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May 2015
Volume 6
Issue 5
Inside the
OC&E
CMRM Hosts RockyOp
Published by the
Colorado Model
Railroad Museum
680 10th Street
Greeley, CO 80631
970-392-2934
www.cmrm.org
By Bill Kepner
One of the most popular model railroad operating events in
the country is RockyOp. Scheduled on May 1-3, 2015, RockyOp is an organized weekend of special operating sessions on
11 model railroads along the Front Range of Colorado. Many
attendees are members
of the Operations Special
Interest Group of the
National Model Railroad
Association, but the event
itself is completely sponsored and organized by
an independent volunteer
group.
Pennsylvania. We even had volunteer Karl Luce return to
Colorado for the weekend. Karl had moved to Washington
state several months ago for a job change, but was back in
town to experience this event.
Everything went fairly
smoothly; some switches
were run, and minor
derailments occurred, but
everyone had fun, and we
hope everyone tells their
friends of the good times
that were had.
The Colorado Model
Railroad Museum was
one of the featured model
railroads for the 2015
event. Approximately 24
attendees arrived at the
museum by 5:30 PM on
Friday evening.
Rocky Op in Northern
Colorado normally occurs
every other May, alternating with model railroads in
Southern Colorado in the
even-numbered years.
For more information
about this year's event,
check out their web site
http://www.rockyop.org.
In about nine months,
information will be posted
about next year's event.
Kirk Orndorff coaches RockyOp guest Phillip Abaray of WestAfter a thorough overview
minster, Colorado. Phillip worked for the Union Pacific Railroad
of the layout presented
as a Track Inspector out of Omaha, Nebraska for over 40 years.
by Operations Manager,
This would be his first time operating at CMRM, and with a train
Steven Palmer, the visitors
of 5 locomotives and 45 cars, it was probably the longest train
drew numbers to deterhe ever operated during his railroad career!
mine the order that they
could pick their assignments. Throttles and radios were handed out and each first
time operator was paired up with an experienced museum
CMRM 6th Anniversary Open House
volunteer.
Friday, May 22nd, 4:30-6:00 PM
A full schedule was run, with the yards switched as needed.
While the OC&E layout doesn't have a lot of local switching
Admission is free to the public!!! Come and celebrate
opportunities, there are few model railroads in the world
the Museum’s new recognition wall where we celewhere 50 to 80 car-long trains are routinely operated, so the
brate our Donors, Sponsors, and Sustaining Members.
attendees were able to have a unique experience. Many were
There will be cake!
from outside Colorado, and some came from as far away as
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Inside the OC&E
May 2015
More RockyOp Photos
This column, top: Steven Palmer welcomes the attendees
and covers some of the operating practices of the railroad.
Middle: Karl Luce originally discovered the museum through
Rock Op several yearas ago, and has felt it was a “life changing event.” Bottom: Quintin Foster, from Salt Lake City,
positions the set of OC&E “Frogs” in the Coors Bay Yard while
Mike Command switches the Coos Bay Turn.
This column top: By the middle of the session, most of the
available trains were on the layout, and the staging yards
were almost empty. Middle: Charles White brings his train
into the Klamath Falls Yard, while several other visitors wait
their turn to proceed on the mainline. Bottom: For about 20
minutes, the main lights in the museum were turned off and
the layout was lit with “night lighting.” This gave everyone a
chance to experience railroading in the dark.
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Inside the OC&E
Happy Birthday Union Pacific
May 2015
By Wayne Hansen, Union Pacific Steam Crew Volunteer Ticket Agent
Our Colorado Model Railroad Museum celebrates the Union Pacific Railroad
each May. How does the UP itself celebrate its rich heritage? In the 150th
year since President Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railway Act of
1862 creating the Union Pacific, one example is the Union Pacific 844 Shiloh
Limited Steam Special in April 2012. CMRM volunteers Brent Milota, Jim
Leonard and I served as volunteers to accompany American Civil War Battle
of Shiloh reenactors aboard this special train. Ride along with us back into
American history.
Left: CMRM volunteer and UP Station Master,
Jim Leonard, waves to the crowd as the
train leaves one of the many towns the train
visited. Above: Author, Ticket Agent, and
CMRM volunteer, Wayne Hansen, poses in
front of the famous UP 844. Below: One of
the members of the UP Steam Crew maintains the locomotive after everyone else gets
to go home.
We depart Cheyenne March 22, 2012 with a minimal consist
of 2 locomotives and 7 cars: UP 844, two water bottles “Jim
Adams” and “Joe Jordan,” UP 2010 C45ACCTE “Boy Scouts of
America,” Step Car UPP 9336, Tool Car “Art Lockman,” BoilerDorm “Howard Fogg,” Baggage Car “Lynn Nystrom,” and
Souvenir Car “Reed F. Jackson.” We stop every 75 miles or so
to lube the 844 bearings.
