Life and Times of a urban railfan

        With the rear of 2016 in the clear and the headlights of 2017 in full view I begin to look back over the past year and where I was this time last year. As 2015 came to a close it was a year of hard change I lost a lot, how much I would rather not say. This year brought me a new vehicle a much needed asset in the train chasing realm. With my new addition brought about some new trips, it was this past spring on my first trip driving out to Bellevue Ohio with my buddy Dave that seemed to show the first signs of change for the better. One of the memorable moments from the trip was when we caught the Wheeling coming out in Monroeville Ohio I remember it greatly as I stood on the bridge of the former New York Central Eastbound track that was turned into a trail and provided me with this perfect shot as the train began to cross the river. Tigers on the Prowl in Monroeville  Later on in a few weeks of this picture would bring me to having my first car accident and having to re

     Some things bring about a memory, this one come while I was driving last Thursday on my way to help someone move some boxes out of the basement. While I was driving through the new interchange ramp I look over to the right and saw that what remained of the Akron Barberton Belt's East Akron  line right of way and the water department maintenance facility was totally wiped clean and nothing remained but a dirt pile. Let's rewind  25+ years ago back when I was about 9 or 10 I remember riding over to South street to a restaurant called the Bunn. It was about 1500 feet south of the water dept and the Beltline crossed directly in front of it and me and my dad would go for a cheeseburger and the hopes one of the pinkish yellow switch engines would traverse the line, and every once and a while  we would get a show when they made their way back to Barberton. Little did I know that in less than 5 years the tracks I would see these trains on would be nothing but a memory. I persona

    One thing for certain is change is inevitable, Trains change tracks, direction, and symbols so it should be to no surprise that eventually I would have to change the format of my blog. I made the changes due to wanting to simply make the blog better and easier to read on mobile devices. Also I just got sick and tired of trying to keep the description and links from running into the pictures or the actual writing. Like when trains change tracks a bulletin is issued giving a detailed description of what changes the crew can expect so hopefully this post can be as such. Let's take a look  at some of the new changes......... Screen shot with some Descriptions For you desk-toppers, or those who have a laptop and read my post from them there are some neat features to look at. The first feature to the left is a side bar featuring all of my post from the most recent all the way back to the beginning. Also another neat feature is to the right the little black bar, mouse over it

            It was Nov,10th 2015 a year ago today although oddly it seems like a lifetime ago. I got to where I am today because of these choices I made this day. It was raining that morning, thankfully the rain held off just enough for me to ride my bike down to the spot where I set and watch trains roll through the city. Now it had began to rain again as I took shelter under the overhang of the parking deck trying to stay warm with damp pants from the ride down and only a Thermos of hot coffee and some saltine crackers for breakfast. Could it have been worse? I guess it could, but to me it seemed like the end of the world and it was it was an end to the world I knew, one I created based upon false hopes and dreams. For about a year and a half I called myself trying everything I could to try and make this lady I fell in love with love me back but to no avail. I should have known it when she said we would be done as soon as the friend, her man, the one she loved came home. But I praye

  Good evening fellow railfans,  you may have been wondering about the title well it is my short title as the long title is guilty of watching trains but not guilty of failing to live up to your standards.  Since the beginning time people have tried to set some form of standard and make people feel inferior or guilty for not living up to it. From the Bible times to the present day society we classify things we do such as clothing, lifestyles and hobbies into what is deemed normal. For many years I have been hurt by rejections due to the fact I like trains. I have been told everything from grow up to something must be wrong with you. Society has always went with the IN-CROWD the cool kids, the ones with the most clout, the best clothes, the latest gadgets or who is the most popular kid/person in the group. For me growing up I never could be put into this class for the most part of my high school life I put work in trying to learn my trade as a carpenter and get th

        For the most part I know you guys who follow me must have thought I dropped off the face of the earth, well I haven't or least I don't think I have. Honesty to tell the truth I have been busy with work, family and dealing with some personal issues that has been plaguing me. In the next few weeks I hope to get back to blogging and bringing you some new material and some new knowledge and encouragement. Since I feel like I kinda owe it to you here is a summary of my summer and beginning of Fall. This past summer was a hot one to say the least but I managed to get some pics anyhow. First trip of the summer I took our family on a trip to Alliance Ohio to a restaurant called Burger Hut. This little side attraction sits next to the Norfolk Southern Cleveland line and is a handy little spot to set and watch trains while eating lunch or dinner, and if you like fish they have all you can eat on Fridays ( I believe this is seasonal but I could be wrong). For the most part we had

