the same set of tracks they bring the stone train in on. (for more on the rock train read A blues brothers morning ) while on the way I began to notice how the sunset was taking shape and when I arrived at the crossing the sky was perfect.  The Sunset Saturday I stopped and got my camera out, using my large 55-250mm lens in manual mode I was able within a few minutes capture the shot. Mind you I was pressed for time but made it on time to my destination with a few minutes to spare. As Saturday evening came to a close I reflected on the just what I had taken a picture of.  Sunday afternoon had it's own challenges after church while I was out scoping shot opportunities on the same track in a oddly 53 deg rainy afternoon. I cro
Read more