The first night, we park at the Business Car track in downtown
North Platte, Nebraska and stay at the Holiday Inn Express.
One crewmember stays with 844 to maintain the boiler temperature all night. In order to depart at 8 AM, all crew need to be at
the train by 6 AM.
March 23 – We depart North Platte and arrive at the North
Council Bluffs, Iowa UP Car Shop where the Heritage Fleet is
stored and maintained.
March 24 – We add our go-to-war equipment of 14 cars: Power
Car UPP 207, Crew Sleeper “Omaha,” Baggage Car “Council
Bluffs,” Diner Car “City of Los Angeles,” Dome Diner “Colorado Eagle,” Coach “Texas Eagle,” Dome Coach “Columbine,”
Coach “Sunshine Special,” Dome Coach “Challenger,” Coach
“Katy Flyer,” Coach “Portland Rose,” Coach “City of Salina,”
Business Car “Kenefick,” and wait for it… Flat Car “Cannon
Car” UPP 3008. When was the last time you saw a Class 1 railroad with a Cannon Car on its mainline?
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Inside the OC&E
May 2015
9 AM – The “Shiloh Limited Steam
Special” departs Kansas City en route to
the war. Box lunches are served to all
passengers in the baggage car. The Special arrives at Jefferson City, Missouri
– not lost on the Union soldiers – for a
musical media event, by our on-board
Shiloh Band.
March 25 – We depart North Council Bluffs at 8 AM and
arrive at Kansas City, Missouri at 10th Street East Fuel Track.
The train and crew layover here. We reprovision and polish
the train on March 26.
March 27, 5 AM - Engineer Ed Dickens, Fireman Ted Schulte,
and our pilot crew reposition the train to Kansas City Union
Station. The crew loads 325 Union and Confederate commanders, troops, families, and the Shiloh Band. All personnel
are under military command. Loading is markedly orderly.
All reenactors are in period attire with bedrolls, backpacks,
haversacks, and canteens. All rifles and cartridge boxes
containing black powder are stowed in the baggage car and
rifle racks. All sabers, swords, and sidearms are stowed and
secured in the baggage car. All cannons are secured on the
Cannon Car. The train becomes SKCSL 27, the “Shiloh Limited Steam Special.”
This momentous travel stretches the imagination. I see 1862
reenactors on the way to war in 1950's reclining chairs with
footrests and plush dome and observation cars, pulled by a
1944 steam locomotive. This is a far cry from the boxcars and
shared space with mules and horses of the 1860s.
Adjusting the First National Confederate Flag – “Stars and
Bars” at Washington, MO
After other public relations stops, we arrive in St Louis, Missouri. The troops stay with the train all night. Their dinner
chow line is set up just outside the train. Porta potties are
available. The troops will sleep on the train. Pickets are posted
to guard the cannons, the locomotive, the armories, and the
Command Car (Kenefick). The steam crew turns the train
over to military authority, and security and heads to the nearest Crown Plaza Hotel.
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Inside the OC&E
May 2015
March 28 – Our crew arrives at the train at 4 AM for a 6 AM
departure from St Louis. Box breakfasts are served to the
troops. We plan to off-load the troops and cargo 126 miles
away from Shiloh to keep this special train out of the war zone,
to be used another day.
3:45 PM – We arrive at West Marion Intermodal Terminal
in Arkansas. We unload the troops who board buses to go to
war. We unload eight cannons to flatbed trailers for transport
to war. We uncouple 14 empty passenger cars and one empty
cannon car for the trip back to Council Bluffs. The Shiloh Limited Steam Special is terminated. This mission is complete.
These 1862 Union soldiers say farewell to their 1944 transportation for two days.
The Confederate commander ponders what lies ahead.
The Blue-Gray Alliance organized the
150th Anniversary Reenactment of the
Battle of Shiloh. Reenactors, delivered
by our train, joined 6,000 others for the
commemoration.
In 1862, MG Ulysses S. Grant led the
Union Army of the Tennessee with
48,894 troops. General Albert Sidney
Johnston and Pierre G.T. Beauregard
led the Confederate Army of the Mississippi with 44,699 troops.
The battle lasted two days. The Confederates prevailed the first day. The Union
eventually prevailed, but not before
24,000 American troops died – the
bloodiest battle in American history up
to that time.
Leaving the train at Marion, Arkansas and on to Shiloh.
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Inside the OC&E
May 2015
Above: Union Pacific Delivers. The cargo was delivered on time and placed into
urgent service. Right: Union and Confederate cannons, soldiers, and the Union
Pacific unite for a moment before their skirmish. Below: The crew is onboard
again for a 6 AM departure out of St. Louis, Missouri.
But there's more about our train:
March 29 – The train and crew begin “UP 844 Steam Special.”
We layover and reprovision our remaining and original consist
of 2 locomotives and 7 cars.
March 30 – UP 844 Steam Special departs Marion, Arkansas at 8 AM. We make four lube and public relations stops.