For the most part I enjoy photographing trains, as a railfan it is just my nature. But with photographing railroaders and trains comes a often unknown responsibility. The responsibility of helping someone keep their job. For the most part as railfans we can get worked up over a door being open on a locomotive, but is it worth calling it in or posting a picture of it ? At what cost does one have to pay to make someone happy? When we photograph trains or the men and women who operate them we must be vigilant and careful of what we post and how we go about it.  Sadly the relationships between railfans and railroaders is deteriorating at a rapid pace, why? Glad you asked. Thirty years ago management turned a blind eye to the relationships between railfans and railroaders and life seemed good, but what happened? Well? Railfans began losing common sense and the diligence to be safe and stay out of the way and a few lawsuits later railroads had to begin cracking down on local crews for bei

 With summer being in full swing and a lot of us in travel mode we often times can ignore the dangers of summer weather. While perfect sun and lots of trains make for a railfans delight they also can set the stage for a perfect storm of trouble in more than one way or another. With hot weather one of the first things I want to talk about is thunderstorms, they can sneak up on the unsuspecting railfan and can bring about some nasty surprises such as hail, flash flooding, and even tornadoes Here is a couple of screenshots from my computer of what is considered a Bow Echo type of thunderstorm. A pretty nasty storm If you noticed the storm had not reached me yet, but the dark clouds were ominous and within a few minutes I would be surrounded by high winds and rain. Not only high winds and rain but lightning and thunder as well. Another type of thundershower As you can see from the above this thunderstorm brought  lot of rain around 2am that morning. Now you maybe wonderin

          I has been a while since my last post but I have  just been too busy with dealing with life, work, weather,a car accident and other issues that has kept me from writing, hopefully you guys can look past this. Today's blog is about a trip I took to Bellevue Ohio with my buddy Dave.     It began with a 4:15am alarm ringing I was on the road and picking Dave up at 6:00am for the hour and a half drive west. Once we got there we sat a while and watched some trains along with the sun rising up behind us. After a few trains we went to get snacks and what we considered breakfast when we came upon a Train changing crews and getting a inspection for a hot box. NS 218 at Flat Rock Road with a heritage unit in tow After the 218 we hit the road in a effort to capture a Wheeling train in the next town over. We got there in plenty of time, and we were joined by another railfan. Now it was a great location and light but it did not turn out well for my buddy who just as the tra

       Good Evening my friends, This week has been about a lot of change for me, good change. I would like to open up and let you know a little more of me, for the most part I used to either ride my bike, the bus, or rely on other railfans to be able to go to trackside. For the most part I was out in the weather 90% of the time whether it be freezing cold or pouring rain, you name it, I was out there in it. Well this week I was able to get my first car and drive to work and trackside, but Saturday morning became the moment I found out what I was really missing by being a groundhog type of individual. I rose up at my usual time of 4:15am got my bag and thermos packed for what I hoped would be a decent morning trackside. As I headed out the door and started my vehicle and allowed the windows to defrost, I sat feeling in a sense guilty as I was doing something I never had the privilege to attempt before. After my windows cleared I backed out on the driveway and went on my way. The firs

      I have to admit it has been a while since I last posted here, but lack time and lack of trains has kept me from having any content until now. For the most part the tracks I like to fan have seen a decrease in traffic like most of the railroads things come and go in spurts. Ups and downs are no stranger to the men and women who work the high iron. So what is one to do without trains and suitable weather? I decided to get creative. I recently acquired a fisheye lens, why, and what is a fisheye? Well the reason why is I wanted to do something different and be a little creative , now what is a fisheye? A fisheye is a special effects lens that distorts a picture into a circular scene on my Canon 70D this is a interesting 185 degree field of view. The one I have is a Lensbaby this is a meager and affordable lens that is full manual, meaning this lens has no electronics so you must shoot in full manual mode (something I do anyhow). Q015 with the Fisheye The above picture was the

             Since my last post nothing much has changed except now I am seeing a few more trains during the early morning hours and more daytime trains. The Monday before last was my 35th birthday and so cold even the penguins had on hats and coats. Faced with  -19 deg windchill I ventured out and into one of my spots where I know I could stay warm safely before going to work. Not soon after I arrived, and  poured my cup of coffee the scanner cackled and K145 was within radio range. Staying in my warm spot until he was about 7 minutes away I did most of my prep work in the warmth to get ready before attempting to go out in the brutal and dangerous cold. ( On a side note do not try this unless you are well prepared because at these temps frostbite can happen in minutes) Once outside I finished setting up and as K145 called the last signal before my location I knew he would be stopping. Hearing R394 Clearing the interlocking coming from single main I decided to stay at my perch to catch