During these stops the crew grips and grins, has photos taken,
answers questions, kisses babies, and hands out 150th Union
Pacific anniversary pins. We eventually arrive at North Little
Rock, Arkansas at 3:15 PM for our last PR stop. Engineer Ed
Dickens turns the consist at Van Buren Wye and spots our
train at Track 432, Three in Hole.
For the next two days we remain on public display and are
visited by thousands. The crew gives cab tours and works
in the Souvenir Car selling UP Steam hats, shirts, pins, and
tchotchkes. The train will resume as the “UP 150 Express”
headed to Texas and beyond. It won't return to Cheyenne
until May 16. But that's a tale for another time. Thanks for
riding with us. And Happy Birthday Union Pacific.
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Inside the OC&E
May 2015
Model Railroad Tourism: An Understanding of Visitor
Experience at the Colorado Model Railroad Museum
Connor Law, University of Northern Colorado student and
former intern at the Colorado Model Railroad Museum,
conducted a survey for his senior level research class in the
Fall of 2014. His research showed that most visitors were
extremely satisfied with their museum experience but some
would like to see changes among the exhibits.
CMRM took this information to heart and has begun a
remodel of the museum's artifact displays. Connor was
chosen from all the UNC Recreation, Tourism and Hospitality
students to display his research at the UNC event and was
also asked to be the guest speaker for the Research Dinner
(right).
Congratulations Connor!
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Inside the OC&E
Circus Trains!
May 2015
Photos by Greg Gardner
During the weekend of April 10-11, CMRM held its first ever
Circus Days that featured several circus trains on the layout
along with a few special events for the kids.
The “Hozian Shows” train proved to be very popular, and we
hope it makes frequent future visits to the OC&E Railroad.
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Inside the OC&E
It’s Happening!
May 2015
Photos by Bill Kepner
In the February issue of Inside the OC&E, we reported that
the Great Western Railway intended to spend $14 million to
upgrade their line between Windsor and Greeley. There was
some skepticism that this project would happen anytime soon
or even happen at all.
Very soon after the plan was made public, construction did
start at the Windsor end, and by the beginning of May, sev-
Above: In Windsor, several switches were replaced on
Saturday March 28, 2015. To minimize the amount of
time the track was out of service, they had been built
eral miles of track had been upgraded, many highway grade
crossings were rebuilt, and new tracks were being built near
the location of Farmers and west of 35th Ave in Greeley.
Other than a loaded ballast train taking up residence in
Greeley, there has been no visible sign of activity on the
Union Pacific connection several blocks north of the museum.
But that could start at any time.
in the field next to this
location, and then like a
model railroad, installed
in large sections. Left:
Meanwhile a welding
contractor works on a rail
joint next to the Colorado
Highway 257 crossing.
Right: Most of the GWR
track still looks like this,
just south of the museum,
so there’s still a lot of
work to do.
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Inside the OC&E
May 2015
0
Inside the OC&E
May 2015
Inside the OC&E
April Visitor Counts
Inside the OC&E is the official newsletter of the Colorado
Model Railroad Museum. Its purpose is to communicate
news and information to museum volunteers and others
interested in the museum.
2010201120122013 20142015
Week 1
215223345306383256
Week 2
114199266219334193
Week 3
184141361336193422
Week 4
191138215409294394
The June issue PUBLICATION DEADLINE: Tuesday June
2, at 5:00 PM. Send submissions to drgw0579@comcast.
net.
Totals 704 701 1187127012041265
Average
176175297318301316
YTD 288729905045542349535114
Bill Kepner, Editor.
Ed Hurtubis and Bob Owens, Associate Editors
CMRM 2015 Spring Events
May 8-9 – Union Pacific Days
Friday, June 5th - All Volunteers and their families are
invited to attend the Downtown Celebration on the 9th
Street Plaza at 5 PM for an unexpected surprise!
May 16-17 – Sherman Hill Train Show in Cheyenne
May 22nd - CMRM 6th Anniversary Celebration Open
House, 4:30-6 PM. Will be operating late that day for this
event. This event is free to the public from 4:30-6 PM.
There will be cake!
Please look at your summer schedule as the museum
will need Docent coverage every Wednesday and Thurs
through June, July, and August.
Beginning May 27th – Summer Hours of Wednesday
through Saturday 10 AM-4 PM, Sunday 1-4PM
Newsletter News
Monthly Theme:
Each month we will try to have a theme the newsletter. The
theme for the June issue is: Greeley History. We will take
any contributed article at any time, but if you have an interest
in writing about something in Greeley's history that would be
of interest to the readership, please consider writing an article
for the newsletter.
Videos:
Future articles may include a short video which would be
available on the museum's website. If you would like to try
watching a short video of the museum's motorcar, click on:
http://www.gfsm.org/UpcomingMuseumEvents/IMG_3468.MOV
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